Camlin Hotel
Introduction
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A lavish hotel built in 1926, the Camlin serves as a reminder of Seattle's rapid growth during the economic boom throughout the Pacific Northwest during the early 1900s. The Camlin was one of many luxury hotels built in this part of the city, providing quick access to many of the finer theaters as well as downtown clubs and restaurants that willingly flouted the nation;s prohibition against alcohol. The hotel;s early history includes an interesting scandal, as the funds used to finance the hotel construction were not obtained legally. The hotel's history follows that of downtown Seattle and other metropolitan luxury hotels that nearly closed their doors following the rise in discount hotels that cater to interstate highway travelers. The hotel is not operated by WorldMark.
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Backstory and Context
Text-to-speech Audio
Seattle's building permits increased every year from 1918 until 1926, demonstrating the economic boom in the Pacific Northwest at the time of the hotel's completion. The Camlin Hotel was developed as a residential hotel in the heart of the city's theater district. At the time of its completion, five theaters were within four blocks of the hotel. The hotel was built by Edmund Campbell and Adolph Linden, who both committed fraud to finance the hotel. The two men were were later convicted for this crime.
The Hotel
Sources
National Register of Historic Places. "Nomination Form: Statement of Significance." National Park Service https://npgallery.nps.gov/pdfhost/docs/NRHP/Text/99000405.pdf.
Pierce, Kingston, J. Head in the Clouds: The Two Men Behind the Camlin Hotel May Have Let Big Dreams Get Ahead of Their Reason. Pullman, Washington: Washington University Press, 2003.
Photo credit: Joe Mabel via https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Seattle_Camlin_09.jpg