Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
THE SAINTE CLAIRE
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Real estate mogul T. S. Montgomery created a master plan for the town of San Jose. The Sainte
Claire was to be Montgomery's crown jewel and serve as a focal point for the town's social and
cultural life. It was to be followed by a new civic auditorium that would also serve as a convention
center. Montgomery's untimely death and the Depression postponed the auditorium until 1934.
In 1923, Montgomery bought the Eagle Brewery to serve as the site of his new hotel. The Eagle
had been closed by prohibition in 1918. Montgomery attracted investors who had holdings in the im-
mediate area, convincing them their property values would rise. Stock subscribers included Charles
P. Weeks and W. P. Day, the architects of the Mark Hopkins in San Francisco and the Beverly
Wilshire in Los Angeles.
Construction finished in September 1926 at a cost of approximately $750,000. The equipment
and the furnishing brought the price tag to an even $1,000,000, making it known as “San Jose's Mil-
lion-Dollar Hotel.” Built in a Spanish-Revival Renaissance style with a blend of Moorish, Spanish,
and French-Italian influence, the hotel offers an exterior fashioned to imitate an Italian palazzo
created with buff brick and terra-cotta.
A ventilating and heating system in the basement washed every cubic foot of air used in the
200 guest rooms, as well as through the public areas of the entire six-story hotel. The Sainte Claire
also had its own deep well and subjected it to a water softener, as well as the latest charcoal wa-
ter filter, which made the water absolutely pure. At the time, The Sainte Claire had the largest
kitchen in Northern California, and it was the biggest and best hotel between San Francisco and
Los Angeles. The tile fountain in the enclosed courtyard was custom-built by Albert Solon, the
internationally known ceramist, whose work also adorned Hearst Castle and the Mark Hopkins
Hotel in San Francisco.
The new hotel opened in 1926 with great fanfare, with a black-tie party for 500. By the next
day, many felt that San Jose had risen above its “prune town” image and might someday rival San
Francisco for sophistication and elegance. Society women came for lunch or afternoon tea. Some
years later, the patio and courtyard were covered over and a dance floor was installed, creating
the ballroom.
The hotel lobby had a newsstand selling magazines, cigars, and novelty gifts. The marble-
floored walkway lead to the coffee shop, flower shop, barbershop, travel agency, and gift shop. The
coffee shop, patronized mostly by the affluent, had two levels of chairs and tables, a higher level
