LeConte Memorial Lodge, Tudor Revival educational center in Yosemite National Park, United States
LeConte Memorial Lodge is a Y-shaped Tudor Revival building of rough-coursed granite ashlar, with a steeply pitched gable roof, parapets at the ends, and exposed hammer beams supporting scissors trusses. Its three rooms open from a small central porch, and the main meeting room has a lower section beside the fireplace.
The building was constructed in 1903 and relocated to its present site in 1919 to honor Joseph LeConte, a Sierra Club founder and geologist. This move allowed the lodge to better serve park visitors and align with valley development plans.
The structure serves as a conservation library and education center where visitors can learn about the Sierra Club's role in protecting wild places and shaping environmental values. The collections demonstrate how this organization influenced the movement to preserve natural landscapes.
The center stands across from Housekeeping Camp in Yosemite Valley, at the base of a cliff, and is reachable by the valley shuttle. It opens only from May 1 through September 30, Wednesday through Sunday, 10 am to 4 pm; it is closed the rest of the year and on Mondays and Tuesdays. Despite the name, it offers no lodging.
The granite is laid in rough-coursed ashlar, with stones shaped and fitted in regular courses, unlike the rubble coursing of most stone buildings in the national parks. The Y-shaped plan places the entrance porch at the centre of the Y, and the steep gable roof is held by exposed hammer beams carrying scissors trusses.
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