The Hotel Blanche (also known as the Blanche Hotel or The Blanche or Hancock Building) is a historic site in Lake City,

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

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. It is located at 212 North Marion Street. On January 18, 1990, it was added to the

U.S. The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...

History

Hotel Blanche was constructed in 1902 by

Frank Pierce Milburn Frank Pierce Milburn (December 12, 1868 - September 21, 1926) was a prolific American architect of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. His practice was primarily focused on public buildings, particularly courthouses and legislative buildings, ...

. A south wing was added in 1925 and a north wing was added in 1926. In the lobby of the building is the oldest elevator in Florida. It is still functional but is currently blocked off. Because the hotel was situated near the intersection of US 41/441, US 90, the Southern Railway,

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and

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it would bring in wealthy guests traveling through Florida. Many notable guests have stayed at the hotel including

Al Capone Alphonse Gabriel Capone (; January 17, 1899 – January 25, 1947), sometimes known by the nickname "Scarface", was an American gangster and businessman who attained notoriety during the Prohibition era as the co-founder and boss of the ...

on his way from

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

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and

Johnny Cash John R. Cash (born J. R. Cash; February 26, 1932 – September 12, 2003) was an American country singer-songwriter. Much of Cash's music contained themes of sorrow, moral tribulation, and redemption, especially in the later stages of his ca ...

. The hotel closed in 1967 leaving it to house several offices and shops. Starting in January 2018, the city of Lake City began to renovate the Hotel Blanche. The project is expected to take 12–15 months, and all fixtures that are not historic are going to be demolished. Parts of the concrete elevator shaft have been removed from the hotel in the renovations. Originally, a portion of Marion Avenue was closed due to the construction, but it has since been reopened due to complaints from citizens as well as local businesses that were adversely effected by the closure.

References

External links

Columbia County listings
Florida's Office of Cultural and Historical Programs

Gallery

File:Lake City Hotel Blanche02.jpg, File:Lake City Hotel Blanche03.jpg, File:Hotel Blanche Postcard.jpg, Postcard of Hotel Blanche and Marion St from 1908 Buildings and structures in Columbia County, Florida Hotel buildings on the National Register of Historic Places in Florida Frank Pierce Milburn buildings Lake City, Florida National Register of Historic Places in Columbia County, Florida {{ColumbiaCountyFL-NRHP-stub