The Wenatchee Hotel Building

       It was reported in the Wenatchee World in late 1909 that Scaman, Olive, and Quigg would build a three-story hotel on the southeast corner of Orondo and Wenatchee Avenue at 105 South Wenatchee Avenue. The present tenants, Mrs. M. J. Taylor and son, would vacate an old hotel building on the site. It would then be removed and the Taylors would build and manage the new hotel.

           The Wenatchee Hotel, built at a cost of approximately $110,000, compared with good hotels in Seattle, Tacoma and Spokane. It had 67 guest rooms all with outside views, and had a roof garden on the second floor. Each room was furnished with a telephone and a heavy brass bed, weighing two hundred pounds, with quality springs and mattresses. The lobby was well furnished. The dining room could seat as many as two hundred people.

           The J. W. Hatley family managed the hotel from 1927 until May 15, 1944 when the Milner Hotels Company took charge. The chain operated the hotel until October 31, 1955. Cyrus Bracklin managed the hotel until 1965 when other plans were made for the building. At that time the second and third floors were removed and the first floor was remodeled to provide facilities for a number of small business establishments. The Wenatchee Hotel building was acquired in the early 2000s by Rory Turner a visionary re-developer who has helped restore many of our downtown buildings to useful properties hinting at their former glory.

Gremmel, Shelby. Rory Turner: pairing economic development with historic preservation. Trust News. July, 2015 p. 9 - 10.