By Ken Brafman, Image from Ken Brafman Collection

TITLE: EARLY PLANNING OF LAKE ARROWHEAD RESORT: In 1890 the vision for Lake Arrowhead was much different than what became the lake we know today. The early planners sought to have a large reservoir supplying water to irrigate the valley below and to generate hydroelectric power. When the California Supreme Court ruled in 1913 that the irrigation project could not move forward, new ideas sprang forth. The executives realized that while the lake was a dud as a reservoir for irrigation it could be a goldmine as a resort. Wasting no time, Little Bear Lake was opened to fishermen in 1914 and a concession was opened at Orchard Bay. Two thousand anglers promptly descended on Camp Fleming. Lakefront lots at Cedar Glen went on sale for as much as $150. Within a few years Little Bear Resort had 26 rental cabins and a dance pavilion. By the early 1920s the lake was renamed Lake Arrowhead and construction of the first Village was underway. Now the focus shifted to promotion. It was decided that the surest way to becoming a profitable resort was to target tourists and to cater especially to the younger population. Visitors enjoyed horseback riding, dances, swimming and high diving competitions, speedboat racing and sailboat regattas. There was women’s auto racing as well as beauty contests, with a few Hollywood starlets often tossed into the mix. The Blue Jay ferry boat, the Robin, carried entrants and spectators from the north shore to the contests, as well as bring the partygoers to the dance pavilion and other venues. Entertainment consisted of live orchestras playing mostly dance music and were often made up of college students on holiday. This week’s image highlights such a troupe calling themselves the Lake Arrowhead Orchestra. Music would drift across the lake and served to enhance the pleasant ambience of the mountain experience. That original strategy to rescue the lake project paid off, and Lake Arrowhead has grown to be one of the most popular tourist destinations in Southern California.