Did you know?
When the Book-Cadillac opened in 1924 if was the tallest hotel in the world.
The 33-floor Book-Cadillac took 17 months to build at a cost of $14 million with 1,136 guestrooms on floors 7-29.
Book-Cadillac architect Louis Kamper’s design for the hotel was in the Italian Renaissance style; New York’s Statler Hotel was a major design influence.
The original Italian Garden Room featured a two-story glass ceiling; electronic lighting controls changed the ceiling to look like a sunny day, a starry evening or a thunderstorm.
All public rooms were “refrigerated” on warm days; the refrigeration plant cost $60,000
36 operators handled a switchboard to manage 1,500 phones.
Book-Cadillac guests included three US Presidents: Truman, Eisenhower and Kennedy; other notable guests included Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr., Lady Bird Johnson, Joe DiMaggio, Babe Ruth, Ted Williams, Errol Flynn, Danny Thomas, Frank Sinatra, Joe Louis, and Tommy Hearns.
Read more about the history of The Westin Book Cadillac Detroit: A Legend Returns
Historic photos reprinted with permission from Images of America: Detroit’s Statler and Book-Cadillac Hotels, by David Kohrman.