Full-service / Detroit
Russell House
Closed – archive entry · 1836–1905 · demolished 1905
Detroit's leading hotel on Campus Martius (1836–1905), first as the National Hotel, then as the Russell House. For nearly 50 years it was the center of the city's social life.
Quick facts
- Opened
- 1836
03 / The story of this place
What was here?
S.K. Harring opened the National Hotel on this Campus Martius corner on December 1, 1836, when Detroit had about 9,000 people. In 1857 William Hale had it rebuilt by Anderson & Jordan, and W.H. Russell reopened it as the Russell House on September 28 that year. For almost half a century it was the city's top hotel and the heart of its social scene; during the Civil War, crowds gathered outside for the latest news. It closed on November 19, 1905, with a famously wild farewell party, and demolition started on December 15 to make way for the Hotel Pontchartrain.
- Opened as the National Hotel in 1836
- Renamed the Russell House in 1857
- Detroit's top hotel for nearly 50 years
- Former names
- National Hotel (1836–1857)
- Architect
- Anderson & Jordan (1857 rebuilding)
- What’s there now?
- The First National Building (1922) occupies the corner; the Hotel Pontchartrain stood here in between, from 1907 to 1920.
Hotels nearby
Back to hotels ↗
Extended stay / Downtown · Cadillac Square / Campus Martius
Kasa Cadillac Square Detroit
Smart & simple / Downtown · Jefferson Avenue / Millender Center (next to the RenCen)
Courtyard by Marriott Detroit Downtown
Boutique / Downtown · Greektown
Atheneum Suite Hotel
Save the plan. Share the moment.
