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Old 05-24-2005, 05:51 PM   #1
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Default Oak Birch Inn - Alton Bay

This is the scanned version of an old brochure for the Oak Birch Inn. Date Unknown. This brochure is 'on loan' from the "Lakehouse Collection". Thanks.





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Photos of the 1989 Fire....

More Oak Birch Photos


Oil Painting by Bren Boudrow - 1993

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Old 05-24-2005, 06:53 PM   #2
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Default Another Brochure

Here's another brochure from the same era when the Inn was managed by Mrs. C. G. Franics. Much of the text is the same and images are predominantly postcards of Alton Bay posted elsewhere on this site, so I'll only post a few highlights.






"The dark paneled dining room was very popular with the local residents. Evenings, a guest could motor or sail to the Oak Birch Inn dock then enjoy dinner or a fun-filled evening at the movies, bowling alley, or visit the lounge. Some of the older residents even remember the days of the big bands and dances, with ladies in long dresses sweeping down the staircase. the bowling alley was also fondly remembered by bowling enthusiasts staying at the inn and town residents too.

When Richard and Myde Stocker of Peabody, MA, bought the inn in 1982, they were determined to preserve the historic qualities of this landmark. the rustic pine wainscoating and massive brick fireplaces were highlighted with additions from old hotels that had been demolished. The Stockers added chairs and chandeliers from the old Narragansett Hotel in Kennebunkport and tavern chairs from the famous Wentworth-by-the-Sea Hotel in New Castle, New Hampshire.

There was a large porch that wrapped around the sides and front of the inn. When the row of white rocking chairs was sighted it was a sure sign that inn was opening soon and ready for another busy summer season."

from "Winnipiseogee Heritage" A project of the Alton High School U.S. History Class.



Click here... to super-size this text and zoom in on the Old Mount.

"......the sun actually disappears in an instant of time. One minute it shines in its full glory and the next drops from view behind the rugged hills, leaving the heavens aglow with gold and silver, which change into a perfect panorama of colors and shades until the twilight is enveloped in darkness.".



Inn and CASINO! Tichnor Linen Card dated in the 1940s (illegible)



(A Tichnor Card - the best) Thanks again to Lakehouse for contributing these images for the enjoyment of all forum fanatics.

Anyone have any idea where the Eagle's Outlook is? (or was?)

The End

Last edited by mcdude; 05-26-2005 at 06:35 AM.
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Old 05-25-2005, 06:58 AM   #3
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Great stuff as usual McD.I thought it was interesting how the guys in the photo of the boats getting ready to race were wearing suits and ties.Should we make this manditory dress on the lake today? SS
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Old 05-27-2005, 06:31 PM   #4
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Question Oak Birch Inn

I have a bunch of Oak Birch Inn postcards and remember going there as a kid when it was a movie theater. They only seemed to show slightly older movies. I distinctly remember the ad for "On A Clear Day." That must have been in the early 70's.

When did it burn down? I can't quite remember anymore. It seems to have been an empty lot for such a long time now.

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Old 01-20-2006, 12:07 PM   #5
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Hi ya'll. This is my first post here.

I was born and raised in Portsmouth, NH, and moved to SC back in the early 70's.

My uncle Russ Caswell owned and operated the Oak Birch Inn for several years in the 60's. If anyone reading this post knew him, I'd like to hear from you.

My family (Mom, Dad, seven kids) spent many wonderful summer days at the inn, cruising the lake in Russ's cabin cruiser and swimming off the Oak Birch pier.

I remember seeing movies like Operation Petticoat (Tony Curtis 1959) and Pillow Talk at the Oak Birch Theatre.

When I was in my late teens, I would drive my 64 1/2 Mustang 2+2 to Alton, stay at the inn by myself and attend teen dances upstairs in the "bowling alley" building next to the inn.

I believe the Levy family purchased the inn from my uncle, but I could be wrong.

Oh, and as I remember the Inn burned down on April 3rd.... My birthday.

Looking forward to enjoying this forum,

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Old 01-20-2006, 03:14 PM   #6
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Welcome aboard JicJac.You'll find a lot of great info and history here,especially from our resident historian McDude.
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Old 02-10-2006, 08:14 PM   #7
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Default Movie Schedule - Summer of 1961


Image courtesy of the R. Banfield Collection. Thanks!
Ladies Man - Jerry Lewis
http://humor.about.com/library/weekly/aa042299.htm

The Misfits - Marilyn Monroe and Clark Gable
http://www.marilynmonroe.com/about/movies/misfits.html

The Alamo - John Wayne
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0053580/
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Old 02-11-2006, 08:12 PM   #8
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Ad for the Oak Birch Inn in the 1950 "Where to Stay in the Lakes Region" Magazine.


Click Below to Super-size this image....

http://www.winnipesaukee.com/photopo...kbirch1950.jpg
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Old 06-25-2006, 05:50 PM   #9
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http://www.winnipesaukee.com/photopo...halton.jpg?907

Old Photopostcard.
CLICK HERE to supersize this image.

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Old 06-25-2006, 06:05 PM   #10
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McD,

Thanks for the post card post. If you look at the building on the left you will see the sign for the bowling alley which was one lane I believe and utilized a "pin boy" to reset the pins for each frame. I was in the building only once in the mid 50's and it was still operational then but I do not remember when it was closed. No jokes now about my age for remembering the old alley.
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Old 05-29-2008, 05:40 PM   #11
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Default "New" Postcards


Postmark 1914


Postmark 1929

Click here to see the complete OAK BIRCH INN PHOTO GALLERY
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Old 09-01-2011, 09:42 AM   #12
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Default Oak Birch Inn - Old Memories

My brother sent me this url so I thought I'd join up. I'm Don Levy and my folks, Dick and Millie owned the Inn for some years. I have mixed memories of the Inn, different than most as my family owned it from the late '60s to the early '80s. It started when my parents bought the cottage abutting to the south to the Inn. Right after it seemed ralatives loved us and came to see us every weekend. Jokingly it was mentioned that we'd need to rent parking spaced at the Inn and maybe even get a deal for rooms. The next weekend as we sat for breakfast my father walked in and smiling (never a good thing) dropped a huge keyring in the middle of the table and said something like you got what you asked for. Yep, it was the keys to the Inn. Turned out the town had done some rezoning and rezoned the property to prohibit it operating as a hotel but, grandfathered the Inn provided it operated each year. The owner had decided not to open so gave dad a decent deal.

It was in very poor condition. Age and neglect was showing. The back addition was in especially poor condition as was the bowling alley and dance building. The movie theater had so much mold it was all but dangerous to ven venture in. We spent long hours trying to bring it back to where it was at least habitable for that summer. Later, we spent much of the time plumbing, new electic and winterizing it. Not the happiest time for a high school kid wanting to be with friends.

None of us had any idea how to run the Inn and we made some mistakes as we learned. Happily, there was Ina who had been with the Inn from the time she was a child cleaning rooms and making beds. She was in her late '60s to early '70s when she was with us but never slowed down. We also had the Tate family. He was a teacher who during the summer ran the movie theater while his wife ran the concessions. I learned from him how to run the machines and from prior training could keep the ancient amps running. That was interesting. They had 2 daughters. I seem to remember their names being Polly and Mary Jane.

The first year we had a manager/chef and his wife run manage the restaruant and during the week, the Inn but found they were running a back door operation that cost us dearly. Later we employed an ex-military man, Syd and his wife Arlene and they lived at the Inn all year round.

The folks eventually decided the Inn was enough so sold the cottage to the Wilcox family who had been living there as tenets for a couple of years. They had a daughter, Pam and 2 boys, one was Billy but, I can not remember the other's name.

My father owned a store in Portsmouth so during the season we worked in it and then in late after noon jumped into the car and drove to the Inn in time for the movies. Frank and I alternated so some times I had the early show and some days he had it. No free time for the most part during the summer except for the nights when Frank had the late show.

My brother, Kim stayed at the Inn all summer and did things like getting the casino stable enough for the bowling ally to work and to hold parties and dances on the upper floor. There was stream running under the building and it had become unsafe for someyears.

During our ownership, we sealed my sister's grab at a hubby with a 100 lobster dinner, my brother and I had our Bar Mitzvah and my sister got married there. It was a favorite place for smaller weddings.

After graduating from high school, I did not spend much time there, traveling to Israel to work on a kibbutz, New York and finally undergrad school and owning several stores in western MA. I was not around when the folks decided to sell but, I remember they sold it to a family from Massachusetts who had been going to the Inn. They were the owners when it burnt down. I still remember getting the call from the family telling me of the event, it was like hearing of a family member dying. I had wanted to take the family there but never got around to it and then, finding out a part of my childhood had been lost forever.

Sadly, when the family sold the Inn they did not keep any of the memorabilia they had collected over the years related to the Inn that was quite extensive. They did not even keep an old post card.
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Old 09-01-2011, 09:55 AM   #13
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Welcome to the Forum Don, I'm sure that you will hear from some of the history fans.
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Old 09-04-2011, 06:14 PM   #14
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Wow. What a story! Thanks for posting, Don.

What is on the former property where Oak Birch was located now-a-days? Or what's near it?
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Old 09-04-2011, 06:40 PM   #15
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We went there a lot for dinner in the 80s! Loved that place!
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Old 09-04-2011, 06:44 PM   #16
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Argie's Wife View Post
Wow. What a story! Thanks for posting, Don.

What is on the former property where Oak Birch was located now-a-days? Or what's near it?
Just an open lot with bushes and the front stairs coming down to route 11. It is located just after the first turn to the right I believe.
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Old 09-04-2011, 06:50 PM   #17
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I still hate to go by and see it gone.
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Old 09-04-2011, 08:11 PM   #18
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Quote:
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Just an open lot with bushes and the front stairs coming down to route 11. It is located just after the first turn to the right I believe.

Route 11? Or 28A? I think I need to go on a walkabout...
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Old 09-05-2011, 07:02 AM   #19
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Quote:
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Route 11? Or 28A? I think I need to go on a walkabout...
I sorrry, your right 28A.
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Old 09-05-2011, 08:39 AM   #20
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Default Online info and memorabilia

Plenty of info and "stuff" online.

Facebook Page:

http://www.facebook.com/group.php?v=...d=100731500198

Ebay items for sale:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Oak-Birch-In...-/170526614236

http://www.ebay.com/itm/OAK-BIRCH-IN...-/320504884696

http://www.cardcow.com/322561/oak-bi...new-hampshire/

http://www.cardcow.com/162404/oak-bi...new-hampshire/
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Old 09-24-2011, 11:05 AM   #21
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As you go on 28A past Alton Bay beach, there is a right turn. There was a stone wall on the land side of the turn and the Inn was just at the end past the cottage that has a boat dock. The cottage belonged to us and then the Wilcox family. Not sure if they are still there. There should be a large open lot and on the water the remnants of the boat dock. The casino/bowling alley/dance floor building may still be there as it would not have been in the fire. Probably the remnants as it was on shaky ground as it was being undercut by a stream.
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Old 09-24-2011, 12:40 PM   #22
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This is what's left of the beautiful grand stairway that used to go from East Shore Drive to the screened porch. Look for these remnants as you drive by trying to avoid walkers and bicyclists on this narrow road!
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Old 09-24-2011, 03:26 PM   #23
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Mr McDude,
How old is that photo? We have looked many times and I can't believe we could not find something so big. The older photo's seem to have the stairs quite close to the lake unless a lot of dirt was added when the road was made wider.
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Old 09-24-2011, 03:59 PM   #24
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Mr McDude,
How old is that photo? We have looked many times and I can't believe we could not find something so big. The older photo's seem to have the stairs quite close to the lake unless a lot of dirt was added when the road was made wider.
You can go by there today and it is just about that size. It may be a shade smaller because of deterioration of the stairs. That is the size I remember it being when I use to go there many a moons ago. Say late 50's early 60's.
I'll check it out next week and try and take an up to date photo.
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Old 09-24-2011, 05:42 PM   #25
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Mr. Rattlesnake!
photo taken May 21, 2004. http://www.winnipesaukee.com/photopo...php?photo=2645
Compare to the old stairs......

...and Mr. RLW: I hope you and the lovely bride, Mrs. RLW, recently retired, are enjoying life full-time up at the lake.....at last!
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Old 09-25-2011, 10:29 AM   #26
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The following pictures of the Oak Birch Inn stairs on route 28A was taken today 9/25/11 at 10:56 AM
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Old 09-25-2011, 05:00 PM   #27
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Default Addition to Oak Birch Inn Info

I forgot to mention that you probably noticed that there is very little change between my todays pictures and McDude's 04 picture except that the birch trees have grown a bit more. Where the pier is located in the post card picture I was standing an about 3 or 4 cement stairs going down to a single pier. The large platform is not there at the present time.

Thanks McDude for the kind wishes for the bride and I on our retirement here on the mountain. Wish you and Mike were still here to visit.
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