{"nrhp_refnum":"75000177","name":"Loomis Vistor Center, Bldg. 43","other_names":["Mac Loomis Memorial Musuem","Manzanita Lake Vistor Center","Manz"],"category":"building","location":{"address":"Lassen Volcanic National Park","address_restricted":false,"city":"Manzanita Lake","county":"Shasta County","state":"CA","lat":40.53599143300005,"lon":-121.56332020299999,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1975-02-25","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Education","Science"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A single-story rustic museum building of native volcanic stone at Manzanita Lake in Lassen Volcanic National Park, Shasta County, California, begun in 1926 and dedicated in 1927, with a small matching seismograph station nearby.","why_significant":"The museum has been the focal point for visitor information in the park since 1927. It holds the Loomis collection of photographs of the Lassen eruptions, which have aided scientists. The nomination rates it as locally significant (Third Order) because of its builder, B.F. Loomis, and his photographic record.","narrative":"Built of gray native volcanic rock in cut-face random ashlar, this one-story museum at Manzanita Lake in Lassen Volcanic National Park has crenelated, fortress-like parapets, a T-shaped plan, a terrace with a low stone wall, and a green tile shed roof on wood brackets. A matching seismograph station stands about fifteen yards northeast. Benjamin Franklin Loomis, a Shasta County shake maker, storekeeper and amateur photographer, began construction in 1926 with his wife. He had photographed the 1914-1915 eruptions of Mount Lassen, and the museum was dedicated in 1927 in memory of their daughter Luisa Mae. It displayed eruption photographs, geological specimens and artifacts of Indians, emigrants and pioneers. In 1929 Loomis deeded the buildings and forty acres to the National Park Service, which used the museum as a visitor center. Its photograph collection has aided scientists. The site lies near the Chaos Jumbles, where a 1970 study found a high risk of another rockfall, and the facilities were closed in 1974.","period_of_significance":"1926-1974","architect_builder":"Benjamin Franklin Loomis and his wife (builders of the museum)","architectural_style":null,"criteria":[],"status_note":"Described as in good condition, but closed to the public since 1974 because of rockfall risk; planning for its preservation was still in process.","vacant_flag":null,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:55:32.110259-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_CA/75000177.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/75000177/711bf75a72-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/75000177/711bf75a72-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","author":"DimiTalen","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Loomis_Museum.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">DimiTalen</a>, <a href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC BY-SA 3.0</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Loomis_Museum.jpg"},"district":{"nrhp_refnum":"06000525","name":"Manzanita Lake Naturalist's Services Historic District","url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/districts/california/manzanita-lake-naturalists-services-historic-district-06000525/"},"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/123861929","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Loomis_Museum","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q6675603"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/california/shasta-county/loomis-vistor-center-bldg-43-75000177/"}