Palmer House

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The lobby of the Palmer House.
The lobby of the Palmer House.
Image:5178603 974f511858 o.jpg
Hallway in the Palmer House Hilton

The Palmer House Hilton is a famous and historic hotel in downtown Chicago.

There have been three Palmer House Hotels at the corner of State and Monroe Streets in Chicago. The first (known as "The Palmer") was built as a wedding present from Potter Palmer to his bride Bertha Honoré. It opened on September 26, 1871, but burned down just thirteen days later in the Great Chicago Fire. Palmer immediately set to work rebuilding, and with a $1.7 million signature loan (believed to be the largest individual loan ever secured at the time) constructed one of the fanciest hotels in post-fire Chicago. Designed by architect John M. Van Osdel, the new hotel was seven stories. Its amenities included oversized rooms, luxurious decor, and sumptuous meals served in grand style. The floor of its barber shop was reputedly tiled with silver dollars. Constructed mainly of iron and brick, the hotel was widely advertised as "the World's only Fire Proof Hotel". Famous visitors included presidential hopefuls James Garfield, Grover Cleveland, Ulysses S. Grant, William Jennings Bryan and William McKinley; writers Mark Twain, Charles Dickens, and Oscar Wilde; and actress Sarah Bernhardt. It was completed in 1875. By the 1920s, the business in downtown Chicago could support a much larger facility and the Palmer Estate decided to erect a new 25-story hotel. They hired Holabird & Roche to design the building. Between 1924 and 1927, the hotel was rebuilt on the same site — in stages so not a single day of business was lost. At the time it was touted as the largest hotel in the world. In December 1945, Conrad Hilton bought the Palmer House for $20 million.

This Palmer House should not be to be confused with the former residence of wealthy heiress and industrialist Ms. Marcie Palmer, also of Chicago.

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