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The Ellis Hotel, formerly known as the Winecoff Hotel, is located at 176
In April 1951, the hotel reopened as the Peachtree Hotel on Peachtree, and was now equipped with both
Winecoff Hotel Fire Documentary official website
A full-length documentary about the Winecoff Hotel Fire of 1946
Ellis Hotel official websiteWebsite for the book ''The Winecoff Fire: The Untold Story of America's Deadliest Hotel Fire''
*Maps for this location: {{Atlanta landmarks Skyscraper hotels in Atlanta Hotels established in 1913 Hotel buildings completed in 1913 Hotel buildings on the National Register of Historic Places in Georgia (U.S. state) William Lee Stoddart buildings 1913 establishments in Georgia (U.S. state) National Register of Historic Places in Atlanta Burned hotels in the United States
Peachtree Street
Peachtree Street is one of several major streets running through the city of Atlanta. Beginning at Five Points in downtown Atlanta, it runs North through Midtown; a few blocks after entering into Buckhead, the name changes to Peachtree Road ...
NW, in downtown Atlanta
Downtown Atlanta is the central business district of Atlanta, Georgia, United States. The larger of the city's two other commercial districts ( Midtown and Buckhead), it is the location of many corporate and regional headquarters; city, county, ...
, Georgia, USA. Designed by William Lee Stoddart
William Lee Stoddart (1868–1940) was an architect who designed urban hotels in the Eastern United States. Although he was born in Tenafly, New Jersey, most of his commissions were in the South. He maintained offices in Atlanta and New York C ...
, the 15-story building opened in 1913. It is located next to 200 Peachtree
200 Peachtree is a mixed-use retail center in downtown Atlanta, Georgia designed by Philip T. Shutze and Starrett & van Vleck. Built in 1927 as the flagship department store for Davison's, the last department store in the building closed in 20 ...
, which was built as the flagship
A flagship is a vessel used by the commanding officer of a group of naval ships, characteristically a flag officer entitled by custom to fly a distinguishing flag. Used more loosely, it is the lead ship in a fleet of vessels, typically the f ...
Davison's
Davison's of Atlanta was a department store chain and an Atlanta shopping institution. It was the major competition to Rich's and it took the Macy's name in 1986.
Founding
Davison's first opened its doors in Atlanta in 1891 and had its orig ...
. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artist ...
on March 31, 2009. The Ellis Hotel is best known for a fire that occurred there on December 7, 1946, in which 119 people died.
Fire
The Ellis Hotel (previously the Winecoff Hotel) is best known for a fire that occurred there on December 7, 1946, in which 119 people died. It remains the deadliest hotel fire in U.S. history, and prompted many changes inbuilding code
A building code (also building control or building regulations) is a set of rules that specify the standards for constructed objects such as buildings and non-building structures. Buildings must conform to the code to obtain planning permiss ...
s. Guests at the hotel that night included teenagers attending a Hi-Y and Tri-Hi-Y Youth-in-Government conference (Youth Assembly) sponsored by the State YMCA of Georgia, Christmas shoppers, and people in town to see ''Song of the South
''Song of the South'' is a 1946 American live-action/animated musical drama film directed by Harve Foster and Wilfred Jackson; produced by Walt Disney and released by RKO Radio Pictures. It is based on the Uncle Remus stories as adapted by J ...
''. Arnold Hardy
Arnold Hardy (February 2, 1922 – December 5, 2007) was the first amateur photographer who won the 1947 Pulitzer Prize for Photography.
His 1947 award-winning photo of a woman plunging from a window of the burning Winecoff Hotel in Atlan ...
, a 24-year-old graduate student
Postgraduate or graduate education refers to academic or professional degrees, certificates, diplomas, or other qualifications pursued by post-secondary students who have earned an undergraduate (bachelor's) degree.
The organization and st ...
at Georgia Tech
The Georgia Institute of Technology, commonly referred to as Georgia Tech or, in the state of Georgia, as Tech or The Institute, is a public research university and institute of technology in Atlanta, Georgia. Established in 1885, it is part o ...
, became the first amateur to win a Pulitzer Prize in photography for his snapshot of a woman in mid-air after jumping from the 11th floor of the hotel during the fire. The jumper was Daisy McCumber, 41. She sustained multiple broken bones and eventually had a leg amputated. Under these circumstances, she still worked until her retirement. She died in 1992.
Reopenings
In April 1951, the hotel reopened as the Peachtree Hotel on Peachtree, and was now equipped with both fire alarm
A fire alarm system warns people when smoke, fire, carbon monoxide or other fire-related or general notification emergency, emergencies are detected. These alarms may be activated automatically from smoke detectors and heat detectors or may also ...
s and automated sprinkler systems. In 1967, it was donated to the Georgia Baptist Convention for housing the elderly
Old age refers to ages nearing or surpassing the life expectancy of human beings, and is thus the end of the human life cycle. Terms and euphemisms for people at this age include old people, the elderly (worldwide usage), OAPs (British usage ...
, and then repeatedly sold to a series of potential developers.
The gutted lobby served as a souvenir shop during the 1996 Summer Olympics.
After over two decades of vacancy, a $23 million renovation
Renovation (also called remodeling) is the process of improving broken, damaged, or outdated structures. Renovations are typically done on either commercial or residential buildings. Additionally, renovation can refer to making something new, ...
project began in April 2006. The project restored the building into a boutique luxury hotel, called the Ellis Hotel after the street that runs along the north side of the building. It was reopened on October 1, 2007.
See also
*National Register of Historic Places listings in Fulton County, Georgia
This is a list of properties and districts in Fulton County, Georgia that are listed on the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP). It covers most of the NRHP properties in Atlanta; other Atlanta listings are covered in National Regist ...
*Hotels in Atlanta
This article is about hotels in Atlanta, including a brief history of hotels in the city and a list of some notable hotels.
Founded in the 1830s as a railroad terminus, Atlanta experienced rapid growth in its early years to become a major econo ...
*History of hotel fires in the United States
The National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) has documented several dozen hotel fires in the United States since the 1930s that have killed more than ten people each, deeming these incidents to be fires of historical note. The Winecoff Hotel f ...
*Skyscraper fire
The following is a list of fires in high-rise buildings. A skyscraper fire or high-rise fire is a class of structural fire specific to tall buildings. Skyscraper fires are technically challenging for fire departments: they require unusually hig ...
References
External links
Winecoff Hotel Fire Documentary official website
A full-length documentary about the Winecoff Hotel Fire of 1946
Ellis Hotel official website
*Maps for this location: {{Atlanta landmarks Skyscraper hotels in Atlanta Hotels established in 1913 Hotel buildings completed in 1913 Hotel buildings on the National Register of Historic Places in Georgia (U.S. state) William Lee Stoddart buildings 1913 establishments in Georgia (U.S. state) National Register of Historic Places in Atlanta Burned hotels in the United States