In 1950, John D. Rockefeller Jr. called on architect Gilbert Stanley Underwood to design the Jackson Lake Lodge. This building marked the transition in the National Park System from rustic to modern design. Underwood revolutionized park architecture by combining modern materials with rustic accents, such as the wood grain-textured concrete seen on this building. Rockefeller developed the lodge to help make parks accessible to all Americans. Although the lodge was originally criticized for being too modern, it harmonizes with the natural surroundings with a low profile receding amid the aspen and pine trees. Landscapers planted native species mimicking the local environment. Designed by
architect Gilbert Stanley Underwood and completed in 1955, the lodge is an example of the
National Park Service's interpretation of the
International Style which was commonly seen in structures built on
U.S. Government parklands in the mid-20th century. The lodge combines elements of the more rustic structures of the earlier decades of the 20th century with a more modern design elements that became standard for the next couple of decades. The
Federal Reserve holds an annual
Jackson Hole Economic Symposium at the lodge in late summer, hosted by the
Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City and attended by prominent economic policymakers from around the world.
Old Jackson Lake Lodge The resort complex was built over the site of the Amoretti Hotel and Camp Company's Jackson Lake Lodge, built by Eugene Amoretti of
Lander, Wyoming from 1922. Amoretti's lodge, boasting the first hot and cold running water in the valley, featured guest cabins and tent cabins. It was purchased by the
Snake River Land Company in 1930 and continued to operate until 1953, when its 23 cabins were demolished in favor of the new resort. ==Historic district==