The highlighted text is the points where I wanted to transition between my images. Like I said, I had a video similar to what we've see from Cleveland Historical while I was putting this together. Hopefully I'll have so time to set aside for making a video (sans imovie), and I'll be sure to let you know how that turns out.
(opening image)In 1912 construction began on one of the most celebrated hotels in the West. Constructed from the same red brick which can be seen in so much of Spokane's architecture, the Davenport Hotel was far from ordinary. The brainchild of restauranteur/entrepreneur Louis Davenport and renowned architect Kirkland Cutter, the Davenport hotel impressed visitors with the best in class and atmosphere that the Inland Empire had to offer.
Louis Davenport, so the story goes, arrived in 1889, the same year as the great Spokane fire. In the wake of the blaze, Davenport made a living helping remove rubble and debris, and in the process was able to set aside enough money to open up a small restaurant in a tent. Davenport's business quickly grew and just four years after the fire he moved into a new location, which stood at the eastern-most end of the block, which would become his acclaimed Italian Gardens restaurant.
After a trip down the railroad to Chicago in 1908, Davenport and Cutter returned full of ideas for the new hotel which would rise up next to the Italian Gardens. The Davenport would be Cutter's last project in Spokane, after which he headed down to California. Built on a base of sandstone imported from Boise, ID, the hotel was completed in 1914 and featured air-conditioning to fend off the hot Spokane summers, an ultra-modern central vacuum, and housekeeping carts for staff to keep the rooms ready for new guests. A brilliant electric sign, among the first of its kind, proudly strobed the name "Davenport" to all those who passed beneath it.
The lobby of the Davenport was often home to live music. During the Depression, well-known Spokane pianist Arthur Zepp filled the room with the likes of Chopin, Brahms, Debussy and Schumann, and also more popular, contemporary, songs. Zepp had a good setup. He played in the lobby, and he and his wife were given a room as well as food. One account records Zepp recalling that "I had instructions to play something by Stephen Foster if I noticed that Louis Davenport was in the lobby." Often, the music from the piano had to compete with the other sounds of life at the Davenport. Bellhops could often be heard wandering through the lobby and other parts of the hotel, paging for patrons that they had messages for.
After the death of Louis Davenport, the hotel passed through the hands of different owners. Furniture was removed, decorations were torn down, and the hotel eventually fell into disrepair. In 1985, the hotel was completely closed down, until it was renovated by the Worthys in 2000. Today, the hotel stands open to the public, its ballrooms and lobby restored.
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