Hotel Dempsey

The Hotel Dempsey Company was incorporated on April 23, 1912, for a twenty-year period.^[2] The Georgia Chamber of Commerce and local press led a campaign that influenced hundreds of Macon citizens to subscribe to the hotel's stock.^[3]

The construction of the Hotel Dempsey, a luxury hotel building, began in 1912.^[4] It was originally an eight-story corner building with commercial space below and a rooftop sign bearing the name "Hotel Dempsey."^[5] Located at 523 Cherry Street, the building occupied the corner with Third Street.^[6]

The hotel was designed by New York architect William Lee Stoddart. It was modeled after Atlanta's Georgian Terrace Hotel, with some differences in its exterior. The contractor was Gray-Wimmer Construction Company.^[7] R. S. Hubbell, the former assistant manager of the Waldorf-Astoria and the Dempsey's manager-in-chief, spent six months overseeing preparations. He guided the hotel's progress from framework to completion and personally directed and ordered the installation of its equipment.^[3]

The hotel was the product of over a year's work, during which hundreds were employed and millions in Macon investment capital were used for labor. The building cost $200,000, while the leased ground was valued at the same amount, making it a half-million-dollar project.^[3] The building was made with fireproof materials.^[8] The only wood used was in the windows, doors, and trim, with concrete floors covered in Hartford sultana velvet.^[3] It was designed to include all modern conveniences found in New York hotels. There were 225 rooms, each one with a bay window, and 125 of them with a bath.^[8] The bathrooms had tiled flooring and walls.^[3] Located on the ninth floor overlooking Third Street, the grand ballroom doubled as a roof garden in summer. It seated 500–600 with a stage, or 400 for banquets, and was used for conventions and dancing. Nearby were rest and lounging rooms for ladies.^[3]

The Hotel Dempsey officially opened on March 12, 1913.^[8] Among the notable guests at the grand opening were George C. Boldt, then proprietor of the Waldorf-Astoria, and Oscar Tschirky, its general manager.^[3]

All employees, from cooks to waiters and maids, were white, a practice regarded as innovative in the South then.^[8] With 279 on its payroll, the Dempsey's staff included 25 maids, 18 bellboys, and 20 waiters.^[3]

The Georgia Chamber of Commerce's first Board of Directors meeting was held at the Hotel Dempsey on September 16, 1913.^[9]

The first steps for a 125-room expansion of the Hotel Dempsey were taken in August 1930, with property deeds from Thomas C. Dempsey filed in Bibb Superior Court.^[10]

Its charter was renewed for another twenty years on February 3, 1932.^[2]

During World War II, the Dempsey accommodated military personnel and the Red Cross, later transforming into the Dempsey Motor Hotel in the 1950s.^[4] An 11-story parking garage was added to the hotel in late 1950.^[6]

It passed through eight owners during a six-year span in the 1970s.^[6]

The Dempsey was bought in 1983 by Boston's Barkan Companies, aided by the Federal Department, Urban Development, and Bibb County.^[4] The building became Dempsey Apartments, offering 194 low-income units for seniors, the disabled, and other residents with government assistance.^[11] The property sold for $4.5 million in 2018.^[4]