Hotel Orlando, now Orlando Apartments, Decatur, Illinois
The first fireproof building in Decatur was the seven-story, Hotel Orlando. The hotel opened on Feb. 18, 1916, and immediately became the social, political and cultural center of Decatur and Macon County. The renaissance-revival style building was designed by the architectural firm of Holmes and Flinn of Chicago.
Built in exactly one year at an approximate cost of $375,000, the hotel was named after Orlando Powers by his son Charles. The building is located on the corner of S. Water and E. Wood streets, the site of the second Powers Opera House, which had been built by Orlando Powers and destroyed by fire in 1914. The first Powers Opera House also met a similar fate.
The Hotel Orlando had 208 guest rooms, a large ballroom/convention center, 20 large sample rooms, a barber shop, a billiard room, several dining rooms, and modern kitchens. It was one of the most impressive and modern hotels in downstate Illinois. Guests over the years include John F. Kennedy, Richard M. Nixon, John Foster Dulles, Clark Gable, and Guy Lombardo.
Over the years there has been a succession of owners of the building, including a period when the Hotel Orlando was part of the Van Orman Hotel chain. The hotel was converted into apartments beginning in the mid-1960s. In 1971, ownership returned to the Powers family. Today the building consists of one and two bedroom apartments designed for senior living, along with businesses operating on the ground level.
The Hotel Orlando (now Orlando Apartments) is a significant architectural and historical property in the Decatur Downtown Historic District. The district was added to the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) in 1985.
Decatur is the seat of Macon County. The city was founded in 1829 and is situated along the Sangamon River and Lake Decatur in central Illinois. Decatur has an economy based on industrial and agricultural commodity processing and production. The city is home of private Millikin University and public Richland Community College.
Decatur's estimated population for 2019 was 70,746, making Decatur the thirteenth-most populous city in Illinois, and the state's sixth-most populous city outside the Chicago metropolitan area.
Hotel Orlando, now Orlando Apartments, Decatur, Illinois
The first fireproof building in Decatur was the seven-story, Hotel Orlando. The hotel opened on Feb. 18, 1916, and immediately became the social, political and cultural center of Decatur and Macon County. The renaissance-revival style building was designed by the architectural firm of Holmes and Flinn of Chicago.
Built in exactly one year at an approximate cost of $375,000, the hotel was named after Orlando Powers by his son Charles. The building is located on the corner of S. Water and E. Wood streets, the site of the second Powers Opera House, which had been built by Orlando Powers and destroyed by fire in 1914. The first Powers Opera House also met a similar fate.
The Hotel Orlando had 208 guest rooms, a large ballroom/convention center, 20 large sample rooms, a barber shop, a billiard room, several dining rooms, and modern kitchens. It was one of the most impressive and modern hotels in downstate Illinois. Guests over the years include John F. Kennedy, Richard M. Nixon, John Foster Dulles, Clark Gable, and Guy Lombardo.
Over the years there has been a succession of owners of the building, including a period when the Hotel Orlando was part of the Van Orman Hotel chain. The hotel was converted into apartments beginning in the mid-1960s. In 1971, ownership returned to the Powers family. Today the building consists of one and two bedroom apartments designed for senior living, along with businesses operating on the ground level.
The Hotel Orlando (now Orlando Apartments) is a significant architectural and historical property in the Decatur Downtown Historic District. The district was added to the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) in 1985.
Decatur is the seat of Macon County. The city was founded in 1829 and is situated along the Sangamon River and Lake Decatur in central Illinois. Decatur has an economy based on industrial and agricultural commodity processing and production. The city is home of private Millikin University and public Richland Community College.
Decatur's estimated population for 2019 was 70,746, making Decatur the thirteenth-most populous city in Illinois, and the state's sixth-most populous city outside the Chicago metropolitan area.