McCartney Hotel

Last crawled date: 2 years, 10 months ago

The McCartney Hotel stands today as a reminder of the thriving commercial and industrial economy Texarkana boasted during the first half of the 20th century. Designed in the grand hotel style of the 1920s by Houston architect Joseph Finger, the hotel is prominently located across from Union Station Terminal, a major railroad center of the southwest. The site of the McCartney Hotel was the first town lot sold in the city, and was previously occupied by the three- story Cosmopolitan Hotel, noted for its appeal to traveling theatrical troupes and said to have hosted Will Rogers and Lilly Pons. The Cosmopolitan was razed in 1929 by owner W.A. McCartney, Sr. to make way for the larger, more accommodating McCartney Hotel. The reinforced concrete and brick structure became a focal point for the city's skyline. Rising ten stories above the city, the structure bears a modified resemblance to the skyscrapers of the Chicago School. Over the last twenty-five years the increase in highway transportation brought about the gradual decline in the importance of Texarkana as a railway center. As a result, the hotel ceased to operate as such in the early 1970s and in 1976 was sold and used for storage. UPDATE: Newer better version of the Mcartney! #1920s #building #Chicago_School #derelict #downtown #hotel #Joseph_Finger #Texarkana #Texas