Built in 1912 by local businessman and Spanish American War veteran John Dennis, the hotel offered hot and cold water to each of its original 19 guest rooms, with every room heated by a hot air furnace in the basement. Its plans called for extensive decorative finish work characteristic of more upscale establishments in larger cities. Over the years, it has served as a place of lodging, drug store, antique shop, meeting center, and restaurant, and it remains one of the most photographed buildings in Central Oregon.