Photo Description
Granite. Grant Thornburg residence.
Thornburg is best known for having built the Grand Hotel. Note on back of photo: "Mrs. Thornburg in dark dress in right background. Among others are Bachman girls, Alice fourth from left and Christina sixth from left."
Below is a piece about him published in 1902 in "An Illustrated History of Baker, Grant, Malheur and Harney Counties.", p. 465. "Mr. Thornburg was born in Indiana, on February 10, 1865, the son of Joseph and Sarah (Wall) Thornburg, natives, respectively, of Indiana and Illinois. In 1865 the family came to Iowa, where our subject was educated and grew to manhood. In 1882 the family went thence to Missouri, and there Grant engaged in farming until 1889, in which year they came to the ground now occupied by the thrifty town of Granite. But one house graced the site at that time.
He built the first hotel on the site of Granite, and with the exception of two years, he has been in the business since that time. He now handles the Grand Hotel, a house of good reputation, and one in which the comfort of the guests is attended to with an untiring care that bespeaks enjoyment to the traveling public. In addition to the duties of host, Mr. Thornburg has attended to mining, and has made a very commendable showing in that line. He sold the Cougar to its present owners, and in company with his brother, sold the Thornburg placers. At the present time he has some fine properties and devotes much attention to mining.
Mr. Thornburg is one of the principal owners of the town site and he takes a very active part in political matters in general, being one of the leading men of the town and county. "The marriage of Mr. Thornburg and Miss Mary M. Gutridge was solemnized in Missouri, in 1885, and they have two children living, Odessa and Harry A., and one deceased. Fraternally Mr. Thornburg is affiliated with the B.P.O.E. of Baker City, and the K. of P., in Sumpter. Since the incorporation f the town Mr. Thornburg has been mayor, and at his own expense he has established a town water works system. It was in 1899 that the town of Granite was incorporated and it has been known as a center of a very rich mining region for a number of years."
Text courtesy of the Baker County Library website
