The Izaak Walton Inn opened in 1939, while the town of Essex, Montana was starting to thrive. The Great Northern Railway had just put a stop in this city, and it was starting to come into its own. The hotel that opened was modern and luxurious, with 29 rooms, a lobby, 10 bathrooms, a dining room, and a kitchen that contained a two-ton cook stove.
However, when the United States went into World War II in 1941, the plans for the new entrance to Glacier National Park that were supposed to be the bread and butter for the new hotel were put on hold. However, the hotel succeeded anyway, due to its attractiveness to nature and ski enthusiasts who liked its location in a quiet and secluded area.
In 2015, the hotel is still thriving, and it is in part due to multiple repurposed and refurbished train cars on the premises that also function as housing quarters for guests. The most notable one is a caboose that belonged to a Great Northern X215.
It is a guest house that can be a cozy living environment for up to six people. Once you are inside this caboose, you feel like it is a home rather than a part of a train. It contains a master bedroom with a queen-sized bed and gas fireplace, along with two sets of bunk beds and a fully equipped kitchen. Along with other renovated train cars, this gives the hotel its unique and very positive reputation.
