History of the Blair House

The story of the James Blair House is one of love and romance that continues down to this day. This gracious Victorian home was built in 1901 by James B. Blair for his sweetheart and wife, Erla Witmer. He was part of the prominent Blair Brothers logging empire, she from a well-known Mother Lode mining family.

In 1899, James proposed marriage to Erla. In a note dated November 19, she wrote, "Sunday night. Jim asked me to marry him - promised to in two years or sooner." That note was found in the ceiling of the front porch and is on display in the Inn today.

Keeping her promise close in mind, James set out on a labor of love, to build a house for her. He built the house of top-quality sugar pine* in Queen Anne Victorian style, with a three-story turret, bay windows, and extensive woodwork, including oak and red fir floors.

The house was painted red. Over the years, it has been dark brown, mustard yellow, dark green, and its present-day taupe. The copper ball atop the turret lasted until the winter of 1985-86, when it was blown off in a wind storm and later replaced with a new one.

A cool room, with a curved ceiling and vents that allow air to flow, was built near the kitchen, and an old wire cage for storing fruits and vegetables can be found there. The cool room presently serves as a wine cellar.

The pantry was originally used as a summer kitchen. Its oil cook stove was used so that the big wood stove in the main kitchen wouldn't have to be heated up. The pantry was equipped with a glass-front cupboard of mitered wood construction, which remains to this day.

The house was complete with a clinker brick fireplace in the back parlor. During the baking process, this type of brick was heated to such a high temperature that the material began to flow. This is why the bricks have such funny shapes and make a 'clinking' sound when knocked together.

James and Erla married on December 4, 1901. When the couple returned from their honeymoon in Santa Cruz, Erla planted the redwood seedling she had brought home. Her "Honeymoon Tree" now graces the view from the Lotus Room and can be seen from the Blair Suite turret.
The newly-weds eventually made the turret bedroom their master suite. Today their namesake room, the Blair Suite, has a large brass bed in the circular turret, a large bathroom with clawfoot tub, various antiques including the dresser, and original red fir floors that have been refinished.

Three children were born to the Blairs: Jean (b. 1905), James Howard "Bud", (b. 1909), and Wilfrid Witmer "Speck" (b. 1911). It was Bud who did most of the stonework found on the grounds, including the fountain.

Mr. Blair died in 1945, but Erla remained in the house until 1953, at which time it was sold it to Dr. Elliott and his family.

*Sugar pine was a specialty of the Blair Brothers Lumber Company.

A Blair Family History

One of the best-known names in El Dorado County is the Blair family name. From the Gold Rush down to today, they have been an active, integral part of this region. This is their story.

Four brothers, John, James, Matthew, and Robert Blair, immigrated from Scotland in 1850 and made their way to California's gold country. They acquired more than 300 acres of land east of Placerville, El Dorado County, along the wagon road to Carson Valley (the early version of US Highway 50). This property included Sportsman's Hall near Pollock Pines. It was here that they operated one of the most important and popular stops for the Pony Express, stagecoaches, and bumper-to-bumper freight wagons carrying supplies to the Comstock.

The great demand for lumber in this fast-growing area was met when the Blairs diversified into the lumber industry. The original Blair Mill was established near Five Mile House in 1856. Four years later, the Elkhorn Mill was set up at Iowa Canyon, just past the narrow bridge going northeast on Blair Road in Pollock Pines. Matthew operated this mill and, at age 41, was accidentally killed here. His son, Matthew Jr., often played here with the Indian children. Indian grinding rocks and the track bed can still be found.

The Blair brothers built each of their mills at a productive logging area for convenience, moving it as often as the area was logged off, usually about every ten years. In addition to the Five Mile and Iowa Canyon sites, other major Blair mill sites included South Long Canyon (1870 to 1880), North Long Canyon (1880 to 1890), Sly Park Mill (1890 to 1908), Plum Creek Mill (1908 to 1910), Fresh Pond Mill (1911 to 1912), Long Canyon out Old Blair Mill Road (1913 to 1925), and across the canyon from Pacific House (1927 to 1948). To reach this last site, a bridge had to be built across the canyon at the South Fork of the American River. The Blairs also had a lumber yard in Placerville at the site of the historic Wilcox building, where Broadway, Main Street, and Mosquito Road converge.

At the turn of the 20th century, James B. Blair, son of the first James to arrive in the United States (and builder of the present-day Blair Sugar Pine Bed and Breakfast), operated the important Sly Park Mill in the meadow that has long since been covered by Jenkinson Lake. In 1958 the timber holdings at the last Blair Mill, the Pacific House site, were sold to Michigan-California Lumber Company in Camino, and the Blair Brothers' retail site in Placerville was sold in 1985.

Although their lumber empire no longer exists, the Blair name can be heard and seen often in these parts. Bert and Blair Harris of Pollock Pines are descendants of Matthew, the oldest of the original four Blair brothers from Scotland. They operate an orchard and tree farm on the site of the original Elkhorn Mill, where their great-grandfather Matthew died. The Combellack family, long-time business owners in Placerville, are also descendants of the Blairs.

We invite you to come experience the history of this famous family with a stay at the Blair Sugar Pine Bed & Breakfast.