A "Bix" trip to Hudson Lake, Indiana, to see the ex Blue Lantern Inn - part one

Images from Hudson Lake Indiana where Bix spent the summer of 1926 playing with the Goldkette Orchestra.

Buddy Smith: My grandfather built the hotel in 1885, and my father built the Casino across the street next to the lake in 1922. It was always known as the Casino, except for that summer of 1926, when we rented it to Jean Goldkette, and he changed the name to the Blue Lantern Inn.
Mrs. Victor Smith: When Goldkette changed the name, I was sure he had made a mistake. It had always been known as the Casino, and was advertised that way on all of the trolleys in Chicago. When he left at the end of the summer, we right away changed the name back to the Casino. We had never charged admission, and the first thing Goldkette did when he opened Declaration Day was to charge $1.50 admission. For a long time after that people would come to us and ask what happened.
Buddy Smith: Business was bad all summer. On weekends we would get large crowds from Chicago, South Bend, and Michigan City, but business was very poor on weeknights.
May Prinderville: My younger sister probably would have been able to tell you something about Bix. Why, after he became famous, the rest of us used to sit around and argue which of those fellows was Bix.
Buddy Smith: Freddy Farrar and his family and Trumbauer and his wife had cottages along the lake. Some of the boys may have stayed in the hotel. Bix, Doc Ryker, Pee Wee Russell, and Don Gabey stayed in that little yellow cottage behind the hotel. I don't remember there being a piano there.

Category:

Music

Tags:

• hudson lake
• bix beiderbecke
• jean goldkette
• frank trumbauer
• blue lantern
• indiana

[maxinDetroit]

excellent-

[Westtoledoguy]

that was wonderful to see heard sooooo much about Hudson Lake Toledo had an Interurban line that went to Chicago and it was one of the stops I would guess that the tracks were from the old interurban line originally

[victorcornet21]

Geez, you guys were having more fun than I was! Lol! This video's a trip!

[tenorbanjo4]

Brutta bestia la nostalgia...! ;o) *****

[centurygirl1]

A priceless tribute to the day, the place and the people who were there -- both past and present.