| Publication:Idaho Press; |
Date:Oct 2, 2006; |
Section:Main; |
Page Number:3Main |
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Opulent hotel leaves legacy
COMMUNITY: Objects from Dewey Palace on display at Historical Society Museum
By Dan Black Idaho Press-Tribune
NAMPA — A few random objects from the Dewey Palace Hotel are enough to get the imagination going: room keys, a ceramic door number, a coat hangar, a clock, a post from the staircase, historic photos of the building’s interior and exterior, fine china with the hotel’s logo, a menu from the elegant restau rant that served Russian caviar and turtle, a chandelier, a square nail; and, stunningly, a photo of Col. William H. Dewey in the hotel during the short time he lived in the building before he died in May 1903.
The hotel was finished only a few months before, at the end of 1902.
Col. William Dewey died of “dropsy,” a term used at the time for edema, or a buildup of fluid in the body’s tissues. He was 79 and left behind a dramatic story involving four wives, Indian negotiations near his Silver City mines, a railroad, a gunfight and murder conviction and finally, a hotel that was deemed the finest between Omaha City, Nebraska and Portland, Oregon.
A new exhibit of Dewey Palace Hotel opens Tuesday at the Canyon County Historical Museum, located in Nampa’s historic train depot. It features items from the period, but is special for the objects that actually came from the Dewey Palace Hotel.
The museum is only a block from where the majestic hotel stood from 1903 to 1963. Visitors to the museum can walk a block south to see where it once stood, taking up nearly the whole block south of 1st Street between 12th and 11th avenues. Now, the Wells Fargo Bank and Kings Pro Tire stand where the hotel overlooked Nampa’s bustling downtown.
To see the last remaining part of the hotel complex, according to Canyon County Historical Museum Curator Wendy Miller, just walk south to 2nd Street and peak behind the Hong Kong Grill to see the hotel’s former steam building, which gave the hotel its laundry service. Look for the ornate cornices under the roof, painted white and cracked from weather and time.
Those interested in learning about Dewey’s legacy can buy books at the museum, talk to curators, see objects from the hotel and let their imaginations go. Miller is writing a book about Dewey, or to those who knew him, the Colonel. He was given the honorific title because, when visiting Kentucky, he was recognized for his “wheelings and dealings,” Miller said.
Dewey’s life was full of tragedy, triumph and drama.
“He lived large,” Miller said, adding that the details of his life help tell the story of how the West developed.
After his death, the hotel served as a showpiece for Nampa, catering to high-end rail travelers and those who could afford to use its rooms as apartments. Its giant bar was closed during local and national prohibition, and eventually, its highend clientele could not support the lavish structure.
It closed as a hotel in 1956 and was sold out of the family shortly before its demolition in 1963. Before it was torn down, the owners held an auction, where many hoteliers from farflung areas bought up the hotel’s furnishings.
The few objects that remain in the area remind Nampans of that ornate structure built in a southern colonial style.
“It was his last and finest endeavor,” Miller said, adding that for $1 a day, guests could enjoy the bowling alley, billiard hall, grand ballroom, bar and sit in ornate writing rooms. The building boasted an elevator and in the basement there was a “drum room” where salesmen could pitch their wares.
Miller said she is asked constantly about the Dewey Palace Hotel and she decided it was time to host an exhibit. The museum has prepared previous exhibits about the hotel before, but with new interest in the downtown’s history, it seemed appropriate.
Laurel MacKinnon has purchased several historic buildings downtown and dubbed the area the “Belle District” after Col. Dewey’s last wife. The city, library board and Central Nampa Development Commission have looked at ways to revitalize the downtown while preserving historic buildings.
Miller and several volunteers have put together objects that offer a glimpse into what life was like at the time of the Dewey Palace Hotel.They know of some key objects that have not made their way into the collection, and continue to ask for the pieces.A billiard table is said to be in one home. The bar is rumored to be in Meridian. Stone columns from the building have been shipped to the American South. The community has little left, Miller said. “The Dewey Palace Hotel is gone,”she said,“and this is all we have.”
Canyon County Historical Society
1200 Front Street Hours: Tues. - Fri 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sat. 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. 467-7611 www.canyoncountyhistory.com
Greg Kreller / IPT Part of the Dewey Palace steam building is still standing near Second Street South and 11th Avenue South in downtown Nampa.
Submitted photo The Dewey Palace in its early days.
