Vigo County Historical Society

Many older hotels have checked out

The National Road, later to be known as Route 40, passed through Terre Haute and opened the way to greater settlement of Indiana and the Northwest Territory. This road was a dream of George Washington, who blazed a trail over part of the proposed route during the French and Indian War. In 1806, President Jefferson approved an act by Congress to begin construction. In 1811, the National Road was started at Cumberland, Md., and reached Terre Haute in 1834.

With settlers coming through Terre Haute to open up the new west, places to sleep and eat were needed to accommodate them. One of the first hotels opened was the Burton Hotel for teamsters and others going west to make their fortunes. Many didn’t rent rooms, but slept in the yard and cooked their meals over an open fire. At least one murder took place there. It was closed and later remodeled before reopening under new ownership as the Filbeck Hotel. Two other early hotels were the Brown Hotel and Clark Hotel, with customers who traveled by stagecoach and horseback.

Matthew Stewart built the Stewart House at 204 Wabash Ave. in 1833 and rebuilt it after a fire in 1842. In 1876 it was renamed the St. Clair House, later the Commercial Hotel, Stag Hotel and finally the Indois Hotel, until it was razed in 1969.

Another old hotel demolished in 1968 was the Central Hotel at 714 Ohio St. Built in 1884, and formerly known as the Croxton Hotel, it was known as a theatrical hotel during the years 1912 to 1926. Famous performers of road shows, stock company, vaudeville and burlesque stayed there while they appeared at the Hippodrome, Indiana, Grand, American, Orpheum and Varieties theaters. Later, future baseball greats of the Philadelphia and Detroit Tigers Major League teams stayed there when playing the Three-I League of Terre Haute.

The National House, on the northeast corner of Sixth Street and Wabash Avenue, was built in 1855-56 and advertised as doing a first-class business, popular with the traveling public and well filled at all times. Connected to the hotel was a fine billiard had and refreshment room.

In 1880, there were 23 hotels in Terre Haute. A number of these were on North Ninth Street near the Railroad Station and used by drummers, travelers staying overnight to make connections and railroad men.

In 1902, the Horseman’s Hotel was built on North Brown Avenue across from the Memorial Stadium, then the site of the famous Terre Haute Mile Track of the Terre Haute Trotting Association. Stables for the many famous trotters that raced there from 1887 to 1910 were built on the north side of the hotel. This was an exciting hotel in those days of big bettors and riotous living.

The Hotel Deming, on Sixth Street north of Wabash, was an eight-story hotel built in 1913-14 by Demas Deming. It was popular with Terre Hauteans until it was sold to Indiana State University for a men’s residence hall.

The Prairie House was built in 1838 by Chauncey Rose at the corner of Seventh Street and Wabash. It was so far out of town that it was soon called Rose’s Folly. Rose, in an effort to attract more business, fenced in part of his property, thus forcing horse traffic to pass by his hotel. However, the travelers seemed to prefer the busier part of Terre Haute, and the hotel was forced to close in 1841.

The Prairie House reopened under the management of flamboyant manager T.C. Buntin in 1849. In addition to overnight guests, many loyal prominent families lived and boarded there. Buntin left in 1852 to take over the Buntin House, and Rose changed the name of the Prairie House to the Terre Haute House, hoping the change would make the hotel a part of Terre Haute and seem not so far from the center of town.

The Terre Haute House prospered with the coming of the railroads. In 1857, the building was razed and replaced with a larger, more luxurious hotel.

During the next 70 years, a number of owners made and lost money with the Terre Haute House.

The heirs of the late Crawford Fairbanks, knowing of his desire to build a new hotel, did just that. They selected the same architect that Fairbanks had selected to build the Clara Fairbanks Home for Aged Women, to build the new 10-story hotel.

The beautiful Mayflower room with its large murals by Miklos Gaspar of Chicago was added later. The murals, 18 by 40 feet, depict scenes along the Wabash and the Landing of the Pilgrims at Plymouth Rock.

All of the old hotels are gone now. The Terre Haute House has been closed since 1971. The Deming Hotel has now become a senior citizens housing center. Most of the other old hotel buildings have been razed; a few remain to house other businesses.

Visit the Vigo County Historical Museum to see the many mementos that show the passing of time in Terre Haute.