The Balsams Grand Resort Hotel
Encyclopedia
The Balsams Grand Resort Hotel is a grand hotel
and ski resort
located in Dixville Notch
in New Hampshire
, United States
. The hotel covers 15000 acres (60.7 km²) and features 95 kilometers of cross-country ski trails
, an alpine ski area
with 16 trails, five glade
areas and a terrain park. There is also a 9-hole golf course
and an 18-hole championship course called "Panorama" which was designed by Donald Ross.
as the Dix House, a 25-room summer inn established by George Parsons. In 1895, it was purchased by Henry S. Hale
, a Philadelphia inventor and industrialist who had been a regular guest. He renamed it The Balsams, and over time enlarged and augmented the facilities. In 1918, Hale completed the Hampshire House, the towering wing which doubled the resort's capacity to 400 guests.
The Ballot Room of The Balsams is where Dixville Notch
's presidential primary votes are cast just after midnight on the day of the New Hampshire primaries. These votes cast by Dixville Notch residents are among the first to be cast, counted, and reported nationally.
Hotel
A hotel is an establishment that provides paid lodging on a short-term basis. The provision of basic accommodation, in times past, consisting only of a room with a bed, a cupboard, a small table and a washstand has largely been replaced by rooms with modern facilities, including en-suite bathrooms...
and ski resort
Ski resort
A ski resort is a resort developed for skiing and other winter sports. In Europe a ski resort is a town or village in a ski area - a mountainous area, where there are ski trails and supporting services such as hotels and other accommodation, restaurants, equipment rental and a ski lift system...
located in Dixville Notch
Dixville Notch, New Hampshire
Dixville Notch is an unincorporated village, with a population of approximately 75, in the Dixville township of Coos County, New Hampshire, USA. The town is known for being one of the first places to declare its results during United States presidential elections and the New Hampshire primary...
in New Hampshire
New Hampshire
New Hampshire is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. The state was named after the southern English county of Hampshire. It is bordered by Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Atlantic Ocean to the east, and the Canadian...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. The hotel covers 15000 acres (60.7 km²) and features 95 kilometers of cross-country ski trails
Cross-country skiing
Cross-country skiing is a winter sport in which participants propel themselves across snow-covered terrain using skis and poles...
, an alpine ski area
Alpine skiing
Alpine skiing is the sport of sliding down snow-covered hills on skis with fixed-heel bindings. Alpine skiing can be contrasted with skiing using free-heel bindings: Ski mountaineering and nordic skiing – such as cross-country; ski jumping; and Telemark. In competitive alpine skiing races four...
with 16 trails, five glade
Glade (geography)
A glade or clearing is an open area within a woodland. Glades are often grassy meadows under the canopy of deciduous trees such as red alder or quaking aspen in western North America. They also represent openings in forests where local conditions such as avalanches, poor soils, or fire damage have...
areas and a terrain park. There is also a 9-hole golf course
Golf
Golf is a precision club and ball sport, in which competing players use many types of clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a golf course using the fewest number of strokes....
and an 18-hole championship course called "Panorama" which was designed by Donald Ross.
History
Located along the old Coös Trail (now Route 26) through Dixville Notch, it first opened just after the Civil WarAmerican Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
as the Dix House, a 25-room summer inn established by George Parsons. In 1895, it was purchased by Henry S. Hale
Henry S. Hale
Henry S. Hale was a Philadelphia inventor and industrialist. He was co-owner of the Hale & Kilburn company of Philadelphia along with Cheney Kilburn. The Hale & Kilburn company's primary business was the production of railroad car seats for the expanding American railroad companies. The Hale &...
, a Philadelphia inventor and industrialist who had been a regular guest. He renamed it The Balsams, and over time enlarged and augmented the facilities. In 1918, Hale completed the Hampshire House, the towering wing which doubled the resort's capacity to 400 guests.
The Ballot Room of The Balsams is where Dixville Notch
Dixville Notch, New Hampshire
Dixville Notch is an unincorporated village, with a population of approximately 75, in the Dixville township of Coos County, New Hampshire, USA. The town is known for being one of the first places to declare its results during United States presidential elections and the New Hampshire primary...
's presidential primary votes are cast just after midnight on the day of the New Hampshire primaries. These votes cast by Dixville Notch residents are among the first to be cast, counted, and reported nationally.