Changes

[[Image:MerchantsHotel{{Infobox Building|image=GilbertHotel1939.jpg|thumb|right|250pxcaption=The hotel, by then named the Gilbert Hotel, in 1939|Illustration of the name=Merchants' Hotel from the |location=Southwest corner of [[Government Street|Government]] and [[Palafox Street]]s|architect=|client=|engineer=|owner=[[Wellge mapJacob Kryger]]|construction_start_date=|completion_date=c.[[1882]]The |renovations=|date_demolished=[[1970]]|cost=|structural_system=|style=|size=Three stories|mapcode=}}'''Merchants' Hotel''' , also known as the '''Gilbert Hotel''' and the '''DeSoto Building''', was a hotel commercial building located on the southwest corner of [[Palafox Street|Palafox]] and [[Government Street]]s (currently , on [[Plaza Ferdinand VII]]. For most of its life, the building was home to a parking lot)hotel. ==Merchants' Hotel era==The hotel was opened by [[Jacob Kryger]] circa [[1882]] as Merchants' Hotel. It is noted with illustration on the [[Wellge map]] of [[1885]].  In 1892, Kryger added the [[Bijou Saloon]] on the ground floor of the hotel.  A [[M1905]] business directory indicates that the hotel was in operation beginning in at least [[1882]]::''MERCHANTS HOTEL – Has a capacity of 42 guests. Rooms rent at the rates of $2.50 and $3.00 per day. Mr. [[Jacob Kryger|Jacob KRYGER]] has conducted the house for over 23 years and is assisted by his chief clerk, Mr. [[Clifford J. Bell|C. J. BELL]].'' In the years before the [[San Carlos Hotel]] was constructed, Merchants' Hotel was one of the preeminent hotels in the city. Famous guests included [[Wikipedia:Sarah Bernhardt|Sarah Bernhardt]], [[Wikipedia:John Drew Jr.|John Drew Jr.]], and [[Wikipedia:Richard Mansfield|Richard Mansfield]].<ref name="demo">[https://www.newspapers.com/clip/32237332/desotomerchant_hotel_demolition/ "Historic DeSoto Will Be Destroyed"]. ''The Pensacola News''. October 30, 1970. p. 14. Retrieved June 4, 2019 – via [[Wikipedia:Newspapers.com|Newspapers.com]]</ref>  ==Gilbert Hotel era==The hotel's name was changed to the Gilbert Hotel in 1934 after it was sold. ==DeSoto Building era==Sometime between 1939 and 1944, the hotel was closed and the Gilbert Hotel name was shifted to another hotel owned by the company on East [[Wright Street]]. By 1950, the building had been converted to office space and rechristened the DeSoto Building. ==Demolition==The building was demolished beginning on [[October 31]], [[1970]]. City officials had condemned the building, by then in a state of disrepair, after owner Ollie Delchamps refused to renovate it.<ref name="demo" /> The site is currently occupied by a parking lot. ==Other images==<gallery>File:MerchantsHotel.jpg|Illustration of the proprietorMerchants' Hotel from the [[Wellge map]].File:GilbertHotel.jpg|Building as the Gilbert Hotel</gallery> ==References=={{reflist}}

[[Category:Palafox Street buildings]][[Category:Demolished structures]][[Category:Hotels]]