St. James Hotel (Red Wing, Minnesota)

St. James Hotel
Location Bush and Main Sts., Red Wing, Minnesota
Coordinates 44°33′55″N 92°32′3″W / 44.56528°N 92.53417°WCoordinates: 44°33′55″N 92°32′3″W / 44.56528°N 92.53417°W
Built 1874 and 1912
Architect Brink,Williams & Co.
Architectural style Italianate
Governing body Private
NRHP Reference # 77000733 and 82002956[1]
Added to NRHP September 15, 1977 (original)
January 8, 1982 (increase)

St. James Hotel in Red Wing, Minnesota is an Italianate building built in 1874-1875. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1977. The NRHP-listed area was increased in a boundary increase listing as St. James Hotel and Buildings in 1982.[1] St. James Hotel is a member of Historic Hotels of America, the official program of the National Trust for Historic Preservation.[2]

An interior view

Red Wing was the world's largest primary market for wheat in the early 1870s, with a warehouse capacity of over 1,000,000 US bushels (35,000,000 l; 8,000,000 US dry gal; 7,800,000 imp gal) in 1873. As a result of the city's wealth, and with a need to house businesspeople and tourists visiting the city, eleven prominent businessmen invested in the construction of the hotel. It opened with a grand ball on Thanksgiving Day, 1875. It was one of the most elaborate hotels along the Mississippi River and served the city during its heyday as a commercial center and a steamboat stop.[3]

The Red Wing Iron Works Building

The hotel was purchased in 1977 by the Red Wing Shoe Company and renovated. It was also given two additions, a shopping courtyard, and a new section for offices and hotel rooms.[3] Until recently, the hotel had 61 guest rooms, each with its own unique decoration and bearing the name of a riverboat that used to travel up and down the Mississippi River. In early 2010, a new suite was added to the hotel bring the number of rooms to 62. The Iron Works Suite, located in the old Red Wing Iron Works Building, is a fully furnished apartment featuring granite counter tops, a jacuzzi tub, a fireplace and a good view of the Mississippi River. The National Trust for Historic Preservation lists the hotel in their Historic Hotels of America directory.[4]

References

  1. 1.0 1.1 "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. 2009-03-13.
  2. "St. James Hotel, a Historic Hotels of America member". Historic Hotels of America. Retrieved January 28, 2014.
  3. 3.0 3.1 "Footsteps Through Historic Red Wing: Three Walking Tours of Red Wing’s Historic Architecture". City of Red Wing Heritage Preservation Commission. 1989. Retrieved 2009-08-19.
  4. "The St. James Hotel, Historic Hotels of America". National Trust for Historic Preservation. Retrieved 2009-08-19.

External links