Hoover Hotel, historic hotel in Whittier, Los Angeles County, Southern California, US
The Hoover Hotel is a six-story building in Whittier built in 1930 with Mediterranean Revival architecture featuring around 110 rooms. It has stucco walls, red tile roofing, and decorative details in Spanish colonial style, while the interior originally included Hawaiian furnishings and colorful tilework.
The hotel opened in 1930 during the Great Depression as the largest visitor accommodation in Whittier, intended to support local business growth. It remained the oldest standing hotel building in the city until its conversion into senior housing around 2002.
The hotel was named after Lou Henry Hoover, wife of President Herbert Hoover, who was a native of Whittier. She was an accomplished woman who became the first female geology graduate from Stanford University and spoke multiple languages.
The building is easily accessible on foot and located near parks and shops in Whittier. The historic architecture is visible from the street, allowing visitors to view the facade and decorative details even if interior access may be limited.
Architect David Bushnell embedded steel rods not just in the walls but also inside the showers to make the building earthquake-resistant. This innovative 1930 construction technique made the hotel one of the early examples of earthquake engineering in California architecture.
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