{"nrhp_refnum":"89001149","name":"Hotel San Clemente","other_names":["San Clemente Hotel"],"category":"building","location":{"address":"114 Avenida Del Mar","address_restricted":false,"city":"San Clemente","county":"Orange County","state":"CA","lat":33.42701918600005,"lon":-117.613578357,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1989-08-31","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Community Planning and Development","Exploration/Settlement","Architecture"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A three-story, U-shaped Spanish Colonial Revival hotel at 114 Avenida Del Mar in San Clemente, Orange County, California, built in 1927 and formally opened in November 1927.","why_significant":"The hotel illustrates San Clemente's 1925-1933 settlement and development period and was built and used by the city's founder, Ole Hanson. It embodies the Spanish Colonial architectural theme that shaped the visual character of the planned community. It is the only remaining hotel from that period and still operates as one.","narrative":"Built in 1927 in the original commercial center of San Clemente, this three-story, U-shaped hotel has a front courtyard, stucco walls over frame construction, handmade red clay tile roofs and an off-center square bell tower. Fifteen original arches line the first-floor front, and the lobby keeps its clay tile floor, heavy carved wooden beams, concrete columns with Byzantine-influenced capitals and wrought iron light fixtures. It was designed by J. Wilmer Hershey, with Sears and Westbrook supervising after his death in 1927, for city founder Ole Hanson. Hanson required Spanish-style architecture throughout his planned seaside town, and he used the hotel to host prospective buyers, taking them up the tower to view the new city. It is the only surviving hotel from the settlement period and still operates as one. The property was recognized for its role in the city's early development, its link to Hanson, and its Spanish Colonial design.","period_of_significance":"1927-1933","architect_builder":"Hanson, Ole (builder); J. Wilmer Hershey, Architect; Sears and Westbrook (after death of Hershey in 1927)","architectural_style":"Mission/Spanish Colonial Revival","criteria":["A","B","C"],"status_note":"Stated to be in good condition and still in use as a hotel, with original lobby, commercial bays and tenant living areas in use.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:54:28.049732-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_CA/89001149.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/89001149/e94adaf790-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/89001149/e94adaf790-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","author":"Bluesnote","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:San_Clemente_Hotel.JPG\" rel=\"noopener\">Bluesnote</a>, <a href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC BY-SA 3.0</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:San_Clemente_Hotel.JPG"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/123860244","wikipedia":null,"wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q133331857"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/california/orange-county/hotel-san-clemente-89001149/"}