The Hermitage Hotel

 A masterpiece of Beaux-Arts architecture, The Hermitage Hotel makes its place at the intersection of Union Street and 6th Avenue in downtown Nashville.  Commissioned in 1908 by 250 Nashvillians and first opened on September 17, 1910, The Hermitage's construction puts it in the middle of a Beaux-Arts era that swept the nation between 1880 and 1920.  Now the last commercial building remaining in this style in Tennessee, it was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1975.

The Beaux-Arts, which is a wild mix of Baroque, Rococo, Imperial Roman, and Italian Renaissance architecture, is the perfect style to represent the people who stayed at The Hermitage Hotel.  Playing host to six US Presidents and a long list of other celebrities, The Hermitage was a hot spot for the powerful and elite of Nashville and beyond.  The first of these was President Taft who came to be entertained in the Hermitage's lavish dining room, followed by Woodrow Wilson the next year.  The Hermitage also served as the campaign headquarters for Democrats Edward H. Crump and, later, John F. Kennedy.  Franklin D. Roosevelt and his wife also made a visit there on his campaign promoting the "New Deal" policies; this drew an enormous crowd of people trying to get a glimpse of the famous couple.

Beaux-Arts, which literally translates as 'Fine-Arts', is characterized by a symmetrical facade and flat, low-pitched roofs.  These are contrasted by elaborate wall designs composed of decorative garlands, floral patterns, and cartouches. The outside ground floor is rusticated, which means that there is masonry cut in large blocks separated by deep joints which emboldens the wall.  The exterior of the mezzanine (second floor from the outside) pulls from the Ancient Greek realm.  It is composed of seven pairs of ionic columns holding up a small two foot rectangular pediment.  The ornate facade is what composes the eclectic style of the Beaux-Arts school.

 
This mezzanine, which sits level up from the lobby is characterized by its painted ceilings.  The style of painting ceilings alludes to the Italian Renaissance and the phenomenal frescoes that came of that era.  The Imperial Roman architecture can be seen in the Italian sienna marble used on the wall panels in the entrance and the lobby seen above.  In the expansive dining room, the walls are lined floor to ceiling with ornate panels made of Russian walnut.  The stained glass ceiling is placed in the vaulted roof of the lobby, a style credited to the English and Middle Ages Gothic architects.

  Following with the helter-skelter decoration of the Hotel, the famous men's bathroom at the Grille is done in a curious art deco style.  Voted the best bathroom in the nation, it features lime green and black leaded-glass tiles, lime green fixtures, authentic terrazzo floors, and a shoeshine station.  It has four stools, three urinals, four sinks, spotless mirrors and a Sultan telephone that connects to the front desk.  Occasionally the ladies are allowed in for a peak of the world famous restroom.