The following is an excerpt from my 2005 MA Thesis, From Acceptance to Renunication: Das Ende von Albanys Deustchtum. This sub-chapter gives a brief history of Albany's German hotel proprietors and a brief synopsis of the times.
Many Germans
proudly worked in the service sector of Albany’s various business
entities. They provided board,
entertainment, camaraderie, and Bier. German proprietors ran many halls, hotels, cafes,
and Biergartens. German hotels were numerous in the downtown
business section and also outside the city limits. According to Howell and Tenney, the first
German hotel was the National Hotel situated across from Steamboat Square at
266 Broadway and run by former barber John Wachter.[1]
Wachter operated the hotel from 1848 until his death circa 1860. His wife, Catherine, then became proprietress
until John Bissikummer (1843-1883) took control around 1868. Another early German hotel was Schweitzer’s
Hotel, located on the corner of Lydius Street (now Madison Avenue) and
Broadway. The hotel was listed in the
Albany city directory of 1851-52.
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| Henry Parr |
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| Abbey Hotel |
The landmark hotel offered
accommodations for private parties, picnics, and social gatherings. The Abbey was “…famous for its marvelous
German food and good draw of hops and malt.”[2] The famous structure was said to have been
built around 1680 and was in constant use until 1945, when it became
vacant. The building became a ruin when
it mysteriously collapsed in 1959 and was consequently razed for safety
concerns.[3]
The Shafer’s Hotel and Family Resort also
known as Shafer’s Grove was operated by Martin Shafer and was located at
Central and Colvin Avenues; the present site of the Armory Garage complex. The grove was in operation from circa 1894
till 1924. It featured a swimming hole
and an amusement park. The grounds were
the setting for many German picnics and outings.
The Hotel
Germania, at 34 Beaver Street and summer Biergarten
in the rear of the building was first managed by John Bissikummer from 1871
until his death on May 24, 1883.
Bissikummer’s wife, Caroline [Wachter] (1847-1926), then operated the
hotel until 1889. William Menk took
charge next until 1892, when John Bissikummer Jr. (1869-1895) brought hotel
proprietorship back to the Bissikummer family from 1892 to 1894. Theodore J. Gutekunst was the last manager of
the Hotel Germania.
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| 1893 Ad |
He operated the
hotel until 1901, when he opened the Hotel Washington, located at 93 Washington
Avenue. Gutekunst ran the Hotel
Washington only three years. Mrs. Bertha
Klemp next took control of the 93 Washington Avenue locale, until 1906 when she
opened a new hotel at 73 Whitehall Road.
The Whitehall Road hotel was in operation until circa 1924.
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| Washington Hotel |
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| Michael Milhauser |
German proprietors
sometimes moved from location to location.
When this occurred, other German proprietors soon followed and
established their businesses in the locale of a former German
establishment. For instance, Michael
Milhauser (1841-1935) ran a saloon at 49 Madison Avenue from 1887 to 1889. He relocated to 33 Green Street and opened
the Württemberger Hof there from 1890
to 1891. William Firmbach next moved
into 49 Madison Avenue and established the German Hotel between 1891 and
1892. After Milhauser left his 33 Green
Street location, John Markert (1855-1920) moved into the locale and established
Markert’s Hotel from 1892 to 1907.
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| John Markert |
Markert made lodging available
weekly or daily board along with Dobler’s Lager, fine liquors, and cigars. Württemberger Hof from
1892 to 1912. Nearby, at 29-31 Green
Street, Nicholas Engel (died 30 July 1896) operated a restaurant known as the
“The Best Lager.” The rear of the restaurant backed into John Bissikummer’s
summer Biergarten at the rear of the
Hotel Germania.[4] Meanwhile, Milhauser moved to 68 Green Street
and reopened the
The Hotel Columbia
was a first class German hotel and restaurant.
It was located at 44 Beaver Street.
Gustav Zinserling was the owner from 1892 to 1900. Louis Dube operated the hotel from 1901 to
1903 and John B. Staats from 1904 to 1911.
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| 1893 Ad |
The Schlitz Hotel and Rathskeller, operated by Phillip H. Kalkbrenner
(1863-1925) was located at 578-580 Broadway from 1897 until the 1930s.
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| Schlitz Hotel |
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| 1902 Ad |
Ernest Zeller (1827-1879) operated
the Progress Hotel at 93 Green Street from the early 1860s till 1873. He then became the operator of the Belvedere
House, sited at 39 Beaver Street, until his death. Zeller’s wife, Elizabeth, ran the hotel until
1892, when Nicholas J. Dell and Joseph Neuser took over.
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| 1889 Ad |
The Bavaria at 38 Beaver Street was
managed by Ernestine F. Gioth, in 1889 and 1890, until she moved to San
Francisco in 1890.
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| 1891 Ad |
Other German hotels and cafes
included the Café Columbus, the Deutscher
Hotel, located at 270 Broadway, the Old Homestead Hotel and Restaurant,
which was run by Wilhelm Grandpré (1855-1922), who was also the president of
the local branch of the DANB. The hotel
was situated at 33 Hudson Avenue. Henry
Schuster (1840-1922) from Nordheim, Bavaria ran the Hotel Schuster at 199 South
Pearl Street from 1895 to 1900.
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| Wilhelm Granpre |
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