Photo of Willard Hotel Undergoing Major Renovation
This is an aerial image of the Willard Hotel undergoing major renovations in the 1980s. Source: Library of Congress
Incredible 1904 Photo of the Willard Hotel
This is one of the best photos we’ve uncovered in quite a while. Click on it for more. This is the new Willard Hotel around this year 1904. What a beautiful building, which thankfully still stands....
Old Time Willard Hotel Room Service Menu
How cool is this find? We dug up this great old menu for the Willard Hotel’s room service at Discover DC History. Click on them for more details. This appears to be from the 1960s? Maybe...
Photos of the New Willard Hotel in the Early 1900s
Here is a great series of photos taken by Frances Benjamin Johnston. They show the New Willard around the time of its completion in 1904. Source: Library of Congress
Lost National Hotel on Pennsylvania Avenue
In keeping with the hotel theme this week, we wanted to share a little bit about the National Hotel, formerly situated at 6th and Pennsylvania Ave., across from where the Indian Queen was. The location is...
1976 View of Willard Hotel Renovation
Here’s a great old photo from 1976. It shows the Willard Hotel, looking northwest across 14th St. Source: Library of Congress
The New Willard Hotel in 1904
Here is a great old photo to close out the day. This is the Willard Hotel in 1904, viewed looking up 14th St. to the right and Pennsylvania Ave. to the left. Click on the image...
Police Save Soldier From Suicide Leap at the Willard
Here’s a crazy story for you from the 1940s. This was published in the Washington Post on June 4th, 1949. A young Air Force private was grabbed from a ninth-floor ledge of the Willard Hotel yesterday...
View from the Willard Hotel’s Roof
Wow. I think this photo speaks for itself. What an amazing shot of what would become Federal Triangle.
Philemon Herbert: Crooked Congressman, Card Shark and Brothel Patron
This is the first guest post by Roger. Check out his blog Forgotten Stories for some excellent lost history. Philemon T. Herbert was a crooked lawyer, a card shark, frequented brothels, and stood accused of attacking a...
Afternoon Photo: View North from the Smithsonian
Pass the afternoon by studying this photo close up. Amazing detail, including a view of the Willard Hotel as well as the Old Post Office.
In Hotel Lobbies: Mark Twain at the Willard
The creator of Tom Sawyer and Huck Finn was in our city back in December 1906 to participate in the copyright hearings before Congress. The Washington Post mentioned them in in their “People Met in Hotel...
Arrival of First Japanese Embassy at the Navy Yard (1860)
In January 1860, the Tokugawa shogunate sent a delegation to the United States with the primary objective of ratifying the Treaty of Friendship, Commerce and Navigation (aka, the Harris Treaty). Commodore Matthew Perry (not Chandler) had opened Japan (forcefully)...
Morning Photo: The Willard Hotel in 1922
We love the Willard Hotel. Who doesn’t? The place is full of amazing history. We posted a view from the top of the hotel last week and this week we’re posting a view of the hotel....
View of 14th and Pennsylvania Ave. From the Willard Hotel
I can spend two or three hours researching an in depth “Three Things…” or “If Walls Could Talk” post and ultimately end up with the same number of readers as a quick afternoon photo post. Today,...
Crushed In Elevator, Edward Fossler Falls Ten Stories
So, this is a really crazy story. I came across the following headline in the Washington Post from August 15th, 1903. Okay, you piqued my macabre interest. I have to read this one. Edward M. Fossler,...
Vice President Calvin Coolidge Evacuates the Willard Due to Fire … and an Awkward Encounter
This one made me laugh. This would never happen today … at least I hope it wouldn’t. It’s a story about Calvin Coolidge’s time here at Vice President under Warren Harding. Coolidge and his family arrived...
Pat Garrett, Lawman Who Killed Billy the Kid, Visits Washington and Teddy Roosevelt
In December of 1905, Pat Garrett came to Washington to seek reappointment as customs collector in El Paso from his friend President Theodore Roosevelt. Unfortunately for Pat, he had lost his good standing with the President...
