Casa Monica Hotel

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The entrance to the Casa Monica Hotel.
The entrance to the Casa Monica Hotel.

The Casa Monica Hotel is a historic hotel located in St. Augustine, Florida, in the United States. The Casa Monica Hotel is one of the oldest hotels in the United States and is a member of the "Historic Hotels of America" National Trust. The hotel was built by Franklin Smith in 1888. Soon after completing the hotel Smith ran into financial difficulties and sold the Hotel including all fixtures, furnishings, linen, and all other chattel for $325,000USD to oil and railroad tycoon Henry Flagler. Upon purchasing the hotel Henry Flagler renamed the Casa Monica to the "Cordova Hotel". Flagler, a famous hotelier, already owned two hotels in St. Augustine, the Ponce de Leon and the Hotel Alcazar. From 1888 - 1902 the hotel thrived with parties, balls, fairs and charity events. The Ponce de Leon Hotel is now a part of the campus of Flagler College and the Hotel Alcazar is now Lightner Museum.

In 1902 a short bridge was constructed over Cordova Street that connected the second floors of the Cordova Hotel (formerly Casa Monica) and the Hotel Alcazar. At the completion of the bridge the Cordova Hotel was again renamed, this time to "Alcazar's Annex". In 1903 the Alcazar and Alcazar's Annex were considered one hotel and advertised as "enlarged and redecorated". In 1932, the "Annex" portion of the hotel was closed due to the depression and slowed economy. In 1945, the bridge between the Annex portion (Casa Monica Hotel) and the Alcazar Hotel was removed.

February 1962 St. John's County Commission voted to purchase the former Casa Monica Hotel for $250,000USD for use as the St. John's County Courthouse. The renovation took over 6 years to complete. May of 1968 the dedication of the St. John's County Courthouse is held in St. Augustine, FL following the significant renovation. For nearly 30 years the former Casa Monica Hotel was the St. John's County Courthouse.

In February of 1997 Richard Kessler, president of Kessler Collection, purchased the building from the St. John's County and began to restore the building to its original elegance of 1888. The renovation was completed in less than 2 years and opened, fully restored, in December 1999 under the original name the "Casa Monica Hotel". Richard Kessler and architect Howard W. Davis decided to keep the historic style of the hotel and use the Moorish-style appearance with Spanish architecture. Today the Casa Monica Hotel operates as part of the Kessler Collection in Orlando, FL and is the only hotel in St. Augustine to be given AAA's Four-Diamond award and is a member of the Preferred Hotels organization.

When the Casa Monica was connected to the Alcazar it boasted largest indoor heated pool in the world when it was first built. As would be expected in that day in age, the men and women swam in different areas. The men stayed in the shallower end so they could smoke their cigars and talk. The hotel also featured something rarely seen, a new type of entertainment, the bicycle originally made for men to use, but the women of the day found them more interesting.


The Casa Monica Hotel is part of the Kessler Collection owned by Richard Kessler.


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