Sir Walter Raleigh Hotel

Infobox_nrhp | name =Sir Walter Raleigh Hotel
nrhp_type =

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caption = Sir Walter Raleigh Hotel
location= Raleigh, North Carolina
lat_degrees = 35
lat_minutes = 45
lat_seconds = 46
lat_direction = N
long_degrees = 78
long_minutes = 38
long_seconds = 38
long_direction = W
locmapin = North Carolina
area =
architect= Griffin,B.H./Salter,J.A.
architecture= No Style Listed
added = August 11, 1978
governing_body = Private
refnum=78001980 cite web|url=http://www.nr.nps.gov/|title=National Register Information System|date=2007-01-23|work=National Register of Historic Places|publisher=National Park Service] The Sir Walter Raleigh Hotel is the oldest surviving hotel building in Raleigh, North Carolina. Constructed between 1923 and 1924 on Fayetteville Street, the hotel was nicknamed North Carolina’s “third house of government,” due to its location and being a focal point for state political activity until the the 1960s. The Sir Walter is typical of hotels of the 1920s. It is a 10-story imposing L-shaped building primarily made of brick, with classical stone ornamentation at the street and roof levels. It was placed on the National Register of Historic Places on August 11, 1978. [ [http://www.nr.nps.gov/iwisapi/explorer.dll?IWS_SCHEMA=NRIS1&IWS_LOGIN=1&IWS_REPORT=100000044 Impromptu Web Query ] ]

History

The Capital Construction Company was formed in 1923 to build a hotel in Raleigh to attract convention traffic that had been going to Greensboro and Durham. In January 1924, the hotel opened and at the time, the Sir Walter was the largest building in the southern portion of Raleigh's business district. The hotel became the unofficial headquarters of the North Carolina Democratic Party, at the time the dominant political force in the state. By 1925, the Sir Walter was home to over 80 percent of the state legislature. In addition to legislators, the hotel was home to lobbyists, aides, jurors, newspapermen, businessmen and other influential individuals over the next three decades.

The Great Depression forced the building’s owners into bankruptcy in 1934. The hotel was leased to the North State Hotel Company in 1935 and fully renovated. After the company added 50 rooms in 1938, the hotel became the largest in the state and gave the Sir Walter a reputation as one of North Carolina’s top convention hotels.

During the 1960s, suburban motel development, the completion of the new state Legislative Building, and general downtown decline affected the hotel's business. The hotel closed and the building was converted into 140 apartments for seniors in the late 1970s [ [http://www.wral.com/news/local/story/101473/ Sir Walter Hotel Now Used For Apartments May Return As Hotel :: WRAL.com ] ] . The Sir Walter Raleigh Hotel is now a designated Raleigh Historic Landmark. [ [http://www.nps.gov/history/nr/travel/raleigh/sir.htm Sir Walter Raleigh Hotel- Raleigh: A Capital City: A National Register of Historic Places Travel Itinerary ] ]

ee also

*List of Registered Historic Places in North Carolina__NOTOC__

References

External links

* [http://www.nps.gov/history/nr/travel/raleigh/sir.htm National Register of Historic Places profile of the hotel]