So, in 1921, a stone foundation was laid and in 1922, Carpenter VOLK framed the building. Despite this newfound accommodation, Price and his wife Bertha DeLaguna (also a fellow Stanford alum) still desired to see a chapel built. It wasn’t until 1919, when a den was added on to the Fallen Leaf Lake Lodge, that services were held indoors. In the early 1900’s, church services were held outdoors in the woods. On a side note, Pulitzer Prize winning author John Steinbeck, who frequented the Fallen Leaf Lake region, was employed at the lodge during the late 1920’s. The Stanford Sierra Camp is still in operation at Fallen Leaf Lake. In the 70’s and 80’s, Price’s grandson managed the lodge. The lodge remained in the family until 1959 when Price’s daughter Harriet sold it to the Stanford Alumni Association who had been running a camp there since 1953. Photo Credit: Pomona Public Library – Frasher Foto Postcard Collection It was at this time that Price began working with the Red Cross. The camp went until 1917 and then was closed down due to Word War 1. In 1906, the Agassiz camp was moved down to Fallen Leaf Lake where Price built the Fallen Leaf Lake Lodge. This school stayed in Alta until 1909 when it was then moved to Auburn, CA, before closing down in 1911 due to Price’s commitments to the Fallen Leaf Lake ventures. This camp was very successful under the guidance of Price, who also opened a boy’s school in Alta, CA, called Agassiz Hall in 1901. In 1897, Price founded a camp for boys called Camp Agassiz in Glen Alpine near Nathan Gilmore’s Glen Alpine Springs Resort. In the 1890’s, Price would begin spending a great deal of time in the Sierras where he developed a strong connection with the Tahoe region. He would go on to graduate from Stanford and also become a leading expert in ornithology and other branches of zoology. Price’s passion for the outdoors and wildlife fueled a budding zoology career that helped him pay for his expenses and led him to enrolling at Stanford University. A restless William could never settle down in one location and spent 1 ½ years in Arizona before landing back in California. A young Price was now on his own in the world.ĭuring his teenage years, Price seemed to go where the adventure took him. Sadly, at the age of 14, William’s father died. He returned a few days later with an unquenchable passion for nature.Ī few years after his runaway, William moved to Riverside, California, with his father. Within the first few years of his life, his mother died and he was sent to live with his grandparents who bounced around Wisconsin before heading to Nebraska.Īt a young age, William got to see many different cultures and places.Īt the age of 8 years old, after already showing a proclivity for the outdoors and hunting, Price ran away to live with a band of Indians so he could see what hunting was really like. Price was born on January 20, 1871, in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Price? William Wightman Price – Photo Credit: The Palo Alto Historical Association From childhood to his final years, Price left an indelible mark on the people he met and the regions he worked in. Francis of the Mountains was a chapel long dreamed of by one of the region’s pioneers William Wightman Price, who developed the Fallen Leaf Lake region around the turn of the 20 th century.īy all accounts, Price was a fascinating character with a deep passion for the outdoors, wildlife, nature and helping others. Francis of the Mountains is a ‘one of a kind’ church that perfectly complements the Tahoe landscape. Located near the southeast portion of Fallen Leaf Lake, St. Francis of the Mountains, also known as Fallen Leaf Lake church or chapel, is a quaint church steeped in history and rustic charm.
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