The Artesian Hotel, Casino and Spa is a hotel in

Sulphur, Oklahoma Sulphur is a city in and county seat of Murray County, Oklahoma, United States. The population was 4,929 at the 2010 census, a 3.4 percent gain over the figure of 4,794 in 2000. The area around Sulphur has been noted for its mineral springs, sin ...

. Amenities include a casino, swimming pool, fitness center, and spa.

History

The original hotel was built in 1906 using bricks from the Bland Hotel and decorated with furniture from the St. Louis World's Fair.Platt National Park
, ''Oklahoma Today'' Summer 1966 pp. 3-5 It was a four-story brick building, and contained the town's only elevator.New Artesian Hotel in Sulphur to honor memory of predecessor
, ''The Daily Ardmoreite'', Oct. 19, 2010 The architects J.M. Bayless and C.J. Webster named it the Artesian after an artesian well was discovered during construction.

Carrie Nation Caroline Amelia Nation (November 25, 1846June 9, 1911), often referred to by Carrie, Carry Nation, Carrie A. Nation, or Hatchet Granny, was a radical member of the temperance movement, which opposed alcohol before the advent of Prohibition. Nat ...

William Howard Taft William Howard Taft (September 15, 1857March 8, 1930) was the 27th president of the United States (1909–1913) and the tenth chief justice of the United States (1921–1930), the only person to have held both offices. Taft was elected pr ...

, William H. Murray,

Roy J. Turner Roy Joseph Turner (November 6, 1894 – June 11, 1973) was an American businessman and Governor of Oklahoma, Governor of the U.S. state of Oklahoma. Born in 1894, in Oklahoma Territory, he served in World War I, became a prominent businessman ...

and

John Wayne Marion Robert Morrison (May 26, 1907 – June 11, 1979), known professionally as John Wayne and nicknamed The Duke or Duke Wayne, was an American actor who became a popular icon through his starring roles in films made during Hollywood's Gol ...

all stayed at the hotel. It served as a summer residence for Oklahoma's first governor

Charles N. Haskell Charles Nathaniel Haskell (March 13, 1860 – July 5, 1933) was an American lawyer, oilman, and politician who was the first governor of Oklahoma. As a delegate to Oklahoma's constitutional convention in 1906, he played a crucial role in draftin ...

. The original building was destroyed by fire in 1962 and replaced in 1965 by a plain 72 unit building constructed at a cost of a half-million dollars. The new building was named The Artesian Motor Hotel.Cashin, Edward J., "Epilogue", ''Guardians of the valley: Chickasaws in colonial South Carolina and Georgia'', p 148-149

History with the Chickasaw Nation

In 1972, The Artesian Motor Hotel was on the verge of bankruptcy and was purchased at auction by the

Chickasaw Nation The Chickasaw Nation (Chickasaw language, Chickasaw: Chikashsha I̠yaakni) is a federally recognized tribes, federally recognized Native Americans in the United States, Native American tribe, with its headquarters located in Ada, Oklahoma in th ...

, which remodeled it and renamed it the Chickasaw Motor Inn. The Chickasaw Motor Inn served as the tribal headquarters from 1972 until 1977,https://www.chickasaw.net/News/Press-Releases/2012-Press-Releases/Chickasaw-Motor-Inn-First-Chickasaw-Nation-Busines.aspx when the Chickasaw Nation built its current tribal headquarters in

Ada, Oklahoma Ada is a city in and the county seat of Pontotoc County, Oklahoma, United States. The population was 16,481 at the 2020 United States Census. The city was named for Ada Reed, the daughter of an early settler, and was incorporated in 1901. Ada is ...

. Groundbreaking on the newest building, modeled after the 1906 hotel, was held on October 14, 2010.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Artesian Hotel, Casino and Spa Buildings and structures in Murray County, Oklahoma Hotels in Oklahoma