Gibson House (Cincinnati)

The Gibson House was a well-known and well-regarded hotel in Cincinnati, Ohio, and the precursor of the Hotel Gibson. The Gibson House was located on Main St. between 4th & 5th (south of Fountain Square) until the 1970s.

This article is about the former hotel in Cincinnati, Ohio. For other uses, see Gibson House (disambiguation).
Gibson House menu on March 11, 1860
Early advertisement for the Gibson House

History

The Gibson House was opened about February 1849 on Walnut Street between Fourth and Fifth Street, on the west side of the street, in Cincinnati, OH. The first proprietors were J.K. and D.V. Bennett.[1] It was considered the "best house in the city"[2][3] within a year. The hotel was financed by Peter Gibson, a Scottish immigrant who was born October 20, 1802, and emigrated to America in 1831. Many wall decorations and frescoes were painted by the artist William A. Thien, who lived in Cincinnati for a time.[4]

During World War II, Gibson House was used as an internment camp for German-Americans.[5]

During the first season of professional baseball, on several occasions the fans would meet the Cincinnati Red Stockings baseball team and escort them to the Gibson House where celebrations and banquets were held.[6]

The House was often used to greet VIPs who visited Cincinnati, such as Rutherford B. Hayes, who visited Cincinnati September 15, 1877.[7]

The original Gibson House was demolished in 1912 after being destroyed by fire and was redeveloped as the Sheraton-Gibson hotel.[8][9]

John F. Kennedy stayed there during his 1960 presidential campaign.[10]

The Sheraton-Gibson closed on July 15, 1974.[8] The hotel was demolished in 1977 to make way for a new hotel complex.[10]

References
  1. Fort Wayne Times, Thursday March 1, 1849, page 2, column 7
  2. Fort Wayne Times, April 25, 1850, page 2, column 5.
  3. Zanesville Courier, November 2, 1850, page 2, column 2.
  4. Artists in Ohio, 1787-1900: A Biographical Dictionary.
  5. Known camps
  6. Dubuque Daily Herald, July 2, 1869, page 1, column 3.
  7. Dubuque Herald, September 16, 1877.
  8. "A Sign of Times Changing". The Cincinnati Enquirer. July 5, 1974.
  9. "When Clerks Wore Carnations". The Cincinnati Enquirer. September 22, 1974.
  10. Clarke, Norm (December 3, 1977). "Wrecking Ball Crumbles Famed Sheraton-Gibson". The Marion Star. p. 3.

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