Tuesday, September 1, 2026

Question: What year was Phantom Ranch lodge at the bottom of the Grand Canyon completed?

Answer: 1922. Architect Mary Colter, then 53 and working for the Fred Harvey Company and the Santa Fe Railroad, designed the cabins and central lodge from native stone and wood, tucking them in beside Bright Angel Creek rather than competing with the scenery. It remains the only lodging below the canyon rim, reachable only on foot, by mule, or by raft. Phantom Ranch closed until further notice after Saturday’s flash flood in the Grand Canyon.