The Beach Hotel was a seasonal resort in Galveston, Texas. Designed by architect

Nicholas J. Clayton Nicholas Joseph Clayton (November 1, 1840 in Cloyne, County Cork – December 9, 1916) was a prominent Victorian era architect in Galveston, Texas. Clayton constructed many grand religious and public buildings in Galveston including the Firs ...

, it was built in 1882 at a price of US$260,000 (US$ in today's terms) to cater to vacationers. Owned by William H. Sinclair, the hotel opened on July 4, 1883, and was destroyed by a mysterious fire in 1898. The front lawn of the beach hotel "provided a site for summer entertainment-fireworks, high-wire walkers, and bands."

Specifications

The -story hotel was built atop 300 cedar piles driven into the sand. The roof had an octagonal dome, which housed the water tanks, and was painted in large red and white stripes, and the eaves were trimmed in a golden green.

Amenities

The following were some of the attributes of the hotel. * Dining room * Gentlemen's parlor * Reading room * Saloon * Grand staircase * Electric and gas lighting

Sewage

In 1898, the Beach Hotel was discovered to have been flushing its cesspools via pipe into the

Gulf of Mexico The Gulf of Mexico ( es, Golfo de México) is an ocean basin and a marginal sea of the Atlantic Ocean, largely surrounded by the North American continent. It is bounded on the northeast, north and northwest by the Gulf Coast of the United ...

. The city health official regarded this practice as "absolutely disgusting and disgraceful" and refused to allow the hotel to open until it connected to the city's sewage system. In the interim before the hotel connected, it mysteriously burned down.

Fire

The hotel was destroyed by fire lasting 25 minutes in 1898. The fire trucks had a problem reaching the hotel because of the beach's sand. The cause of the fire was never determined. At least one musician was reported dead from the incident.

References

{{Galveston, Texas History of Galveston, Texas Hotels established in 1882 Hotel buildings completed in 1882 Defunct hotels in Texas Burned hotels in the United States 1882 establishments in Texas 1898 disestablishments in Texas Buildings and structures demolished in 1898