The River Inn

On Thursday night, my sister Dodie and I went on a

"Mystery Tour" of Fergus Falls, hosted by the

Otter Tail County Historical Society.   

The tour began at the River Inn, which was of 

interest to us because our Mom worked there for a

short time before she was married.

The early photo above was in Mom's scrapbook from an

article in the Fergus Journal telling about the history

of the River Inn. 

 I don't believe she is on this picture, but it is

interesting to see what the restaurant looked like

in the early days.

The River Inn Hotel in Fergus Falls opened on Feb. 2, 1929.

It was a "plush" hotel and hosted many banquets,

especially at Christmas-time.

Politicians and performers,  including Adlai Stevenson, 6 Minnesota

governors, an opera singer, and a country western star came to stay at the hotel.

In the early days, The River Inn boasted of 100 beautiful rooms.

Then there was the coffee shop, Inca Room, dining room,

banquet hall, ballroom, dress shop, and beauty and barber shops.

The staff included bell boys in uniforms, a chef and two cooks,

a pastry cook, kitchen help, a salad girl, ten waitresses

and four maids.

During the depression, waitresses received $35/month.

The River Inn is now an apartment building,

and there is no restaurant on the main floor,

which is too bad.   It would make a nice 

restaurant with the view of the Otter Tail River

and the Fergus Falls in the background.

Wouldn't it be nice to bring back the "plush"

to Fergus Falls??