Guadalupe Hotel - New Braunfels, TX - U.S. National Register of Historic Places on Waymarking.com

The NRHP application (with some minor editing) informs us that:
Located around New Braunfel's public square is the 1851/1873 Plaza Hotel. German immigrants brought their concept of public squares to Texas and established a "Markt platz" in New Braunfels. The public space in New Braunfels, centered on Seguin Street, is a large open area with gardens and a gazebo. Situated on a street directly across from the town square, the Plaza Hotel has always maintained a prominent and strategic location in this early German city.
The original building, known in 1852 as the Nauendorf & Coll Building, was a two-story, rubble limestone commercial structure with pitched roof and stepped parapet. Across the front was a one-story gallery with a stick balustraded balcony on the second floor. When Jacob Schmitz bought the building in 1858 he changed the name to the Guadalupe Hotel. Following the Civil War, Schmitz altered the original appearance somewhat by the addition of a double gallery, each floor supported by one-story square columns. A lattice balustrade on the second floor was the only embellishment. Across the stuccoed parapet he wrote "Guadalupe Hotel, Jacob Schmitz." His final alteration came in 1873 when Schmitz added a third floor.
The present structure has had very little structural alteration since the 1873 addition. The major change was in 1933 when the three-story gallery was removed and a onestory store front addition was made to the first floor. An iron balustrade encircles the top of the first floor addition creating a balcony on the second floor, while a free- standing iron balcony was added to the third floor. Across the front facade of each floor are six double doors. All of the original openings exist on the first floor, despite the fact they have been covered by the 1933 addition. Most of the original doors are still intact, except where alterations have been made to add an air conditioner. The finials have been removed on the parapet and the original parapet openings have been plastered over to display the present building's name, the "Plaza Hotel."
The Plaza Hotel represents the evolution that many historic buildings undergo throughout their lifetimes. As a result of the different tastes of its owners, the 100+ year history of the Plaza Hotel has seen various face lifting. Despite the changes, few permanent alterations have been made and much of the original fabric remains.
In 1858 Nauendorf sold the building to Jacob Schmitz for $1500. Schmitz, a local innkeeper, had come to New Braunfels with the original founders.
Before buying the Nauendorf & Coll Building, Schmitz operated a one-story inn on South Seguin Street known as the "Guadalupe Hotel." In 1858 Schmitz moved his hotel into his new building, retaining the former name of his inn.
During the Schmitz era the Guadalupe or Schmitz Hotel served as the official stage stop of New Braunfels. The city was a regular stop at the end of a day's travel from San Antonio to Austin or Houston. It served as the stage headquarters until 1880 when the railroad was built from Austin to San Antonio by way of New Braunfels. An old hotel register, now displayed at the Sophienburg Museum in New Braunfels, records the signatures of such famous guests as Sam Houston, Jefferson Davis, and many others.

The hotel continues in operation with a coffee shop. The thick row of trees in front made it difficult to find a good direction to photograph the building.
For reference, the 1858 purchase price of $1,500 for the hotel would be equivalent to $558,000.00 based on relative production worker compensation between then and now.

Street address: 471 Main Plaza New Braunfels, TX USA County / Borough / Parish: Comal County Year listed: 1975 Historic (Areas of) Significance: Event, Architecture/Engineering Periods of significance: 1850-1874 Historic function: Domestic Current function: Commerce/Trade, Domestic Privately owned?: yes Season start / Season finish: From: 01/01/2014 To: 12/31/2014 Primary Web Site: [Web Link] Secondary Website 1: [Web Link] Hours of operation: Not listed Secondary Website 2: Not listed National Historic Landmark Link: Not listed

Visit Instructions:
Please give the date and brief account of your visit. Include any additional observations or information that you may have, particularly about the current condition of the site. Additional photos are highly encouraged, but not mandatory.

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