1890 El Paso TEXAS newspaper with a largeillustrated ad for the ST CHARLES HOTEL (present-day Merrick Building) -inv #1E-420 + generic in BV
Please visit our store for THOUSANDS of HISTORICAL NEWSPAPERS on sale or at sale.
SEE PHOTO-----COMPLETE, ORIGINALNEWSPAPER,theEl Paso Times (TX) dated in 1890.This newspaper contains an inside page, 7\" x 6\" illustrated ad for the ST CHARLES HOTEL (the present-day Merrick Building) located at the corner of El Paso Street and Overland Street. This historic El Paso, TX building is still standing and looks amazingly the same in 2018 as it did in 1890, 128 years ago !!!
In 2023, the Hollywood Cafe occupies the ground floor of this building.
The Merrick Building (St. Charles Hotel, Hollywood Café), 301-303 South El Paso Street, El Paso, Texas, designed by architects John J. Stewart and William J. Carpenter, was built in 1887. The state-of-the-art building was built for Charles Merrick and his brother who operated a men’s clothing store on the first floor. Within months of the completion of the construction contract on June 15, 1887 they ran into financial difficulties and by October 1901 all ownership had been transferred to Joseph Magoffin, one of El Paso’s earliest pioneers.
The firm Stewart and Carpenter first appeared in the El Paso City Directories of 1888, with an office at the corner of West Overland Avenue and South El Paso Street. Mr. Stewart had been practicing architecture in El Paso since 1881, but this is the first of only two designs attributed to the partnership. The other was the Myar Opera House, which like the Merrick Building was an ornate structure with Romanesque features, was destroyed by fire in 1905.
As reported in the About Wm. J. Carpenter page, Mr. Carpenter had left Baltimore about 1885 and his travels before arriving in El Paso are unknown, but this is his first known recorded signature architectural design.
It is noted that the Merrick Building is one of the most extensively detailed buildings in the South El Paso Street area. The building is an example of a commercial structure with Queen Anne and Romanesque details. A very complete detailed description is documented in the Historic American Buildings Survey conducted by the Department of the Interior in 1980. Some of the highlights are noted here. The original storefront was constructed of large panel glass in wood frames with cast iron columns. Mr. Carpenter had gained experience with the use of cast iron framing while associated with E. G. Lind in Baltimore. This was his first opportunity to apply the principles to a signature design with the panel glass extending nearly the entire length of the storefront. The secondary entrance on the north facade was also of panel glass with cast iron pilasters.
The three-story with basement building is 44 feet by 97 feet. It was constructed of brick laid in common bond with rusticated, random ashlar sandstone facing on the ground floor of the north elevation. The dogwood blossom patterned stained glass windows in transoms were intact along the storefront in 1980. Many other decorative features of terra cotta, tin and cast iron will be noted in the photographs. An archival photograph from about 1900 shows that there were, at one time, corbelled, decorative chimneys on either side of the pediment and that a similar parapet existed on the east (front) elevation. The basement is a large, open room with stone walls and a dirt floor. The first floor interior was originally a large, rectangular open space with an 18 foot high ceiling.
The second and third stories have been known as the St. Charles Hotel since 1890 (1980)Each of these floors was subdivided into ten hotel rooms which measure approximately 200 square feet. There were two restrooms on each floor on the west wall. Four rooms on each floor feature projecting three-sided bays. The hotel area was converted to apartments in 1996. The Hollywood Café and other businesses continue to occupy the first floor.
Good condition. This listing includes thecomplete entire original newspaper, NOT just a clipping or a page of it. STEPHEN A. GOLDMAN HISTORICAL NEWSPAPERS stands behind all of the items that we sell with a no questions asked, money back guarantee. Every item we sell is an original newspaper printed on the date indicated at the beginning of its description. U.S. buyers pay priority mail postage which includes waterproof plastic and a heavy cardboard flat to protect your purchase from damage in the mail. International postage is quoted when we are informed as to where the package is to be sent. We do combine postage (to reduce postage costs) for multiple purchases sent in the same package. We list thousands of rare newspapers with dates from 1570 through 2004 on each week. This is truly SIX CENTURIES OF HISTORY that YOU CAN OWN!
Stephen A. Goldman Historical Newspapers has been in the business of buying and selling historical newspapers for over 45 years. Dr. Goldman is a consultant to the Freedom Forum Newseum and a member of the American Antiquarian Society. You can buy with confidence from us, knowing that we stand behind all of our historical items with a 100% money back guarantee. Let our 45+ years of experience work for YOU ! We have hundreds of thousands of historical newspapers (and their very early precursors) for sale.
Related Items:
1890 El Paso TEXAS newspaper w large illustrated ad for THE GRAND CENTRAL HOTEL
$10.00
1890s Cabinet card photo of Juarez Mexico over the river from El Paso Texas
$75.00
c.1890 EL DORADO KANSAS MOTHER SON CABINET CARD PHOTOGRAPH PHOTO KS KAN. LORY
$19.95
