Hotel del Coronado Collection, 1888-1998

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Summary

Creators:
Hotel del Coronado (Coronado, Calif.).
Abstract:
This collection contains items pertaining to the Hotel del Coronado and its history, as well as information on hotel expansion plans in the 1990s.
Extent:
0.25 Linear feet (1 box)
Language:
Preferred citation:

Hotel del Coronado Collection, MS 46, San Diego History Center Document Collection, San Diego, CA.

Background

Scope and content:

The collection consists of items pertaining to the Hotel del Coronado. Highlights include marketing brochures, narratives on hotel history, guest and visitor information, and event information. There are also documents on the Hotel’s controversial expansion plans in the late 1990s, including plans, news articles, and correspondence.

Biographical / historical:

The Hotel del Coronado was established by Elisha S. Babcock of Indiana and Hampton L. Story of Chicago who were rabbit hunting in Coronado in 1884 and saw the potential for a grand seaside resort. Babcock and Story combined forces with Jacob Gruendike, president of the First National Bank of San Diego, to purchase the Coronado peninsula in 1885 for $110,000, and formed the Coronado Beach Company to finance Babcock and Story’s seaside resort vision. In 1888 their hotel, the Hotel del Coronado, opened to great national acclaim. Designed by James and Merritt Reid of Reid & Reid in a Queen Anne Victorian style, the Hotel del Coronado contained a dining room with a seating capacity of 1,000, 750 guest rooms, and a bowling alley, theater, and ballroom. The hotel was the first large structure in the country to utilize electricity for lighting. A hotel legend states that Thomas Edison himself directed the installation of its electrical wiring, although this remains unverified. Since the hotel’s opening, its guests have included members of royalty, eleven United States presidents, and a myriad of notable personalities and celebrities. Proposed property expansions in the late 1990s caused local controversy as owners made plans to develop and modernize amidst the protests of residents and longtime fans of the hotel. Despite this, the hotel continues to be extremely popular with tourists and locals alike. The Hotel del Coronado has been honored with numerous accolades and distinctions, including designation as a National Historic Landmark in 1977 and being named one of the Top Ten Resorts in the World by USA Today in 2008.

Acquisition information:
Accession numbers 810721, 820701 and 771103B.
Processing information:

Collection processed by Jennifer Ho on June 16, 2011.

Collection processed as part of grant project supported by the Council on Library and Information Resources (CLIR) with generous funding from The Andrew Mellon Foundation.

Arrangement:

The collection is arranged into two series:

Series I: Hotel Information

Series II: Hotel Expansion Proposal

Within each series, items are arranged by subject.

Physical / technical requirements:

Some booklets have loose bindings. (6/16/11)

Rules or conventions:
Describing Archives: A Content Standard

Access and use

Restrictions:

This collection is open for research.

Terms of access:

The San Diego History Center (SDHC) holds the copyright to any unpublished materials. SDHC Library regulations do apply.

Preferred citation:

Hotel del Coronado Collection, MS 46, San Diego History Center Document Collection, San Diego, CA.

Location of this collection:
1649 El Prado, Suite 3
San Diego, CA 92101, US
Contact:
(619) 232-6203
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