The Bellevue-Stratford Hotel
- Architect
- G. W. & W. D. Hewitt
- Year
- 1904
- Style
- Renaissance Revival
- City
- Philadelphia, PA
The Bellevue-Stratford Hotel opened in 1904 at Broad and Walnut Streets, designed by the Philadelphia firm G. W. & W. D. Hewitt, and was expanded to its present size in 1912. It operated as one of the city's premier hotels for decades until an American Legion convention in the summer of 1976 triggered a lethal outbreak of what became known as Legionnaires' disease, traced to bacteria in the air-conditioning system, killing or sickening numerous guests. The hotel closed that November and never fully recovered, permanently shutting in March 1986 before being converted to mixed use in 1988.
the building
1912 expansion. Constructed in 1904, the hotel was expanded to its present size in 1912, cementing its position as one of Center City's grandest hotels for the better part of a century.
the style
The hotel was built in the Renaissance Revival style favored for grand American hotels of the period, projecting an air of old-world civic dignity at the prominent corner of Broad and Walnut Streets.
More on Renaissance Revivalsignificance
The 1976 Legionnaires' disease outbreak, traced to the hotel's air-conditioning system, led to the hotel's permanent closure as the Bellevue-Stratford in 1986. Converted to mixed use in 1988, the building is now known as The Bellevue, with its hotel portion managed by Hyatt, and it is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
nearby
- Equitable Trust Building
- Academy of Music
- Clarence B. Moore House
- Dr. Joseph Leidy House
- Land Title Building
- North American Building