The Grand Galvez Resort & Spa is a historic 226-room resort

hotel A hotel is an establishment that provides paid lodging on a short-term basis. Facilities provided inside a hotel room may range from a modest-quality mattress in a small room to large suites with bigger, higher-quality beds, a dresser, a ref ...

located in

Galveston, Texas Galveston ( ) is a coastal resort city and port off the Southeast Texas coast on Galveston Island and Pelican Island in the U.S. state of Texas. The community of , with a population of 47,743 in 2010, is the county seat of surrounding Galvesto ...

United States 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 territorie ...

that opened in 1911 as the Hotel Galvez. It was named to honor Bernardo de Gálvez, 1st Viscount of Galveston, for whom the city was named. The hotel was added to the

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 ...

on April 4, 1979. It is a member of

Historic Hotels of America Historic Hotels of America is a program of the National Trust for Historic Preservation that was founded in 1989 with 32 charter members; the program accepts nominations and identifies hotels that have maintained their authenticity, sense of pla ...

, the official program of the

National Trust for Historic Preservation The National Trust for Historic Preservation is a privately funded, nonprofit organization based in Washington, D.C., that works in the field of historic preservation in the United States. The member-supported organization was founded in 1949 by ...

History

Galveston civic leaders began plans to build the ''Hotel Galvez'' in 1898, after a fire destroyed another large hotel at the site, (the Beach Hotel). After the devastating

Hurricane of 1900 The 1900 Galveston hurricane, also known as the Great Galveston hurricane and the Galveston Flood, and known regionally as the Great Storm of 1900 or the 1900 Storm, is the deadliest natural disaster in United States history and the third-d ...

, which killed approximately 6,000 Galveston Island residents and leveled most of the buildings on the island, the plans accelerated, in order to draw tourists back to the island. The hotel occupies the site where the Beach Hotel, Electric Pavilion, and Pagoda Bathhouse once stood. The hotel was designed by Mauran, Russell & Crowell of

St. Louis, Missouri St. Louis () is the second-largest city in Missouri, United States. It sits near the confluence of the Mississippi River, Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a population of 301,578, while the Greater St. Louis, ...

, in a combination of

Mission Revival The Mission Revival style was part of an architectural movement, beginning in the late 19th century, for the revival and reinterpretation of American colonial styles. Mission Revival drew inspiration from the late 18th and early 19th century ...

and

Spanish Revival The Spanish Colonial Revival Style ( es, Arquitectura neocolonial española) is an architectural stylistic movement arising in the early 20th century based on the Spanish Colonial architecture of the Spanish colonization of the Americas. In the ...

styles and was constructed at a cost of $1 million. The Hotel Galvez opened in June 1911. On October 3, 1940, the Hotel Galvez was acquired by William Lewis Moody, Jr. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, the hotel was occupied by the

United States Coast Guard The United States Coast Guard (USCG) is the maritime security, search and rescue, and law enforcement service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the country's eight uniformed services. The service is a maritime, military, mult ...

for two years and rooms were not rented to tourists. The Hotel Galvez's importance to the local economy was restored after the war, particularly during the late 1940s and early 1950s when illegal

gambling Gambling (also known as betting or gaming) is the wagering of something of value ("the stakes") on a random event with the intent of winning something else of value, where instances of strategy are discounted. Gambling thus requires three el ...

was popular in Galveston. When the Texas Rangers shut down the illegal gambling industry in the mid 1950s, the local economy became depressed and the Hotel Galvez deteriorated."Galvez Hotel" ''Texas Historic Sites Atlas''.
Retrieved Dec 27, 2008. The hotel received a major refurbishing in 1965. In 1971, the hotel was acquired by Harvey O. McCarthey and Dr. Leon Bromberg.

Denton Cooley Denton Arthur Cooley (August 22, 1920 – November 18, 2016) was an American heart and cardiothoracic surgeon famous for performing the first implantation of a total artificial heart. Cooley was also the founder and surgeon in-chief of The T ...

purchased the hotel in 1978 and initiated another major renovation to the hotel in 1979. The Galvez became a

Marriott Marriott may refer to: People *Marriott (surname) Corporations * Marriott Corporation, founded as Hot Shoppes, Inc. in 1927; split into Marriott International and Host Marriott Corporation in 1993 * Marriott International, international hote ...

franchise in 1989 and was renamed Marriott's Hotel Galvez. The hotel was purchased in April 1995 by Galveston native and real estate developer

George P. Mitchell George Phydias Mitchell (May 21, 1919 – July 26, 2013) was an American businessman, real estate developer and philanthropist from Texas credited with pioneering the economic extraction of shale gas. According to ''The Economist,'' "few busine ...

. Mitchell restored the hotel to its historic 1911 look. Mitchell Historic Properties, brought

Wyndham Hotels & Resorts Wyndham Hotels & Resorts, Inc. is an American hotel company based in Parsippany, New Jersey, United States. It describes itself as the largest hotel franchisor in the world, with 9,280 locations. It has a portfolio of 20 hotel brands, including ...

on to manage the hotel in 1996, as under the name Hotel Galvez, a Wyndham Historic Hotel. The name was later changed slightly to Hotel Galvez, a Wyndham Grand Hotel During

Hurricane Ike Hurricane Ike () was a powerful tropical cyclone that swept through portions of the Greater Antilles and Northern America in September 2008, wreaking havoc on infrastructure and agriculture, particularly in Cuba and Texas. Ike took a sim ...

in 2008, the hotel lost clay tiles from its roof and was flooded on its lower level, where the

spa A spa is a location where mineral-rich spring water (and sometimes seawater) is used to give medicinal baths. Spa towns or spa resorts (including hot springs resorts) typically offer various health treatments, which are also known as balneoth ...

health club A health club (also known as a fitness club, fitness center, health spa, and commonly referred to as a gym) is a place that houses exercise equipment for the purpose of physical exercise. In recent years, the number of fitness and health se ...

, business offices, and

laundry Laundry refers to the washing of clothing and other textiles, and, more broadly, their drying and ironing as well. Laundry has been part of history since humans began to wear clothes, so the methods by which different cultures have dealt with t ...

were located. In May 2021, the hotel was purchased by Seawall Hospitality LLC a Dallas based hotel organization. It was renamed Grand Galvez Resort & Spa and management was transferred from Wyndham to Marriott's Autograph Collection division.

Famous guests

The Galvez was referred to as "The Playground of the Southwest" mostly for wealthy socialites, businessmen, and celebrities. American Presidents

Franklin D. Roosevelt Franklin Delano Roosevelt (; ; January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), often referred to by his initials FDR, was an American politician and attorney who served as the 32nd president of the United States from 1933 until his death in 1945. As the ...

Dwight D. Eisenhower Dwight David "Ike" Eisenhower (born David Dwight Eisenhower; ; October 14, 1890 – March 28, 1969) was an American military officer and statesman who served as the 34th president of the United States from 1953 to 1961. During World War II, ...

, and

Lyndon B. Johnson Lyndon Baines Johnson (; August 27, 1908January 22, 1973), often referred to by his initials LBJ, was an American politician who served as the 36th president of the United States from 1963 to 1969. He had previously served as the 37th vice ...

stayed at the Galvez, as did General

Douglas MacArthur Douglas MacArthur (26 January 18805 April 1964) was an American military leader who served as General of the Army for the United States, as well as a field marshal to the Philippine Army. He had served with distinction in World War I, was C ...

. Other notable names include

Jimmy Stewart James Maitland Stewart (May 20, 1908 – July 2, 1997) was an American actor and military pilot. Known for his distinctive drawl and everyman screen persona, Stewart's film career spanned 80 films from 1935 to 1991. With the strong morality h ...

Frank Sinatra Francis Albert Sinatra (; December 12, 1915 – May 14, 1998) was an American singer and actor. Nicknamed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Chairman of the Board" and later called "Ol' Blue Eyes", Sinatra was one of the most popular ...

, and

Howard Hughes Howard Robard Hughes Jr. (December 24, 1905 – April 5, 1976) was an American business magnate, record-setting pilot, engineer, film producer, and philanthropist, known during his lifetime as one of the most influential and richest people in th ...

. Many of the 6th and 7th floor Junior and Senior suites are named for these famous and infamous personalities.

Gallery

File:Hotel Galvez, Galveston, Texas.jpg, Hotel Galvez, Galveston, Texas (postcard, circa 1911-1924 File:Galveston Electric Company tracks.jpg, Galveston Electric Co. tracks adjacent to Hotel Galvez (in background) after the 1915 Galveston Hurricane File:Galveston Electric Company tracks through City Park.jpg, Galveston Electric Co. tracks through City Park adjacent to Hotel Galvez after the 1915 Galveston Hurricane File:Galveston March 2022 34 (Hotel Galvez).jpg, Hotel Galvez in 2022

References

External links

Grand Galvez Resort & Spa official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Galvez Hotels in Texas

Hotel Galvez The Grand Galvez Resort & Spa is a historic 226-room resort hotel located in Galveston, Texas, United States that opened in 1911 as the Hotel Galvez. It was named to honor Bernardo de Gálvez, 1st Viscount of Galveston, for whom the city was name ...

Hotels established in 1911 Hotel buildings completed in 1911 Hotel buildings on the National Register of Historic Places in Texas Recorded Texas Historic Landmarks

History

Famous guests

Gallery

See also

References

External links