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Hotel Fort Des Moines
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
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Location	10th and Walnut Sts. Des Moines, Iowa
Coordinates	41°35′4.1″N 93°37′47.1″W / 41.584472°N 93.629750°W / 41.584472; -93.629750
Area	less than one acre
Built	1918-1919
Architect	Proudfoot, Bird & Rawson
NRHP reference No.	82002636
Added to NRHP	September 16, 1982

The Hotel Fort Des Moines is a historic building located in downtown Des Moines, Iowa, United States. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1982.

History

The three original promoters of the hotel were Des Moines businessmen Richard R. Rollins, Frederick C. Hubbell, Clyde Herring, and Norman M. Wilchinski. The prominent Des Moines architectural firm of Proudfoot, Bird & Rawson designed the building, which opened in 1919. Twelve United States presidents, including Woodrow Wilson, Harry S. Truman, John F. Kennedy, Richard Nixon and George H. W. Bush were guests in the hotel. Other notable guests have included actress Mae West, aviator Charles Lindbergh and Soviet premier Nikita Khrushchev. Singer Tiny Tim lived at the hotel for several years in the early 1990s. The hotel closed to guests on November 13, 2015 for ongoing renovations, following the sale of the property from Jeff Hunter to Hawkeye Hotels, and will reopen as a Curio Collection Hilton Worldwide hotel.

Architecture

The hotel is an eleven-story building that rises 140 feet (43 m) above the ground. There are two floors below ground and the building contains three elevators. The hotel rooms are in a nine-story H-shaped tower that allows for increased light and air circulation for more rooms. It sits on a two-story base that houses the public rooms and commercial space. The exterior of the building can be divided into three sections visually using the principle of the classical column: a solid base, a basically unadorned shaft, and a decorative capital. The ornamentation is concentrated on the lower floors and near the top just below the cornice line.

References

1. ^ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. March 13, 2009.
2. ^ Barbara B. Long; Ralph J. Christian. "Hotel Fort Des Moines". National Park Service. Retrieved 2017-10-05. with photo(s)
3. "Historic Hotel Fort Des Moines". Hotel Fort Des Moines. Retrieved 2012-01-10.
4. "Hotel Fort Des Moines Renovations". UrbanDSM. Retrieved 2019-06-04.
5. ^ "Hotel Fort Des Moines". Emporis. Archived from the original on February 20, 2013. Retrieved 2012-01-10.

External links

Media related to Hotel Fort Des Moines at Wikimedia Commons

• Hotel Fort Des Moines Website

v t e Historic buildings and structures in Des Moines, Iowa
Apartment buildings	Ayrshire Apartments Bryn Mawr Apartments The Elmwood-The Oaks-The Birches Franklin Apartments Hallett Flats–Rawson & Co. Apartment Building Kromer Flats The Lexington The Maine Murillo Flats The New Lawn Norman Apartment Building Plymouth Place
Civic buildings	Des Moines Fire Department Headquarters-Fire Station No. 1 and Shop Building Fire Station No. 4 Iowa Commission for the Blind Building Iowa State Capitol Iowa State Historical Building Municipal Building Polk County Courthouse Public Library of Des Moines United States Courthouse U.S. Post Office
Commercial buildings	American Republic Insurance Company Headquarters Building Apperson-Iowa Motor Car Company Building Argonne Building Baker-Devotie-Hollingsworth Block Burnstein-Malin Grocery D.S. Chamberlain Building Clemens Automobile Company Building Des Moines Building Earle & LeBosquet Block Elliott Furniture Company Equitable Life Insurance Company of Iowa Building Fleming Building Flynn-Griffin Building Hawkeye Insurance Company Building Hippee Building Hohberger Building Home Federal Savings and Loan Association of Des Moines Building Homestead Building Hubbell Building Iowa-Des Moines National Bank Building G.W. Jones Building Liberty Building Perry and Brainard Block Register and Tribune Building Seth Richards Commercial Block Rumely-Des Moines Drug Company Building Sargent's Garage Studebaker Corporation Branch Office Building Syndicate Block Teachout Building Walnut Tire and Battery Co.-Globe Publishing Company Building Wherry Block Youngerman Block Younker Brothers Department Store
Education	Abraham Lincoln High School Fort Des Moines Provisional Army Officer Training School Grand View College (Old Main) Methodist Deaconess Institute—Esther Hall David W. Smouse Opportunity School Theodore Roosevelt High School
Hotels	Hotel Fort Des Moines Hotel Kirkwood Hotel Randolph Northwestern Hotel Savery Hotel
Industrial buildings	Boyt Company Building Crane Building Des Moines Saddlery Company Building Des Moines Western Railway Freight House Firestone District Office and Warehouse Grocers Wholesale Company Building L. Harbach and Sons Furniture Warehouse and Factory Complex Hawkeye Transfer Company Warehouse Herring Motor Car Company Building Iowa Ford Tractor Company Repair and Warehouse Building Mack-International Motor Truck Corporation Building National Biscuit Company Building Schmitt and Henry Manufacturing Company Standard Glass and Paint Company Building Taft-West Warehouse Warfield, Pratt and Howell Company Warehouse
Structures	Court Avenue Bridge Allen Hazen Water Tower Southeast Water Trough Southwest Fifth St. Bridge
Miscellaneous	Des Moines Art Center Fish and Game Pavilion and Aquarium Masonic Temple of Des Moines Scottish Rite Consistory Building
National Register of Historic Places listings in Des Moines, Iowa List of National Historic Landmarks in Iowa

• Hotel buildings completed in 1919
• Buildings and structures in Des Moines, Iowa
• National Register of Historic Places in Des Moines, Iowa
• Hotel buildings on the National Register of Historic Places in Iowa