The Grand Mount Moor Inn, a two story wood structure with it's cracked walls and pealing paint had seen better days. Once it was the first stop of day trippers from New York City. Now it was a seedy watering hole for locals. It sat almost right on the railroad tracks of the Grand Hudson Albany Line. It's builder and first proprietor, German immigrant Leonhard Schmidt wanted to make sure no one from the train had a chance to even know there were other hotels in town.
In The Grand Mount Moor's early years, trains would arrive in early summer full of hot and hungry people wanting to escape the confines of the city for some fresh clean upstate air. His 16 room Hotel with a forward thinking restaurant, run by his wife, Hilda and their six children on the ground floor was an instant hit. Leonhard insisted it be called the Kaiser, after his friend, Wilhelm I. whom he'd met exiting a train in Berlin when he was visiting relatives. The Kaiser had just stepped off his personal train and Leonhard was rushing to catch his train and somehow he'd run right into the Kaiser. Leonhard would always say it was his fault, but the Kaiser apologized to him twice before both men went on their way.
Leonhard, when he wasn't running the front desk would lend a hand in the restaurant. He'd hung pictures of the Kaiser and he would tell regulars the story of how he met the Kaiser, as often as they were willing to listen. He even sometimes told it the same way.
Roads were built and the town of Mount Moor prospered. Grand Street, a wide straight road was built in front of the grandest hotel in Mount Moor. Later West Lake road would T off of Grand right in front of the hotel, at the request of Leonhard Schmidt to make travel to the lakes west of the hotel easier.
In the early 1900's Leonard opened a German style beer garden and celebrated Oktoberfest until early snows in December forced him to switch Ice Skating and so early attempts to teach Americans cross country skiing, complete with an authentic German om pah band. All outdoor activities were well lubricated with alcohol against the cold, the band included.
The Schmidt family prospered during the early twentieth century.
Everything went until World War 1. Suddenly less people were traveling to the country. And even less wanted to stay in a German Hotel while Huns were storming the trenches and our boys were over there. Leonhard could smell the trouble that first spring and he went on a buying spree covering the hotel in American flags. Six were hung on poles off the front porch. Flag poles were placed on either side of the road near the train station. The restaurant, the Kaiser, which some had started calling the kraut was renamed Uncle Sam's and it's menu was changed to include that new taste sensation, a Vienna sausage in a roll or it's new American name, The Hot Dog.
Quietly, the Grand Mount Moor Inn and the Schmidt's weathered the war. Then Prohibition and the Beer Garden closed. With it went a good portion of his off season business, Two years later, a quiet little building set back off the street under two one hundred year old Elm trees caught Leonhard's eye. Car would park all over the street making passing impossible. The Police would be called, enter the building only to leave several hours later with nothing changing. Leonhard had to get to the bottom of this. Leonhard walked across the smooth pavement of Grand St., weaving his way between cars and climbing a rickety set of wooden stairs. Leonhard knocked oh the solid oak door, a small recently installed slide window about 3 inches tall and painted black opened.
The lower part of someones face appeared and a deep voice said "What do you know?"
"What do I know, what?", Leonhard confused said, "Howard Miller, is that You?"
The deep voice cracked a bit as the person behind the door cleared his throat and said, "No Mr.Schmidt, Howard Miller doesn't work here."
Leonhard knew it was Howard Miller. "Mr. Miller, I want you to open this door right awa,so I can come in!"
"Oh, ok," Howard Miller said as his voice cracked again. The weather beaten door creaked open
and out from behind it stepped the tall gangly ginger faced Howard Miller, a big friendly smile on his face. "I'm sorry about that Mr. Schmidt, my dad wants me to make sure only people we know come inside."
"And what is so special about coming into this place?" Leonhard said slowly as he scanned the hallway and living room to his left.
"Aw, there is nothing special about this place, its the cellar where all the action happens." Howard turns and points to the end of the hallway at a door. "Go and see for yourself."
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