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This brick and terra cotta structure was the "dream hotel" of early El Paso businessman and promoter Zach White. White came to the town in 1881 and recognized El Paso's great potential as a gateway to Mexico. He worked hard to help the city realize that potential by building the Santa Fe International Bridge and an early streetcar line, as well as introducing electric street lights and natural gas. His most visible contribution to the growing community, however, was the ten-story Hotel Paso Del Norte, which was completed in 1912. Designed by the noted El Paso architectural firm of Trost and Trost, the structure was engineered to be fireproof and was modeled after buildings that had survived the 1906 San Francisco earthquake. Throughout its history, Hotel Paso Del Norte has served travelers and tourists, has been an El Paso social center, and has been used as a headquarters for cattle trading ranchers. Numerous dignitaries from both the United States and Mexico have been guests here over the years. A reflection of an early twentieth-century belief in the community's future growth and development, Hotel Paso Del Norte stands as an important part of El Paso's commercial history. 1985 |
