Driskill Hotel

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Driskill Hotel
(National Register of Historic Places)
The Driskill in 2006
Location:	Austin, Texas, USA
Coordinates:	30°16′05″N, 97°44′30″W
Built/Founded:	1886
Added to NRHP:	November 25, 1969
Governing body:	Destination Hotels & Resorts, Inc.

The Driskill Hotel, a romanesque style building completed in 1886, is the oldest operating hotel in Austin, Texas and one of the best-known hotels in Texas generally. The Driskill was conceived and built by Col. Jesse Driskill, a cattleman who spent his fortune constructing "the finest hotel south of St. Louis" in the city that he loved.

[edit] Features

The hotel was completed at a cost of $350,000 with an additional $50,000 spent on furnishings hand-selected by Col. Driskill. Its four stories occupied almost half a block, with three arched entryways on the south, east, and north sides. Carved limestone busts of Driskill and his two sons, Bud and Tobe crowned the hotel on each of these sides. Six million bricks went into the structure, along with limestone features.

The hotel's 60 rooms included 12 corner rooms with attached baths, an almost unheard-of feature in any hotel of the region at that time.

The hotel included an open design to encourage airflow throughout the building and keep it cool; its primary feature was an open rotunda at the center that extended from the first to the fourth floors and culminated in a domed skylight.

Other embellishments included an electric bell system, marble bureaus and washstands, steam heating, and gas lighting. The gas pipes throughout the building particularly led Driskill to make the hotel as fireproof as possible, with eighteen-inch-thick walls between the rooms and two layers of iron between each floor. The steam boilers, kitchen, and laundry facilities were relegated to the back (north) side of the hotel to prevent their odors from permeating the hotel.

[edit] History

The hotel enjoyed a grand opening on December 20, 1886, and was featured in a special edition of the Austin Daily Statesman. In January 1887, Governor Sul Ross held his inaugural ball in its ballroom, beginning a tradition for every Texas governor since.

Driskill unfortunately did not have the clientele to match the splendor of his four-star hotel. At a time when other hotels were 50 cents to one dollar per night, Driskill charged $2.50 to $5.00 (including meals), an exorbitant sum at what was then still relatively a Wild West town. Following the loss of a great fortune in cattle drives, Driskill was forced to close the hotel in May 1887, less than a year after it opened. According to legend, he lost the entire hotel in a game of poker to his brother-in-law, Jim "Doc" Day, who became its second owner.

The hotel changed hands several times through the turn of the century, and went through boom and bust cycles along with the city of Austin. The original building was expanded in 1929 with a thirteen-story tower.

The Driskill was threatened with demolition in 1969, and most of its furnishings sold, but was saved from the wrecking ball at almost the last minute when a non-profit organization called the Driskill Hotel Corporation raised $500,000. The hotel re-opened in 1971, under management of the Braniff Airways corporation and has remained successful since.

Throughout its history, the Driskill has become a centerpiece for Austin's high society, and especially in its early years, a common meeting place for Texas state congressmen, where many "backroom deals" were said to go down.

The Driskill was where future president Lyndon B. Johnson took his wife, Lady Bird Johnson on their first date. It became his campaign headquarters during his congressional career, and became his home base on return trips to Austin as President. He watched the results of the 1964 Presidential Election from its presidential suite and addressed supporters from its ballroom after his victory.

Today the Driskill remains one of the premier hotels in Texas, featuring lavish bridal suites, two restaurants, and a grand ballroom. It is also well-known for being one of the most haunted hotels in the United States, featuring as many as half a dozen ghosts throughout the building.

The hotel is located at 601 Brazos Street. It was listed in the National Register of Historic Places in 1969.