Historic Hotels of America

Historic Hotels of America
Name	Historic Hotels of America
Formation	1989
Founder	National Trust for Historic Preservation
Type	Membership program
Headquarters	Washington, D.C.
Parent organization	National Trust for Historic Preservation

Historic Hotels of America is a program administered by the National Trust for Historic Preservation that recognizes hotels meeting standards of historic integrity, age, and significance. The program links individual properties to broader narratives in American history, architecture, and tourism, situating hotels within contexts such as preservation practice, urban development, and cultural heritage. Member hotels range from 18th‑century inns to 20th‑century grand resorts, each associated with notable architects, builders, and historical events.

Overview and Criteria for Designation

Designation requires that a hotel be at least 50 years old and listed in, or eligible for, the National Register of Historic Places, or recognized as a National Historic Landmark or listed by a state historic preservation office. Evaluation emphasizes historic integrity as reflected in original design by architects like McKim, Mead & White, Henry Hobson Richardson, Frank Lloyd Wright, Louis Sullivan, and Richard Morris Hunt, or associations with figures such as Theodore Roosevelt, Franklin D. Roosevelt, Walt Disney, Eleanor Roosevelt, or events like the World's Columbian Exposition and the Panama–Pacific International Exposition. Criteria consider architectural styles including Beaux-Arts, Gothic Revival, Art Deco, Neoclassical, and Victorian movements, and connections to transportation milestones such as the Transcontinental Railroad, Panama Canal, and early aviation pioneers like Charles Lindbergh. Oversight involves collaboration with the National Park Service and state historic preservation offices such as the Virginia Department of Historic Resources and the New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation.

History and Development of the Program

The program was launched in 1989 by the National Trust for Historic Preservation to formalize recognition of hospitality sites that embody American heritage. Early members included urban landmarks associated with the Gilded Age and the Progressive Era, while mid‑1990s expansion added resort properties tied to the National Park Service and seaside developments influenced by figures like J. Pierpont Morgan and families such as the Vanderbilt family and Astor family. The program has adapted alongside federal preservation initiatives such as the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966, the creation of the National Register of Historic Places, and tax incentive policies influenced by lawmakers in the United States Congress. Partnerships have been made with organizations including the Smithsonian Institution, the American Institute of Architects, and state tourism bureaus to promote heritage tourism linked to sites like Colonial Williamsburg, Mount Vernon, and Independence National Historical Park.

Notable Member Hotels by Region

Northeast: Properties include hotels connected to colonial and early republic eras near Boston, Philadelphia, and New York City, often tied to figures like Benjamin Franklin, Alexander Hamilton, and events such as the American Revolutionary War and the Constitutional Convention.

South: Members span plantations and shoreline resorts associated with the Civil War, the Reconstruction era, and the Gilded Age elite, with links to plantations near Charleston, South Carolina, Savannah, Georgia, and New Orleans.

Midwest: Hotels reflect industrial growth tied to the Erie Canal, the Columbian Exposition, and manufacturing hubs like Detroit and Cleveland, with architects from firms such as Daniel Burnham.

West and Pacific: Member properties include western railroad hotels tied to the Union Pacific Railroad and Southern Pacific Railroad, mountain lodges near Yellowstone National Park and Yosemite National Park, and coastal resorts in California associated with the Arts and Crafts movement and developers like Henry Huntington.

Internationally influenced U.S. sites: Some hotels reflect transatlantic design trends inspired by Wright brothers era travel, Caribbean and Latin American trade routes involving Panama Canal Zone commerce, and immigrant patronage from communities tied to Ellis Island and the Gold Rush.

Architectural Styles and Preservation Practices

Member hotels showcase a range of styles—Georgian architecture, Federal architecture, Italianate architecture, Second Empire architecture, Romanesque Revival architecture, and Streamline Moderne—with preservation work often guided by Secretary of the Interior's Standards for the Treatment of Historic Properties and advice from preservation bodies like the National Trust for Historic Preservation and the Society of Architectural Historians. Conservation projects have involved restoration of original fabric by firms linked to specialists in masonry, historic roofing, and stained glass from studios influenced by Louis Comfort Tiffany and artisans following Gustav Stickley. Adaptive reuse projects have converted warehouses and train stations, connecting to sites like Grand Central Terminal and Union Station (Washington, D.C.), balancing modern building codes, accessibility requirements from the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, and sustainability initiatives aligned with programs like the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design.

Cultural and Economic Impact

Designation boosts heritage tourism economies in historic districts such as French Quarter (New Orleans), Georgetown (Washington, D.C.), Old Sacramento, and Savannah Historic District, enhancing lodging tax revenues and supporting cultural institutions like the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Philadelphia Museum of Art, and regional historical societies. Member hotels serve as venues for civic events, literary gatherings tied to authors such as Mark Twain and Edgar Allan Poe, and political conferences involving delegations to the White House or meetings near the U.S. Capitol. Economic effects intersect with federal and state tax credits stemming from legislation debated in the United States Congress and implemented by agencies including the Internal Revenue Service and state economic development offices.

Controversies and Criticisms

Critiques address selective inclusion, commercialization of heritage, and tensions between preservation and development as seen in disputes involving urban renewal projects in cities like New York City, Chicago, and San Francisco. Some controversies link member properties to histories of exclusion, slavery, segregation, and labor disputes involving unions such as the Hotel Employees and Restaurant Employees International Union (UNITE HERE), prompting debates about interpretive narratives and reparative initiatives. Conservation practices have faced scrutiny over authenticity, restoration approaches used at sites comparable to controversies at Monticello and Mount Vernon, and the impacts of luxury redevelopment on local housing markets in places like Miami and Los Angeles.

Category:Historic preservation in the United States