September Chamber Luncheon at Kanab Heritage House and Museum
Chamber members arrived on the beautiful grounds of the Kanab Heritage House and Museum for the Kanab Area Chamber luncheon on September 10th. Chamber board member Lacee Brown was the event’s MC, where she introduced our host and first guest speaker, Kanab Museums Director Emily Bentley. Emily spoke at length about the history of the Heritage House and its original owners.
Photos by Nicholas Meyeres.
It was noted that in 1885 Henry Bowman arrived in Kanab with his new bride Mary, and by 1894 the Heritage House was completed and dubbed “the first modern house in Kanab”. The home is known for its unique architecture and serves as a reminder of early pioneer days. Once called "the jewel of Kanab", this historic home was purchased by the city of Kanab in 1974 and has since been restored.
According to Bentley, Henry Bowman was a man of many talents and wore various hats over his lifetime. One business in particular was a tourism company he created where he organized lodging, site seeing, and travel. Says Bentley about Bowman, "He built partnerships while being able to diversify his own businesses, and was not afraid of opportunity.”
The Kanab Heritage House and Museum is open to the public for free guided tours every hour on the hour from 10am-5pm daily, closed Thursday and Sunday, as well as major holidays.
Our next guest speaker was Operations Manager of Jacob Lake Inn Melinda Marshall. Melinda has a special connection to the subject of our previous presentation. She is Henry Bowman’s great great granddaughter.
She discussed more of the Bowman’s place in local history, and how they helped shape the area. In particular how Henry’s son Harold started Jacob Lake Inn as an “experiment” 103 years ago where they originally offered root beer and sandwiches. They even siphoned gas from a 50 gallon barrel to provide to travelers.
Jacob Lake Inn currently contains a restaurant, hotel, cabins, gas station, gift shop, and world famous cookies! This year they celebrate 51 consecutive years of baking. It is also the 4th oldest, continuously family owned business leading into the National Parks, and the 12th oldest in the entire nation.
Marshall also spoke about some of the challenges the region and Jacob Lake Inn have encountered over the last year. After floods and devastating fires, she noted that it has greatly affected local businesses, and expressed a need for advocacy. She also wanted travelers to know that Southern Utah and Northern Arizona are both open for business, in spite of recent tragedies and misinformation to the contrary.
Chamber members in attendance at the luncheon Attendees included: Kanab Honey, Best Friends Roadhouse & Mercantile, Burro Flats High Desert Lodge, Crickets Creations, East Zion Adventures, Stellar Vista Observatory, The Independent, Kanab City, Kane County Office of Tourism, Utah Tech University, AC by JD, Buckskin Tavern, West Winds Ranch, Jacob Lake Inn, Dark Sky, Gus Thomas Photography, Kanab Sports, Running Horse, Zion Stays.
Save the dates for our Thursday Chamber Lunch from 11:30 am - 1:00 pm on October 8 at Houston's Trail's End!