The Rieger Hotel Building

Built in 1915 as one of three hotels in this part of Kansas City that catered to traveling workers, the Rieger Hotel was developed by Alexander Rieger, son of Jacob Rieger and founder of Rieger & Co. distillery. The hotel accommodated traveling businessmen, workers, and other individuals needing long-term but temporary accommodations during an era that saw the growth of industry in Kansas City. The hotel was open for only a few, short years before prohibition created a challenge for the family business and Alexander responded by closing the hotel and establishing a bank. The building changed hands several times over the years, accommodating a variety of businesses, including storefronts on the first floor and apartments on the upper stories. In a nod to the building's connection to the Rieger distillery, the building was home to The Rieger restaurant on the first floor and the speakeasy-themed bar Manifesto that occupied the basement.

In the early 1900s, Kansas City was rapidly expanding with central industries like agriculture and meatpacking growing alongside new industries like automobile manufacturing. After a series of floods in the West Bottoms, the city built a new railroad depot further south. Union Station opened in 1914, leaving the area around Union Depot devoid of business travelers. The new Union Station on Main Street was accompanied by the construction of new buildings and parks, and local businesses that accommodated travelers moved to be closer to the bustling rail station. 

Jacob Rieger and his family immigrated to America from Austria-Hungary in 1879 and arrived in Kansas City in 1885. Jacob was a businessman with experience in many trades and while Alexander was only 15 when his family arrived in Kansas City, he went straight to work. First finding work as a stockboy at G. Bernheimer Brothers Dry Goods firm, he later joined his father after the family patriarch bought a small grocery store at 3rd and Gillis. Jacob later established J. Rieger and Co., a purveyor of liquor and a distiller in the Union Depot district, the central hub of the city at the time. Alexander took over the family operations in 1900 and created a grandiose marketing campaign for the spirits, offering free gifts with his mail-order service. He claimed J. Rieger & Co. products to be the “Best on Earth” and “O! So Good!”, as well as the largest mail-order whiskey house with a base of over 250,000 customers. 

The expansion of businesses to the south of the original urban core that accompanied the relocation of Union Station led to the creation of restaurants, barbershops, drug stores, and even a new hospital, and post office. The growth of this area prompted Alexander to build a hotel that was within walking distance of Union Station. Rieger Hotel was one of three hotels built in the vicinity of 19th & Main that catered to single working men without families, traveling salesmen, and itinerant workers needing long-term accommodations. The hotel advertised 21 rooms, private baths, and a restaurant. Designed by architects Smith, Rea, and Lovitt, and built by Gray Construction Company, the three-story hotel was constructed from brick with a terracotta facade, and a large marble cornice atop the building proudly displaying the nameplate “RIEGER”. Details included ornamental ironwork, marble, tile and terrazzo floors, skylights, and metal-framed windows. While this was not a luxury hotel, it was accommodating and convenient. Alexander even commissioned a mural on the south side of the building to promote the family business, J. Rieger & Co.. 

In late 1919, the prohibition of alcohol led the Rieger family to pivot their business. Alexander Rieger closed the hotel in 1920 and opened the Home Trust Company with his son. With the pivot to finance, the Rieger's sold this building which became home to the Travelers Hotel in 1927. The building was also home to the office for EE Porter Soft Drinks. The building became vacant in 1941 but reopened after World War II as the Milton Hotel. The hotel also leased business space, including its longest tenant Acme Decal Company, until photographer Orville Anderson purchased the building in 1962. The photographer moved his corporate office to the main level and leased the rooms on the second and third floors to the Elms Hotel. The building was sold again in 2003 and like many other buildings in the area, it was renovated to offer condos. 

Ryan Maybee, a Kansas City bartender, recognized a growing interest in local distilleries and believed that Kansas Citians would appreciate the option to buy locally-produced spirits under a historic name like Rieger. Maybee began by opening Manifesto, a speakeasy concept bar in the basement of the historic Rieger Hotel. Manifesto opened in 2009, and the following year Maybee partnered with chef Howard Hanna to open The Rieger Hotel Grill & Exchange, a historically-themed restaurant. on the main level. On the opening night of The Rieger, the last relative of the bloodline, Andy Rieger, came in to meet the owners and agreed they should work together to bring back the former Rieger distillery. Over the next few years, this team developed a business plan and partnered with a Kansas City creative agency. After acquiring the original trademark, J. Rieger & Co. was officially back in business. Inspired by the past, the new J. Rieger & Co. was branded using the original name, logo, and slogan (O! So Good!), secured property in the East Bottoms neighborhood, as the original distillery was demolished, and successfully launched Rieger’s Kansas City Whiskey in October 2014. After the closure of The Rieger and Manifesto in response to COVID-19 in 2020, the former Rieger Hotel has been vacant. However, the Rieger name continues to demonstrate the spirit of Kansas City's past as the distillery produces whiskey and other spirits at their distillery two miles east of Kansas City's River Market.

National Archives, Missouri MPS Rieger Hotel. Accessed November 10th 2021. https://catalog.archives.gov/id/63817559.

Our Story, Accessed November 10th 2021. https://www.jriegerco.com/ourstory.

The Rieger Hotel. Accessed November 10th 2021. https://riegerhotel.com/.