Claremont Resort
Encyclopedia
The Claremont Hotel Club & Spa is a historic hotel
at the foot of Claremont Canyon in the Berkeley Hills
, providing the resort with scenic views of San Francisco Bay
. The hotel building is entirely in Oakland
, bordering Berkeley
.
The Claremont has 279 guest rooms, an award-winning 20000 square feet (1,858.1 m²) spa, 10 tennis courts, and 22 acres (8.9 ha) of landscaped gardens. Romantic
stories tell that it was once won in a checkers game. The Hotel was nominated and deemed eligible for listing on the National Register of Historic Places
in 2003, but was not listed due to owner objection. It is a designated California Historical Landmark.
The Claremont Resort opened in 1915 as the Claremont Hotel, named for the Claremont district
in which it was situated. It was constructed by a group of real estate developers including mining magnate "Borax" Smith associated with the Key System
who had already opened up another large hotel in Oakland at Grand Avenue and Broadway called the Key Route Inn
. The Key Route Inn, which suffered a serious fire in September 1930 and was demolished in April and May 1932, featured the convenience of a transbay electric rail line running through it. Similarly, a transbay line was run right to the doors of the Claremont Hotel (eventually designated the "E" line), approaching from between the tennis courts. The tracks were removed in 1958 when the Key System ended rail service, but the tennis courts survive, with a path between them where the tracks used to be. Thus, Claremont Hotel guests not only had a magnificent view of San Francisco, but they could also go there directly from the doorsteps of the lobby.
The hotel was also convenient to automobile traffic as it was situated along the principal route leading over the Berkeley Hills via Claremont Canyon. In 1903, a small tunnel was excavated above the next canyon south of Claremont Canyon, accessible by a new road dubbed "Tunnel Road" which ran from the end of Ashby Avenue. The same route later led to a newer, larger tunnel called the Caldecott Tunnel
which opened in 1937. The street address of the Claremont remains to this day, 41 Tunnel Road. Tunnel Road is a designated part of State Highway 13
.
In 1876, a Berkeley city ordinance was passed prohibiting alcohol within one mile (1.6 km) of the perimeter of the University of California
. As the Claremont Hotel was being built, its investors noticed it was just inside this no-alcohol zone. They determined to fight the definition so that they could make more money by serving alcohol. In 1913, the hotel's investors sponsored AB 1620 (known as the Ferguson bill), supposedly to further restrict alcohol near churches and schools statewide, but it specifically excluded the Claremont Hotel from the dry zone. Influenced by activism from women's clubs and temperance groups in Berkeley, the Ferguson bill was defeated by one vote. After amending the bill and mounting a stronger campaign, the Claremont's investors were able to pass the bill in altered form. The new bill redefined the mile limit to be centered on the library of the university—a shifting of the boundary which allowed the Claremont to serve drinks. In 1920, Prohibition
was enacted federally, ending the Claremont's legal license to serve alcohol. In 1933 when Prohibition was repealed, the Claremont Hotel continued to suffer from the state law prohibiting alcohol within a mile of the university. In 1936, an enterprising student and her friends measured several of the possible routes, finding that the shortest distance from the school to the hotel's front steps was a few feet over a mile. The Claremont immediately opened a bar and awarded the student free drinks for life.
The hotel had an unusual fire escape, a multi-story spiral slide for guests to make their escape. Many local teenagers were said to have taken the ride but the slide was eventually boarded up, and removed.
The Claremont faced destruction in the 1991 Oakland firestorm
, but the flames were stopped just short of the hotel.
In 2007, the Claremont was acquired by Morgan Stanley
. On February 1, 2011, the resort filed for bankruptcy due to losses attributed to the ongoing recession.
Hotel
A hotel is an establishment that provides paid lodging on a short-term basis. The provision of basic accommodation, in times past, consisting only of a room with a bed, a cupboard, a small table and a washstand has largely been replaced by rooms with modern facilities, including en-suite bathrooms...
at the foot of Claremont Canyon in the Berkeley Hills
Berkeley Hills
The Berkeley Hills are a range of the Pacific Coast Ranges that overlook the northeast side of the valley that surrounds San Francisco Bay. They were previously called the "Contra Costa Range/Hills" , but with the establishment of Berkeley and the University of California, the current usage was...
, providing the resort with scenic views of San Francisco Bay
San Francisco Bay
San Francisco Bay is a shallow, productive estuary through which water draining from approximately forty percent of California, flowing in the Sacramento and San Joaquin rivers from the Sierra Nevada mountains, enters the Pacific Ocean...
. The hotel building is entirely in Oakland
Oakland, California
Oakland is a major West Coast port city on San Francisco Bay in the U.S. state of California. It is the eighth-largest city in the state with a 2010 population of 390,724...
, bordering Berkeley
Berkeley, California
Berkeley is a city on the east shore of the San Francisco Bay in Northern California, United States. Its neighbors to the south are the cities of Oakland and Emeryville. To the north is the city of Albany and the unincorporated community of Kensington...
.
The Claremont has 279 guest rooms, an award-winning 20000 square feet (1,858.1 m²) spa, 10 tennis courts, and 22 acres (8.9 ha) of landscaped gardens. Romantic
Romanticism
Romanticism was an artistic, literary and intellectual movement that originated in the second half of the 18th century in Europe, and gained strength in reaction to the Industrial Revolution...
stories tell that it was once won in a checkers game. The Hotel was nominated and deemed eligible for listing on the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
in 2003, but was not listed due to owner objection. It is a designated California Historical Landmark.
The Claremont Resort opened in 1915 as the Claremont Hotel, named for the Claremont district
Claremont, Oakland/Berkeley, California
The Claremont district is a neighborhood straddling the city limits of Oakland and Berkeley in the East Bay section of the San Francisco Bay Area in California, United States. It lies at an elevation of 266 feet . The main thoroughfares are Claremont and Ashby Avenues.The name was given in the...
in which it was situated. It was constructed by a group of real estate developers including mining magnate "Borax" Smith associated with the Key System
Key System
The Key System was a privately owned company which provided mass transit in the cities of Oakland, Berkeley, Alameda, Emeryville, Piedmont, San Leandro, Richmond, Albany and El Cerrito in the eastern San Francisco Bay Area from 1903 until 1960, when the system was sold to a newly formed public...
who had already opened up another large hotel in Oakland at Grand Avenue and Broadway called the Key Route Inn
Key Route Inn
The Key Route Inn was a major hotel in Oakland, California in the early decades of the 20th century. It was constructed by the Realty Syndicate of Francis "Borax" Smith and Frank C. Havens, a subsidiary of which was the Key Route transit system. The Inn first opened on May 7, 1907 straddling what...
. The Key Route Inn, which suffered a serious fire in September 1930 and was demolished in April and May 1932, featured the convenience of a transbay electric rail line running through it. Similarly, a transbay line was run right to the doors of the Claremont Hotel (eventually designated the "E" line), approaching from between the tennis courts. The tracks were removed in 1958 when the Key System ended rail service, but the tennis courts survive, with a path between them where the tracks used to be. Thus, Claremont Hotel guests not only had a magnificent view of San Francisco, but they could also go there directly from the doorsteps of the lobby.
The hotel was also convenient to automobile traffic as it was situated along the principal route leading over the Berkeley Hills via Claremont Canyon. In 1903, a small tunnel was excavated above the next canyon south of Claremont Canyon, accessible by a new road dubbed "Tunnel Road" which ran from the end of Ashby Avenue. The same route later led to a newer, larger tunnel called the Caldecott Tunnel
Caldecott Tunnel
The Caldecott Tunnel is a three bore highway tunnel between Oakland, California and Contra Costa County, California. The east-west tunnel is signed as a part of State Route 24, which is also known as the William Byron Rumford...
which opened in 1937. The street address of the Claremont remains to this day, 41 Tunnel Road. Tunnel Road is a designated part of State Highway 13
State Route 13 (California)
State Route 13 is a state highway in California. It is a short loop in Alameda County currently built from Interstate 580 in Oakland to Interstate 80/Interstate 580 in Berkeley....
.
In 1876, a Berkeley city ordinance was passed prohibiting alcohol within one mile (1.6 km) of the perimeter of the University of California
University of California, Berkeley
The University of California, Berkeley , is a teaching and research university established in 1868 and located in Berkeley, California, USA...
. As the Claremont Hotel was being built, its investors noticed it was just inside this no-alcohol zone. They determined to fight the definition so that they could make more money by serving alcohol. In 1913, the hotel's investors sponsored AB 1620 (known as the Ferguson bill), supposedly to further restrict alcohol near churches and schools statewide, but it specifically excluded the Claremont Hotel from the dry zone. Influenced by activism from women's clubs and temperance groups in Berkeley, the Ferguson bill was defeated by one vote. After amending the bill and mounting a stronger campaign, the Claremont's investors were able to pass the bill in altered form. The new bill redefined the mile limit to be centered on the library of the university—a shifting of the boundary which allowed the Claremont to serve drinks. In 1920, Prohibition
Prohibition in the United States
Prohibition in the United States was a national ban on the sale, manufacture, and transportation of alcohol, in place from 1920 to 1933. The ban was mandated by the Eighteenth Amendment to the Constitution, and the Volstead Act set down the rules for enforcing the ban, as well as defining which...
was enacted federally, ending the Claremont's legal license to serve alcohol. In 1933 when Prohibition was repealed, the Claremont Hotel continued to suffer from the state law prohibiting alcohol within a mile of the university. In 1936, an enterprising student and her friends measured several of the possible routes, finding that the shortest distance from the school to the hotel's front steps was a few feet over a mile. The Claremont immediately opened a bar and awarded the student free drinks for life.
The hotel had an unusual fire escape, a multi-story spiral slide for guests to make their escape. Many local teenagers were said to have taken the ride but the slide was eventually boarded up, and removed.
The Claremont faced destruction in the 1991 Oakland firestorm
1991 Oakland firestorm
The Oakland Firestorm of 1991 was a large urban fire that occurred on the hillsides of northern Oakland, California, and southeastern Berkeley on Sunday October 20, 1991, two years after the Loma Prieta earthquake...
, but the flames were stopped just short of the hotel.
In 2007, the Claremont was acquired by Morgan Stanley
Morgan Stanley
Morgan Stanley is a global financial services firm headquartered in New York City serving a diversified group of corporations, governments, financial institutions, and individuals. Morgan Stanley also operates in 36 countries around the world, with over 600 offices and a workforce of over 60,000....
. On February 1, 2011, the resort filed for bankruptcy due to losses attributed to the ongoing recession.
