{"nrhp_refnum":"98000634","name":"Redlands Hotel","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"400 N. Queen St","address_restricted":false,"city":"Palestine","county":"Anderson County","state":"TX","lat":31.76299239900004,"lon":-95.63424994499997,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1998-06-03","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Commerce","Architecture"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A five-story, U-shaped brick hotel building at 400 N. Queen Street in downtown Palestine, Anderson County, Texas, built in 1914-1915 and designed by architects Henry T. Phelps and James Firth Brook.","why_significant":"The building was erected by local business leaders who wanted a first-class hotel, and it later became the headquarters of the I&GN Railroad after a U.S. Supreme Court order in 1918. It is the only 2-part vertical block building in Palestine and the largest historic building in the city, symbolizing the prosperity the railroad brought. It is significant locally in commerce and architecture.","narrative":"Rising five stories at the corner of N. Queen and W. Oak Streets, this brick hotel was built in 1914-1915 after Palestine business leaders decided the city needed a first-class hostelry. Architects Henry T. Phelps of San Antonio and local designer James Firth Brook planned the U-shaped building, which has Classical Revival details such as quoin-like corner brickwork and a bracketed entablature. It reportedly was the largest hotel between Dallas and Houston. The hotel proved unprofitable, and in 1918 a U.S. Supreme Court order sent the International & Great Northern Railroad's general offices to Palestine. The railroad leased the building in 1919 and used it as headquarters until the mid-1950s. After about nineteen years mostly vacant, private investors began converting it in 1976 into shops, offices, and apartments. As the city's only 2-part vertical block, it stands above the low commercial buildings of downtown and reflects both local civic effort and railroad-era prosperity.","period_of_significance":"1914-1945","architect_builder":"Brooks, J.F./Phelps, Henry T. (architects)","architectural_style":"Other: 2-Part Vertical Block; Late 19th and 20th Century Revivals: Classical Revival","criteria":["A","C"],"status_note":"Described as in good condition; the ground floor holds offices and retail stores while the upper floors were being remodeled into apartments. The building stood mostly vacant for about nineteen years after the railroad left in the mid-1950s.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:54:23.889162-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/78/9678/40967878/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_TX/98000634.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/98000634/42c43dd3c9-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/98000634/42c43dd3c9-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","author":"Renelibrary","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:RedlandsHotelPalestine_(1_of_1).jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Renelibrary</a>, <a href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC BY-SA 4.0</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:RedlandsHotelPalestine_(1_of_1).jpg"},"district":{"nrhp_refnum":"100007058","name":"Palestine New Town Commercial Historic District","url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/districts/texas/palestine-new-town-commercial-historic-district-100007058/"},"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/40967878","wikipedia":null,"wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q107321112"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/texas/anderson-county/redlands-hotel-98000634/"}