During the month of November, the Rosenberg Library is displaying items from historic Hotel Galvez, known today as the Grand Galvez Resort & Spa. Over a century old, the “Queen of the Gulf” is an iconic Galveston landmark, hosting a variety of celebrities, politicians, and countless tourists here to enjoy the island.

Origins & Construction

The Hotel Galvez was named after Bernardo de Gálvez, the Spanish military leader, first governor of Spanish Louisiana and Cuba, and 49^th Viceroy of New Spain. Galveston itself is also named after Gálvez, although he never actually visited the island.

The Hotel Galvez replaced the Beach Hotel, which occupied the same site on the waterfront until it burned down in 1898. Shortly after the Beach Hotel’s destruction came the 1900 Storm, bringing further devastation to the island. Construction on the Hotel Galvez began in 1910, contributing to the city’s efforts to restore Galveston’s tourism industry after the hurricane, and the hotel opened in 1911 as the first fireproof hotel in Galveston. This silver pin tray from our museum collection was manufactured as a souvenir for the grand opening of the hotel, listing both its name and the cost of construction—$750,000 (almost $25 million in today’s dollars). The tray would have been used to hold sewing pins, jewelry, or other trinkets.

Queen of the Gulf

The original Hotel Galvez was a Spanish Colonial Revival style building, with an eight-story center section and two six-story wings. There were 275 guest rooms, and 225 had private baths. The interior was lavishly decorated. The basement and first floor of the hotel were occupied by a variety of shops including a jewelry store, bar, restaurant, barbershop, soda fountain, and candy store.

The hotel also boasted a state-of-the-art kitchen and custom service ware with the hotel’s signature oleander theme and the Gálvez crest. The serving platter from our collection was likely used in the hotel’s restaurant or buffets and was manufactured by O.P. Co. Syracuse China in New York.

A Galveston Icon

The Hotel Galvez quickly became one of the premier destinations in Galveston. Presidents Franklin D. Roosevelt, Dwight D. Eisenhower, Lyndon B. Johnson, and Richard Nixon stayed there. Roosevelt even made the Galvez his official Summer White House in 1937 and spent the season fishing offshore on his yacht, the U.S.S. Potomac. Celebrities like Jimmy Stewart, Frank Sinatra, and Howard Hughes also frequented the hotel.

In the late 1920s, the Hotel Galvez began hosting the International Pageant of Pulchritude, Galveston’s annual “bathing beauties” contest. Contestants came from all over the United States, Canada, and Mexico, and were given accommodations in the Hotel Galvez for the duration of each pageant. This plastic souvenir fan from the 1920s depicts the Hotel Galvez and may have been one of many purchased by pageant spectators or tourists enjoying the warm climate.

During World War II, the Hotel Galvez played host to another kind of guest—the U.S. Coast Guard. From 1942-1944, the Coast Guard used the hotel as their wartime headquarters as well as staff living space, closing it to the public temporarily. However, once the war ended and the Coast Guard vacated the hotel, it quickly became a hotspot once again for tourists interested in the entertainment and illegal gambling available at nearby locations like the Balinese Room.

Modern Reinvention

From the 1960s to the 1990s, ownership of the hotel changed hands several times, and the hotel underwent several major renovations. In 1979, the hotel was renamed the Galvez Marriott and was added to the National Register of Historic Places. In 1993, the hotel was purchased by Mitchell Historic Properties and renovated once again, this time to recall its original 1911 appearance.

In 2021, the hotel was purchased by the Wyant Family and was renamed the Grand Galvez. Today, the hotel is a Marriott Autograph Collection Property and continues to welcome more visitors to the island each year.

 For more information about the Hotel Galvez, check out these books from our library catalog:

A History of the Hotel Galvez by Kathleen Maca

Hotel Galvez: Queen of the Gulf by Gary Cartwright

The Treasure of the Month is located on the library’s historic second floor near the East Entrance. It can be viewed during regular library hours, 9:00 a.m. to 5:45 p.m. Monday through Saturday and from 9:00 a.m. – 8:45 p.m. on Tuesdays and Thursdays. For more information, please contact Rachel Hooper, Museum Curator at 409.763.8854 Ext. 125 or at museum@rosenberg-library.org.