Park Hotel, US Highway 181, Beeville, Texas
Back around 1905, Minnesota native Reinhart Nelson saw a promotional brochure for "The Land of Opportunity," Beeville, Texas. He might have also heard about their Christmas parades.
Reinhart used the opportunity to build a fourteen room hotel on four acres in a park-like setting with live oak trees. He called it the Park Hotel.
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He built it in 1910 with his patented "Miracle Hollow Block" cement stone.
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He modified his Minnesota concrete recipe to use local caliche (calcium carbonate sediment) and sand from Medio Creek.
The hotel was also a handy spot to stay when visiting the mineral springs in nearby Mineral.
Park Hotel became a private home in 1920, and remained so until the 1960's, when it was abandoned for thirty years.
Fortunately a woman named Elizabeth Villines bought it in 1993, and brought it up to landmark status.
The lobby of the hotel still has its original concrete tile floors.
If it were mine, I'd make it look a little more like another famous mineral springs hotel:
Here's another view:
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The hotel originally had four common areas including this dining room:
I would balance the "Tucson Coral" I suggested for the lobby with a little moody green in here:
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Another common area is the breakfast room, located just past the dining room:
Here's how I would decorate that space: (Can you tell I'm still eating Thanksgiving leftovers? This post is all about pretty table settings.)
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Upstairs are antique saddles and seven bedrooms. The hardwood floors on this level are original.
I've also been looking at pretty bedrooms. I would want to do up the guest rooms like this one:
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The hotel has four bathrooms and 4,320 square feet.
There's more miracle block outside, with rock walls and remnants of a greenhouse and barbecue area.
That gives us plenty of space for one more table setting:
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Meanwhile, the "Land of Opportunity" is still making promotional brochures and hosting Christmas parades.
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