Gadsden Hotel
Encyclopedia
Gadsden Hotel is a historic building in Douglas
, Arizona
. It was listed on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places
in 1976.
The hotel opened in 1907. Named for the Gadsden Purchase
, the stately five-story, 160-room hotel became a home away from home for cattlemen, ranchers, miners, and businessmen. The hotel was leveled by fire and rebuilt in 1929. The Gadsden is recognized as a National Historic Site
. The Gadsden's spacious main lobby is majestically set with a solid white Italian marble
staircase and four soaring marble columns. An authentic Tiffany & Co.
stained glass mural extends forty-two feet across one wall of the massive mezzanine
. An impressive oil painting by Audley Jean Nichols is just below the Tiffany window. Vaulted stained glass
skylights run the full length of the lobby.
The Hotel is said to be haunted and has been in "ghost" shows on TV, such as Sightings in 1995.
The Gadsden Hotel has also been in several movies such as The Life and Times of Judge Roy Bean
with Paul Newman, Terminal Velocity (movie) with Charlie Sheen
and Nastassja Kinski
, Ruby Jean and Joe with Tom Selleck and many others.
Douglas, Arizona
Douglas is a city in Cochise County, Arizona, United States. Douglas has a border crossing with Mexico and a history of mining.The population was 14,312 at the 2000 census...
, Arizona
Arizona
Arizona ; is a state located in the southwestern region of the United States. It is also part of the western United States and the mountain west. The capital and largest city is Phoenix...
. It was listed on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
in 1976.
The hotel opened in 1907. Named for the Gadsden Purchase
Gadsden Purchase
The Gadsden Purchase is a region of present-day southern Arizona and southwestern New Mexico that was purchased by the United States in a treaty signed by James Gadsden, the American ambassador to Mexico at the time, on December 30, 1853. It was then ratified, with changes, by the U.S...
, the stately five-story, 160-room hotel became a home away from home for cattlemen, ranchers, miners, and businessmen. The hotel was leveled by fire and rebuilt in 1929. The Gadsden is recognized as a National Historic Site
National Historic Sites (United States)
National Historic Sites are protected areas of national historic significance in the United States. A National Historic Site usually contains a single historical feature directly associated with its subject...
. The Gadsden's spacious main lobby is majestically set with a solid white Italian marble
Marble
Marble is a metamorphic rock composed of recrystallized carbonate minerals, most commonly calcite or dolomite.Geologists use the term "marble" to refer to metamorphosed limestone; however stonemasons use the term more broadly to encompass unmetamorphosed limestone.Marble is commonly used for...
staircase and four soaring marble columns. An authentic Tiffany & Co.
Tiffany & Co.
Tiffany & Co. is an American jewelry and silverware company. As part of its branding, the company is strongly associated with its Tiffany Blue , which is a registered trademark.- History :...
stained glass mural extends forty-two feet across one wall of the massive mezzanine
Mezzanine (architecture)
In architecture, a mezzanine or entresol is an intermediate floor between main floors of a building, and therefore typically not counted among the overall floors of a building. Often, a mezzanine is low-ceilinged and projects in the form of a balcony. The term is also used for the lowest balcony in...
. An impressive oil painting by Audley Jean Nichols is just below the Tiffany window. Vaulted stained glass
Stained glass
The term stained glass can refer to coloured glass as a material or to works produced from it. Throughout its thousand-year history, the term has been applied almost exclusively to the windows of churches and other significant buildings...
skylights run the full length of the lobby.
The Hotel is said to be haunted and has been in "ghost" shows on TV, such as Sightings in 1995.
The Gadsden Hotel has also been in several movies such as The Life and Times of Judge Roy Bean
The Life and Times of Judge Roy Bean
The Life and Times of Judge Roy Bean is a 1972 western film written by John Milius, directed by John Huston, and starring Paul Newman...
with Paul Newman, Terminal Velocity (movie) with Charlie Sheen
Charlie Sheen
Carlos Irwin Estevez , better known by his stage name Charlie Sheen, is an American film and television actor. He is the youngest son of actor Martin Sheen....
and Nastassja Kinski
Nastassja Kinski
Nastassja Kinski is a German-born American-based actress who has appeared in more than 60 films. Her starring roles include her Golden Globe Award-winning portrayal of the title character in Tess and her roles in two erotic films , as well as parts in Wim Wenders' films The Wrong Move; Paris,...
, Ruby Jean and Joe with Tom Selleck and many others.
Notable guests
- Thornton WilderThornton WilderThornton Niven Wilder was an American playwright and novelist. He received three Pulitzer Prizes, one for his novel The Bridge of San Luis Rey and two for his plays Our Town and The Skin of Our Teeth, and a National Book Award for his novel The Eighth Day.-Early years:Wilder was born in Madison,...
, whose overnight stay in 1962 for a car repair extended to two months—he liked both the hotel and the area. - Effie Anderson SmithEffie Anderson SmithEffie Anderson Smith , also known as Mrs. A.Y. Smith, was an early Arizona impressionist painter of desert landscapes, many of Cochise County , and the Grand Canyon. She was born in Nashville, Arkansas and died in Prescott, Arizona...
, known during her lifetime as The Dean of Arizona Women Artists, stayed at the Gadsden Hotel frequently during the 1930s. She resided in the hotel during the 1940s and completed several paintings there, including a view of the Swisshelms as seen from her room at the Gadsden. One of her paintings of the Grand Canyon hung in the lobby of the Gadsden Hotel for 11 years. (source: Douglas Daily Dispatch,1948).