Horton Grand Hotel
Encyclopedia
Horton Grand Hotel is a restoration of two historic hotels, the Grand Horton and the Brooklyn Kahle Saddlery, in downtown San Diego, California
. The Horton-Grand was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1980.
Built in 1887 by Comstock & Trotsche, the Grand Horton was a luxury hotel with a design based on the Innsbruck Inn in Vienna, Austria. The Grand Horton was part of a building boom following the opening of the city's first transcontinental railroad connection in 1885. It is in the Italianate
Victorian architecture
style.
The Brooklyn-Kahle Saddlery Hotel was a less formal hotel that combined Western/Cowboy and Victorian styles. Built around the same time as the Grand Horton, it was originally known as the Brooklyn Hotel, but was later renamed the Kahle Saddlery due to the presence of a prominent saddle and harness shop on the building's first floor starting in 1912. Wyatt Earp
lived in the Brooklyn Hotel during most of the seven years he stayed in San Diego.
Guests of the original hotels included President Benjamin Harrison
, Jack Dempsey
, Joe Louis
, Babe Ruth
, and Wyatt Earp
.
Both hotels were scheduled for demolition in the 1970s when the City of San Diego purchased them to build the Horton Plaza shopping center on the site. The hotels were dismantled brick by brick, with each brick numbered, catalogued, and stored. In 1986 the hotels were rebuilt into an entirely new hotel at the present location at Fourth Street and Island Avenue.
The Horton Grand is reputed to be haunted, including by the ghost of a man named Roger Whitaker who reportedly occupies Room 309. The Fluxx
nightclub opened in March 2010 next to the hotel.
San Diego, California
San Diego is the eighth-largest city in the United States and second-largest city in California. The city is located on the coast of the Pacific Ocean in Southern California, immediately adjacent to the Mexican border. The birthplace of California, San Diego is known for its mild year-round...
. The Horton-Grand was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1980.
Built in 1887 by Comstock & Trotsche, the Grand Horton was a luxury hotel with a design based on the Innsbruck Inn in Vienna, Austria. The Grand Horton was part of a building boom following the opening of the city's first transcontinental railroad connection in 1885. It is in the Italianate
Italianate architecture
The Italianate style of architecture was a distinct 19th-century phase in the history of Classical architecture. In the Italianate style, the models and architectural vocabulary of 16th-century Italian Renaissance architecture, which had served as inspiration for both Palladianism and...
Victorian architecture
Victorian architecture
The term Victorian architecture refers collectively to several architectural styles employed predominantly during the middle and late 19th century. The period that it indicates may slightly overlap the actual reign, 20 June 1837 – 22 January 1901, of Queen Victoria. This represents the British and...
style.
The Brooklyn-Kahle Saddlery Hotel was a less formal hotel that combined Western/Cowboy and Victorian styles. Built around the same time as the Grand Horton, it was originally known as the Brooklyn Hotel, but was later renamed the Kahle Saddlery due to the presence of a prominent saddle and harness shop on the building's first floor starting in 1912. Wyatt Earp
Wyatt Earp
Wyatt Berry Stapp Earp was an American gambler, investor, and law enforcement officer who served in several Western frontier towns. He was also at different times a farmer, teamster, bouncer, saloon-keeper, miner and boxing referee. However, he was never a drover or cowboy. He is most well known...
lived in the Brooklyn Hotel during most of the seven years he stayed in San Diego.
Guests of the original hotels included President Benjamin Harrison
Benjamin Harrison
Benjamin Harrison was the 23rd President of the United States . Harrison, a grandson of President William Henry Harrison, was born in North Bend, Ohio, and moved to Indianapolis, Indiana at age 21, eventually becoming a prominent politician there...
, Jack Dempsey
Jack Dempsey
William Harrison "Jack" Dempsey was an American boxer who held the world heavyweight title from 1919 to 1926. Dempsey's aggressive style and exceptional punching power made him one of the most popular boxers in history. Many of his fights set financial and attendance records, including the first...
, Joe Louis
Joe Louis
Joseph Louis Barrow , better known as Joe Louis, was the world heavyweight boxing champion from 1937 to 1949. He is considered to be one of the greatest heavyweights of all time...
, Babe Ruth
Babe Ruth
George Herman Ruth, Jr. , best known as "Babe" Ruth and nicknamed "the Bambino" and "the Sultan of Swat", was an American Major League baseball player from 1914–1935...
, and Wyatt Earp
Wyatt Earp
Wyatt Berry Stapp Earp was an American gambler, investor, and law enforcement officer who served in several Western frontier towns. He was also at different times a farmer, teamster, bouncer, saloon-keeper, miner and boxing referee. However, he was never a drover or cowboy. He is most well known...
.
Both hotels were scheduled for demolition in the 1970s when the City of San Diego purchased them to build the Horton Plaza shopping center on the site. The hotels were dismantled brick by brick, with each brick numbered, catalogued, and stored. In 1986 the hotels were rebuilt into an entirely new hotel at the present location at Fourth Street and Island Avenue.
The Horton Grand is reputed to be haunted, including by the ghost of a man named Roger Whitaker who reportedly occupies Room 309. The Fluxx
Fluxx (nightclub)
Fluxx is a nightclub located at 500 4th Avenue, Gas Lamp Quarter, San Diego, California, next to Horton Grand Hotel. The one-story nightclub opened on March 12, 2010...
nightclub opened in March 2010 next to the hotel.