Seelbach Hotel facts for kids

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Seelbach Hotel
Quick facts for kids The Seelbach Hilton Hotel on 4th Street and Muhammad Ali Boulevard.

Coordinates	38°15′3″N 85°45′29″W / 38.25083°N 85.75806°W / 38.25083; -85.75806
Address
Opening date	May 1, 1905
Architect	Frank Mills Andrews, William J. Dodd and Paul Emil Moosmiller
Owner	Hilton Hotels & Resorts

The Seelbach Hilton is a very old and famous hotel in Louisville, Kentucky. It was started by two brothers, Louis and Otto Seelbach, who came from Bavaria. The hotel first opened its doors in 1905. The Seelbach brothers wanted it to look like the grand hotels in Europe, like those in Vienna or Paris. So, they designed it in a French Renaissance style.

The hotel quickly became known as one of the best in the United States. Many famous people have stayed there over the years. For example, the writer F. Scott Fitzgerald visited and was inspired by the Seelbach for a hotel in his famous book, The Great Gatsby. Today, the hotel is part of the Hilton Hotels & Resorts family.

Discovering the Seelbach Hotel's Past
Famous Visitors to the Seelbach Hotel
Exploring the Seelbach Hotel Today
Images for kids
See also

Discovering the Seelbach Hotel's Past

How the Seelbach Hotel Began

Louis Seelbach came to Louisville in 1869 when he was 17. He had traveled from Frankenthal, Germany. Louis worked at another hotel for a while. But by 1874, he wanted to do something bigger.

He opened his own place, the Seelbach Bar & Grill, which became very successful. Because of this success, Louis asked his brother Otto to come from Germany. Together, they opened the first Seelbach Hotel in 1891, right above their bar and grill.

A photo of the Seelbach Hotel and the surrounding neighborhood in 1910

The brothers dreamed of building Louisville's first truly grand hotel. They wanted it to be as fancy as the hotels in Europe. They bought land at 4th and Walnut Streets (now Muhammad Ali Boulevard). Building started in December 1903, and the hotel opened on May 1, 1905. It was just in time for the famous Kentucky Derby horse race!

On opening day, over 25,000 people came to see the new hotel. That evening, a big party was held, with dinner in all 150 rooms. The hotel used beautiful marble from Italy, Germany, and France. It also had wood from the West Indies and Europe.

The hotel was very popular. So, the Seelbach Realty Company, which the brothers had formed, planned to make it even bigger. On January 1, 1907, the second part of the hotel opened. This made the hotel much larger, with 500 rooms! They even covered the rooftop garden so it could be used in winter. This bigger and better Seelbach Hotel often hosted guests for the Kentucky Derby.

Changes and Rebirth of the Hotel

In 1925, Louis Seelbach passed away. This meant the hotel needed new leaders. In 1926, a businessman named Abraham M. Liebling bought the hotel. Later, in 1929, he sold it to the Eppley Hotel Company.

In 1956, the Eppley Hotel Company sold the Seelbach and many other hotels to Sheraton Hotels. This was one of the biggest hotel sales in US history at the time. The hotel was renamed the Sheraton-Seelbach Hotel, then just the Sheraton Hotel.

4th St, one of the crossroads that The Seelbach sits on, in 1910

Sheraton sold the hotel in 1968, and it got its original name back. But in 1975, during a tough economic time, the hotel closed because its owners went bankrupt.

However, the story didn't end there! In 1978, Louisville native and TV actor, Roger Davis, bought the Seelbach. He started a big project to fix it up in 1979. The hotel had a grand re-opening on April 12, 1982. It quickly became famous again.

Since then, the hotel has had a few different owners. In 1998, it became The Seelbach Hilton. By 2009, the hotel was owned by two companies and was still part of the Hilton family. That same year, the hotel completed a $12 million renovation, making it even more beautiful.

How the Seelbach Hotel Shaped Louisville

When the Seelbach brothers first planned their hotel, the area around 4th and Walnut Streets was not very developed. The Mayor of Louisville even thought it was too far away for anyone to visit! Many people tried to tell the brothers not to build there.

But Louisville grew, and the Seelbach Hotel ended up in the middle of a busy shopping and business area. From the 1930s to the 1960s, the Seelbach Hotel was surrounded by Louisville's best shops. Even though it faced some tough times, today the area is a lively cultural and business hub once more. The success of the Seelbach even inspired other hotel owners to build in the same area.

Famous Visitors to the Seelbach Hotel

Presidents Who Stayed Here

Many US Presidents have visited the Seelbach Hotel while in Louisville. These include:

Secret Guests and Stories

Al Capone, a frequent Seelbach guest

Some famous figures from the past, like Lucky Luciano, Dutch Schultz, and Al Capone, also stayed at the Seelbach. Al Capone was a frequent guest. There's a story from the 1920s that Al Capone used secret stairways and tunnels to get away when police came to break up a game he was playing. Hotel staff sometimes show guests the "Al Capone room" and share its history.

Other Notable People

Many other celebrities have stayed at the Seelbach, including:

The Rolling Stones
Whitney Houston
Elvis Presley
Billy Joel
Robin Williams
Russell Crowe
Julia Child
Wolfgang Puck
Shorty Rossi, from the TV show Pit Boss

The famous writer F. Scott Fitzgerald visited the hotel in April 1918. He was training for World War I at the time. One night, after enjoying some drinks and cigars, he had to be asked to leave the hotel. But this experience didn't seem to ruin his memories of the place. He later wrote about a fictional hotel, similar to the Seelbach, in his book The Great Gatsby. In the story, a character "rented out an entire floor of the Mulbach hotel," which might refer to the Seelbach's Grand Ballroom or the Rathskeller room, where Fitzgerald often went to the bar.

Exploring the Seelbach Hotel Today

The Seelbach undergoing restoration work in 1979

The Seelbach Hotel is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It is known as "Louisville's Historic Hotel."

Hotel Features and Services

The Seelbach offers many services for its guests. These include its restaurant, The Oakroom, a fitness center, and valet parking. It has all the usual features you would expect from a luxury hotel.

Dining at the Seelbach

The Seelbach has several places to eat. These include The Oakroom, Gatsby's on Fourth, and Starbucks. The Oakroom is the only restaurant in Kentucky to win the AAA Five Diamond Restaurant Award. This is a very special award, given to only 44 restaurants in the whole country.

The Rathskeller is another unique part of the hotel. It's decorated with special Rookwood Pottery. The word "Rathskeller" comes from German and means "council's cellar." It's a common name for a bar or restaurant in the basement of a city hall in German-speaking countries. Today, the Rathskeller is used for special private events.

There's even a cocktail named after the hotel, called The Seelbach. It's made with bourbon, triple sec, two kinds of bitters, and topped with sparkling wine.