Businessman Alonzo Ward first built a hotel on the site in 1894.[2][3] In November 1926, this first structure was destroyed in a fire. Work began on a replacement building in 1927 with the new hotel opening in May 1928.[3]
The first radio station in Aberdeen, KABR, began operations on the sixth floor in 1935.[2][4]
The building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on June 17, 1982.[5] The building is also listed on the National Register as a key contributing property of the Aberdeen Commercial Historic District;[6] the district was listed on May 23, 1988.[7]
From 2002 through 2004, 90 of the original hotel rooms on floors 3–6 were converted into 15 condominiums and the second-floor ballroom was restored.[8] In mid-2017, however, plans were made to convert the ballroom into apartments because it was used too infrequently to be economically viable.[8] In October 2017, a semi-truck struck an overhang on the hotel's north side, cracking one corner of it.[9][10]
Architecture
The hotel is a six-story building made of steel-reinforced concrete with a brick facade.[11] It was designed by architecture firm Ellerbe & Co.[12] The building features a mix of architectural styles, including English vernacular revival and Art Deco.[11]
The facade is visually composed of three layers. The first and second floors form the base, divided from the upper floors by a belt course of vertically laid bricks. Floors 3–6 form the middle layer. At the top is a cornice of brick laid diagonally in an Art Deco zig-zag pattern.[11]
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