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Hermitage Hotel- Nashville, TN
The Hermitage Hotel is absolutely opulent. Walking into its grand lobby is like visiting an art museum- layers of intricate molding, terra cotta ornamentation, elegant arches and a stunning skylight make it difficult to linger on any one detail for too long. All around magnificent, the lobby is a welcoming space you won’t want to leave; one that will remain with you long after you check out. Designed by École des Beaux-Arts trained architect James Edwin Carpenter, later known for his luxury high rise Park Avenue apartment buildings, the hotel was commissioned in 1908 by a group of Nashville locals, who raised $300,000 in financing through sale of stocks. Named…
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Union Station Hotel- Nashville, TN
Opened in 1900 as an elegant urban railroad station, Nashville’s Union Station has found lasting success as an elegant luxury hotel. Far removed from the chaos of Lower Broadway, it’s a quiet oasis, filled with reminders of its past life. Designed by Richard Montfort for the Louisville and Nashville Railroad, the massive Richardsonian Romanesque structure was a symbol of Nashville’s strategic importance to the company. Built of Bowling Green gray aslar limestone, with large semicircular arches and a clock tower capped by Mercury, the station instantly became a Nashville icon. Inside, passengers were greeted by a 65 foot, barrel vaulted, luminous prism stained glass ceiling, highlighting the prestige associated with…
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The Breakers- Palm Beach, FL
After exploring Henry Flagler’s magnificent estate, Whitehall, head over to his equally impressive hotel, The Breakers. Gloriously gilded, it is without a doubt one of the most elegant hotels in the United States. Unfortunately, it is not the same one Flagler commissioned, that burned; and so did it’s replacement. However, persistence paid off, and the third iteration has survived almost a century, still owned by the Flagler family. After establishing several society hotels in St. Augustine, Flager moved further south down the Florida Coast, extending his railroad to the then small town of Lake Worth, now known as Palm Beach. There, he purchased land for both his personal winter retreat,…
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Hotel DuPont- Wilmington, DE
Built to rival the grand hotels of Europe, Hotel DuPont was a business hotel that meant business. Constructed at the end of the Gilded Age, it was an opulent hotel, designed to impress. Considered the front porch of Wilmington for over a century, it has become a symbol of the city itself. Commissioned by DuPont president Pierre S. du Pont, the hotel was to function as a first class hotel and event space for his growing chemical company. Construction of the stately Italian Renaissance building began in 1911, adjacent to the company’s corporate headquarters in downtown Wilmington. It took over two years for a team of French and Italian craftsman…
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Stockyards Hotel- Fort Worth, TX
The Stockyards Hotel may be small in size, but it has a lot of character. Built during the heyday of the Stockyards for wealthy cattlemen, its prime location next to the Livestock Exchange kept the hotel busy for decades. Later, it became a convenient hotel for country singers with shows at The Cowtown Coliseum. With a true Old West vibe, a stay here is a bit like stepping back in time. In 1904, as the Fort Worth Stockyards grew in importance, local developer Colonel T.M. Thannisch purchased property at the intersection of North Main and East Exchange. There, he constructed a simple two story wooden building, with balconies on the…
