When the Historic Lehi Hotel first opened in 1887, it was considered the largest hotel in north Utah County. Sarah Ann Smith, a plural wife to the blacksmith Joseph J. Smith, built the hotel near the Denver and Rio Grande depot and railroad line.

And now it's back on the market. Utility bills, taxes and low profits are forcing Carl Mellor to sell it.

The asking price for the two-story building, at 394 W. Main St., is $1 million and includes the three-room home and quilting building next to it. The hotel is on the state's historic register.

"I didn't anticipate I'd be paying $690 for my gas bill, last week it was $725," Mellor said.

Costs are rising, not only with utilities but for property tax. His tax in 1996 was $186 and has increased to $6,000 in 2005. Added to expenses, outside the Winter Olympics in 2002, he said business has not been very profitable.

But profits are not why the Lehi history buff bought the hotel in the first place. The deal, $25,000 less than its appraised value, was sealed by an old-fashioned handshake with sellers Lyall and Audrey Wilson, with Mellor's promise to restore the hotel.

"And we never had one problem," he said of the arrangement. He said his original intent was to have the hotel as a haven for historians as well as a museum.

It took three years of love and labor to restore the building. In 1998 he and his wife, Dimple, opened the hotel as a bed and breakfast and catering service.

"It is one of the only hotels where train enthusiasts can watch 25 to 30 trains go by each day," Mellor said.

While giving up his dream of a history museum, he hopes someone will be interested in purchasing the hotel and incorporating its historical value in its use.

Meanwhile, Mellor's historic tours of the area will continue.