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Glendorn’s unique past, stellar present, and promising future

OUR FAMILY TO YOURS

STORY BY MILES DEMOTT

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With all the talk of foreign oil these days, it’s easy to forget that global interest in oil was first sparked in northwestern Pennsylvania. In 1859, along Oil Creek near Titusville, an

experimental drill produced great quantities of oil, and towns like Oil City and Bradford grew up around refineries that supplied much of our early oil and gas. The rise of the internal combustion engine at the turn of the 20th Century gave birth to much larger refining operations under the direction of names like Rockefeller in Cleveland, Ohio, and, eventually, New York and New Jersey. But northwestern Pennsylvania is where it all began. And so it is with our story the origins of Glendorn are inextricably linked to the rise of Bradford, a small town that itself was refined alongside the oil. Guests often pass through Bradford on the way to Glendorn and, in so doing, follow the same road taken by Clayton Glenville Dorn, a young petroleum engineer who would occasionally skip out of work a little early to indulge his greatest passion: fly-fishing the creeks and rivers alongside what is now the Allegheny National Forest. Despite this distraction, C.G. and his brother Forest developed, in 1916, a drilling process called “waterflooding” to capture oil from wells previously thought to be

dry. It was a revolutionary method that changed the oil business and the Dorn family fortunes. By the late 1920s, C.G. Dorn was able to purchase a large tract of land outside Bradford—a spot for his family to grow and gather—and Glendorn was born. Grow and gather they did, across multiple generations and seasons through the years. To accommodate the expanding clan, Glendorn evolved into a campus of family cabins that radiated from the Big House at the center of the action. There were lakes for swimming and creeks for fishing, trails for hiking and paths for biking. Courts were built for tennis and shuffleboard, and a game room was added to the back of the Big House, where young cousins could strengthen family bonds while being neither seen nor heard. As a backup plan, the patriarch—whom the family called Bondieu—built his own cabin, far removed from the Big House, and called it The Hideout. Despite his best intentions, it seems to have been a popular spot on the Glendorn campus, judging by the generations of family initials A PLACE TO GET AWAY

C.G. Dorn built Glendorn as a

paradise for his growing family, but

left a little corner for himself, called

The Hideout, to escape the hustle

and bustle of the everyday.

EVENING ENTERTAINMENT (Opening spread) Guests enjoy complementary s’mores and

microbrews at Skipper Lake School House. LE

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Perhaps the strongest argument for Glendorn as the perfect spot, though, can be found along the quiet walking paths, in the dappled shade of giant fir trees and the fiery colors of hardwoods in transition.

carved into the oak window seat at the heart of the cabin. The point of Bondieu’s vision, though, seems always to have been to bring family together. While visiting Glendorn, we happened upon a small reunion of the extended Dorn family at breakfast, and they regaled us with stories of organized family gatherings through the years, traditions that even the youngest generations took pleasure in recalling. There was an air of summer camp about it, since the family had grown over the decades and could support programming that included all age groups. There was a day camp for the youngest of the grandkids, complete with counselors and staff, and costume parties for the adults, presumably with appropriate beverages and period wardrobes. Mostly, though, there was time with and for family, a group that grew and moved across the country but returned frequently to their roots. The Dorn family opened Glendorn to the public in the mid-1990s, hoping to share the magic of their youth with a larger audience. As one might expect, though, family interests had grown beyond the original story, and they sold the property to Cliff Forrest, a Pittsburgh investor, in 2009. Forrest set to work immediately, bringing the Glendorn facilities and experience to new heights and establishing a relationship with Relais & Châteaux, a global network of fine hotels and resorts. His efforts have not gone unnoticed, and 2016 was an especially fruitful year, since Travel + Leisure named Glendorn Top Resort Hotel in the Continental US, and Orvis bestowed on Glendorn its coveted Fly-Fishing Lodge of the Year Award. So Glendorn has been recognized as extraordinary by folks who should know. But how does the experience translate over a family reunion or a wedding or a weekend getaway? The experience begins on the road from Bradford, where the turn to Glendorn is marked by an unassuming chef’s picking garden followed shortly by old iron gates. Once the gates swing open, the magic of Glendorn slowly reveals itself. The wooded driveway stretches a mile or more, passing lakes and grouse thickets, crossing trout streams and hiking paths, as the deafening silence welcomes you to the Alleghenies. The fall is especially captivating, as the yellows and oranges mix with fading greens on the surrounding hillsides, the landscape an inescapable tapestry of color and texture. At the head of the drive is the main lodge, or Big House, and a complex of smaller buildings that house the spa, game room, Fuller Brook Outfitters and fly-fishing shop, and Glendorn’s reception area and gift shop. Inside the Big House is the main dining room, with its large fireplace and vaulted ceiling, offering stunning views across patios and trout streams to the woods and cabins beyond. More on the food in a minute. From that central point, and extending in all directions, are paths that lead to the individual family cabins, many of which retain the furnishings and personal effects of the Dorns who built them. Within pleasant strolling distance are the tennis courts, pool, and trap-shooting facility. Now

that you’re settled into your cabin, though, the Glendorn experience really begins to shine. Upland enthusiasts got a glimpse of the opportunities on the drive in. Glendorn anchors 1,500 acres of prime upland habitat, bordered to the west by the Allegheny Mountains. The tag alder thickets and dense maple whips provide habitat for some of the best grouse hunting in North America, while the valleys beneath offer preserve pheasant hunting alongside Fuller Brook. Glendorn welcomes hunters and dogs alike, with boarding facilities available. If sporting clays is more your speed, the shooting range offers instruction, and the pro shop offers a full line of Beretta shotguns and accessories. For the upland enthusiast who likes to wet a hook, Fuller Brook offers miles of privately managed brooks, browns, and rainbows; Spring Creek offers more challenging wild trout; and some of the best steelhead fishing around is only a short drive away, near Chautauqua Lake and Lake Erie. Also nestled among the Glendorn cabins are three trophy trout ponds, so great fishing can be only steps away, and the resort’s Fuller Brook Outfitters can tailor the perfect outing. The balance of the seasonal outdoor activities are family-friendly and open to all guests. From tennis and swimming to hiking and biking, you can explore the many wonders of the Alleghenies without leaving the property. And rest assured, after a great day of exploring, the Forest Spa stands ready to lift your body and spirit even further, just in time for cocktails on the patio as the setting sun accentuates the vibrant hillside colors around you. If the thought of an active day, spa visit, and sunset cocktail makes you hungry, you’ve come to the right spot in our P

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CATCH AND RELEASE Visitors of Glendorn partake in various activities on the prop-

erty, including fly-fishing the Tunungwant Creek.

community spaces and separate family cabins facilitates family time without familial suffocation. Perhaps the strongest argument for Glendorn as the perfect spot, though, can be found along the quiet walking paths, in the dappled shade of giant fir trees and the fiery colors of hardwoods in transition. Or maybe it’s at the glowing firepit, with wine glass in hand, eyes watching the stars etch memories across the night sky as a chorus of crickets and tree frogs sing you to sleepy town. Better yet, it’s the right book and the right chair and the right to enjoy both at the same time, without distraction, without guilt, and without cell phone coverage. If you find that last argument even the least bit attractive, the right book might just be Titan: The Life of John D. Rockefeller, Sr. by Ron Chernow. Rockefeller’s humble beginnings and rise to fame can be traced back to northwestern Pennsylvania, to Titusville and Oil Creek. Clayton Glenville Dorn was a forkful of that same slice of American history, and for him, Glendorn was the perfect spot. Pull up a chair. We’ll let you decide.

story. While the entrance to the Big House is unassuming—appropriate, given Glendorn’s history as a family retreat—the entrance hall gives way to a dining room that is at once grand and intimate. The large fireplace at one end is balanced by a private balcony at the other, and the long span seems cozy and inviting, regardless of how many guests are at the table. Evening glow enters from the patio and the trout stream beyond, as candles cast soft light across a field of linens. Executive Chef Katelyn Steffan took the helm only recently, rising through the ranks at Relais & Châteaux and plying her trade in a manner befitting her Pennsylvania roots. (A family business, it seems, since her sister Sarah is the chef de cuisine at Blackberry Farm, a sister R&C property in Tennessee.) The farm-to-table movement is alive and well at Glendorn, and our meals featured locally sourced meat and vegetables, including some harvested from the chef’s picking garden near the entrance. A second dining area offering lots of glass, natural light, and sweeping views of the Glendorn campus is the perfect breakfast spot. Maybe that’s the secret behind Glendorn’s success, originally as a family retreat and now as a resort destination. It is, in many ways, the perfect spot. If you like fly-fishing or shooting sports, experts have suggested that Glendorn is a top choice. For weddings, meetings, and family reunions, the combination of L

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A NOSE FOR FALL FOLIAGEThe hardwood forests along the

Allegheny watershed explode with

color in the fall, including the fern-

covered floors that hold both a grouse

and a dog’s undivided attention.