Santa Fe Hotel (Basque Hotel)
Introduction
Text-to-speech Audio
In the early 1900s, Fresno was one of several California cities with a thriving Basque community. The Santa Fe Hotel was built in 1913 to serve the Basque community. The building is now occupied by a restaurant, the Shepherd's Inn, which serves Basque fare. The building, which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places, currently houses a restaurant, the Shepherd's Inn, which served Basque cuisine.
Images
Santa Fe Hotel
Backstory and Context
Text-to-speech Audio
In the late 1800s and early 1900s, a number of Basque immigrants arrived in California, drawn largely by the promise of work as sheepherders. By the early 1900s, Fresno had the state's fourth-largest Basque population.
The Santa Fe Hotel was built in 1913, making it one of the later hotels to be built in the Basque community. It served numerous purposes: not merely a hotel, it served as a restaurant, a community center, a clinic, and a place for nomadic Basque sheepherders to collect mail and store belongings. It even functioned as a retirement home of sorts for elderly sheepherders.
The Santa Fe Hotel was built in 1913, making it one of the later hotels to be built in the Basque community. It served numerous purposes: not merely a hotel, it served as a restaurant, a community center, a clinic, and a place for nomadic Basque sheepherders to collect mail and store belongings. It even functioned as a retirement home of sorts for elderly sheepherders.
Sources
Echeverria, Jeronima. Home Away From Home: A History of Basque Boardinghouses. University of Nevada Press, 1999. pgs 120-123