Gotter Hotel Apartments
Introduction
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The former Gotter Hotel was built in 1917 and is known for its distinctive polychrome brickwork.
Backstory and Context
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The Gotter brothers owned the largest amount of land—3,840 acres—in the county when they built the hotel. They grew wheat and also operated a farm machinery business called Gotter & Co, which was the only shop in the area where farmers could get their plows, wagons, and other equipment fixed. The brothers moved the business into the first floor of the hotel building. As noted above, they built the hotel to at the height of the town's prosperity, hoping to take advantage of this growth.
However, the U.S. entry into World War I ended Enterprise's building boom. A number of residents left to go support the war effort (some joined the military and others found jobs in big cities like Seattle and Portland) and prices for building materials became too expensive. Many of those who remained eventually lost their businesses and farms, including the Gotter brothers, who sold the hotel in 1924 and moved to Los Angeles. Despite the effects of the war and later the Great Depression, the hotel continued to operate. It was renamed the Canton Hotel in 1949 and closed in 1973. It is not clear what happened after that but the building was converted to affordable housing in 1995. Then in 2004 it became an assisted-living residence for individuals with mental illness.
Sources
Bertram, John. "Gotter Hotel." National Park Service - National Register of Historic Places Nomination Form. January 21, 1994. https://npgallery.nps.gov/NRHP/GetAsset/NRHP/93001499_text.
"Gotter Hotel Apartments." Chrisman Development Incorporated. Accessed August 21, 2020. http://chrismandm.com/properties/gotter_hotel.html.
Ian Poellet, via Wikimedia Commons: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gotter_Hotel#/media/File:Gotter_Hotel_2_-_Enterprise_Oregon.jpg