St. Clair Inn
Posted by: 
S5280ft
N 42° 49.650 W 082° 29.091
17T E 378633 N 4742728
Located on the east side of North Riverside Avenue, just north of Vine Street. It's the first marker I've seen with valet parking.
Waymark Code: WMW7Z
Location: Michigan, United States
Date Posted: 10/23/2006
Views: 19
During the early twentieth century, known as the "Golden Age of Steamboating," pleasure craft were numerous on the St. Clair River. In 1925 the local Rotary Club decided that a luxurious establishment was needed to accommodate the large number of tourists and serve as a civic and social center. Club members organized the St. Clair Community Hotel Corporation with many of the area's leading businessmen on the board. The board hired the Hockenbury System, Inc., of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, for advice on financing the venture. The financial plan was modeled after successful community hotel campaigns in over one hundred cities nationwide. The public offering of stock began in July 1925 and the campaign for funds exceeded its $180,000 objective within ten days. The sixty-room hotel was completed the following year.
(SIDE TWO) Hailed at its opening in September 1926 as "the most beautiful hostelry which ever graced a city," the St. Clair Inn is an important historical landmark on the St. Clair River. Constructed in the waning years of popularity of luxury excursion vessels on the Great Lakes, the hotel has been a popular destination for both river and automobile travelers. Port Huron architect Walter Wyeth modeled the hotel after English country inns. Although several additions have been constructed, the original Neo-Tudor building retains its English flavor. The interior features a lobby with a brick floor, a heavily beamed ceiling with exposed rough-hewn timbers and a great lounge with Tudor fireplaces. The St. Clair Inn was listed in the National Register of Historic Places in 1995.
Parking nearby?: no
D/T ratings: 
website: [Web Link]
Registered Site #: Local Site #1921
Historical Date: Not listed
Historical Name: Not listed
Description: Not listed
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