♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ Elsa Sevilla: Hello, and welcome to "Historic Places."

I'm Elsa Sevilla.

Thank you for joining us as we uncover Southern California's rich history.

In this episode, we explore the iconic Hotel del Coronado in Coronado, California across San Diego Bay.

Fondly known as the Del, we take a look at its history and its multi-year restoration to bring back Victorian elements lost through the decades.

♪♪♪ female announcer: In the late 19th century, Coronado, California was a flat barren peninsula inhabited by the La Jolla indigenous people for millennia.

In 1542 and again in 1602, Spanish explorers anchored in what is now San Diego, California.

Coronado would undergo its most significant transformation during the land boom of the mid 1880s.

Gina Petrone: It looked very different than it does today.

It was very flat.

There were no trees.

There was a lot of scrub brush, jackrabbits, and quail.

People used to come here to hunt and fish.

Soon developed it with the hotel, the city of Coronado started to grow slowly.

female announcer: Many people believe that Coronado is an island due to its scenic coastal location and separation from the mainland by water, but it is actually a peninsula connected by a narrow strip of land known as the Silver Strand.

Gina: The Del really resonates with people.

For many, it's a bucket list item to come visit the hotel.

And I think they just like to be in a building that is historic and walk through the hallways where presidents, celebrities or royalty have been before.

Just to be a part of that history.

female announcer: It was developers Elisha Babcock Junior and Hampton Story who had the vision of a grand hotel.

Babcock and Story would purchase the 4,185 acre peninsula for a mere $110,000 in 1885.

They hired renowned, Indiana architect, James Reid who would design and supervise construction of the Victorian hotel seen in this early sketch.

David Marshall: The Hotel Del is basically just a big Victorian mansion.

A 500-room Victorian mansion.

And so, they basically upscale all of those features and the roof forms you see, it's a mix of gable and hip roofs.

And the decorative ends on the roof, we call those gables.

female announcer: To ensure their seaside resort venture was a success, Babcock and Story founded the Coronado Beach Company which included a ferry, railroad, water companies, and an electrical power plant.

The company was established to sell parcels of land and to develop what is now the city of Coronado.

Bruce Coons: They had a initial auction that was well publicized in 1886 that had more than 600 people come.

That was, even though it was a boom, that was quite, quite a good attendance and they sold over a million and a half dollars worth of lots.

female announcer: After securing the hotel's construction site, Babcock and Story quickly planned Coronado as seen in this early map.

Their vision laid the foundation for a community blending residential, recreational, and commercial spaces.

Today, Coronado retains much of its original design and island charm that Babcock and Story envisioned with the visitors enjoying its beaches, parks, and vibrant local businesses.

♪♪♪ female announcer: In 1887, around 250 workers were hired almost overnight to begin building the Hotel del Coronado.

They first constructed the industrial buildings needed to support the hotel's construction with most work done on site.

Due to a local wood shortage, large log rafts were floated from San Francisco to San Diego.

Workers lived on site and worked tirelessly completing the hotel in just 11 months with its official opening in February 1888.

♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ Elsa: Next, Victorian architecture is celebrated for its intricate ornamentation.

At the Del, iconic features have been preserved and lost elements thoughtfully recreated.

Since 2018, our cameras have captured every step of this remarkable restoration.

♪♪♪ female announcer: From the beginning, the Del was an architectural masterpiece offering electricity, telephone service, steam powered elevators, and private bathrooms.

Its seaside location, Victorian architecture, and ideal Southern California weather continued to captivate guests, drawing thousands every year.

Robin Siara: The railroad actually did a stop right to the front entrance of the Hotel Del.

So, they could come on their private cars, the wealthy and rich, who in that late time, that Victorian period, the Gilded Age time going to a seaside resort was, you know, good for your health and you know, great place to relax.

female announcer: The Del featured two original ornate entry staircases leading to the veranda and main entrance.

Traditionally, men and married couples use the right staircase while unaccompanied women use the left.

David: The style of the Hotel Del is Queen Anne Victorian which is kind of a sub style of Victorian.

It's kind of the most ornate version of Victorian.

And we often refer to the decoration and the ornamentation as gingerbread because it looks like a gingerbread house.

It's got all the brackets and the shaped columns and the intricate railings.

female announcer: The rotunda with its soaring ceilings, intricate woodwork, and ornate details remains beautifully intact captivating guests with its rich and intricate Victorian design.

The Hotel del Coronado originally had 425 guest rooms, catering to gilded age elites including East Coast families escaping the winter months.

Suites had multiple rooms with reception areas, fireplaces, and some private bathrooms, a luxury during this period.

The Del featured 71 bathtubs and water closets with first floor rooms being sought after for their outdoor access and fresh air.

Gina: The guest rooms were very Victorian in nature.

They had hand painted frescoes.

They had ornate furniture, rugs.

Every room had a fireplace for heating but very simple and elegant for the time period.

female announcer: Just two years after opening the hotel, Hampton Story sold his shares in the Coronado Beach Company to sugar magnate, John D. Spreckels.

Spreckels was based in San Francisco and he left daily operations to Babcock who created a plan to establish Camp Coronado or more commonly known, Tent City, south of the hotel to attract more guests starting in 1900.

Gina: And then eventually it became a year round attraction and it was renamed Tent City and it ran from 1900 until 1940.

And it really did grow into its own city.

It had its own newspaper.

It had its own post office.

female announcer: The new outdoor accommodations were a hit offering cool summer weather with affordable rates attracting new guests to the hotel.

Photos of Tent City highlight the numerous guest activities which included a merry-go-round that was later moved to Balboa Park in 1922 where it still operates.

Four years after the Del opened, tragedy struck in 1892 when a woman registered as Lottie Bernard was found dead from a gunshot wound on an exterior staircase, sparking national attention.

She would later be identified as Kate Morgan from Iowa.

Her death and reasons for visiting the hotel remain unsolved until this day.

Gina: Found Lottie Bernard or Kate Morgan.

Not only do we have our guest register with her signature, but we have the charges that were posted to her room when she was here.

And so, now I can put that information together with the coroner's inquest and what our staffs reported that she ordered to the room or spent at the drug store.

I have all of that information.

female announcer: The Del's proximity to Hollywood attracted silent film productions and celebrities starting around 1918.

Years later in 1958, films like "Some Like It Hot" with Marilyn Monroe, Tony Curtis, and Jack Lemmon were also filmed at the Del.

The resort has also hosted presidents, industrial magnates, and European royalty.

Robin: We had a lot of Hollywood stars come down.

We had Anthony Davis, Lauren Bacall, Charlie Chaplin premiered some of his movies here.

Errol Flynn used to have wild parties here.

We also had presidents here and very wealthy people from all over the country that would come here.

It was definitely a high-end seaside resort.

And in 1920 we had Prince Edward come here.

female announcer: The historic landmark Hotel del Coronado is one of the few remaining seaside Victorian resorts in the world.

It has been carefully preserved and cared for for more than 135 years.

It's no surprise it remains a cherished destination, captivating visitors year after year.

Elsa: With its more than century long legacy, the Del has undergone numerous remodels, all while trying to preserve its signature charm.

The recent restoration focused on reviving key features like the stained glass windows and the Victorian veranda, seamlessly blending the Del's past with the present and future.

female announcer: By 1902, the Victorian hotel began undergoing multiple and significant changes.

Through the years, the original facade features like the two main entry stairs, the veranda, the balconies, and the stained glass windows were removed, altered or relocated, changing the Del's historic exterior features.

But many of the original Victorian elements that were lost were brought back during the Del's restoration.

David: So, the whole purpose of this particular project is to bring the building back to the way it was in 1888 as much as possible on the front entrance side which is--faces South, Southwest or Southeast.

And that's where people experience the hotel for the mo--for the first time as they're entering.

Rob Harper: I think you've got to approach it with a lot of care and patience and respect for what it is.

It's got 135 years of history.

It's iconic.

It's globally recognizable.

It's a national landmark.

Prior guests have included presidents, royalty, you know, Hollywood celebrities.

There's a lot here to be respectful of.

female announcer: To bring back many of the Victorian design elements, the hotel's owners, Blackstone Real Estate, began the amended master plan restoration and renovation projects of the entire property in 2018 with Heritage Architecture and Planning leading the hotel's historical restoration.

Our cameras were there from the start to document the project.

David: If we compare what the veranda used to look like and what it's been restored to, to the way the hotel looked only a couple of years ago, you can see in this photograph which is--it shows the added on, the filled in rooms.

There were no railings visible at all on the second floor.

There was just an added roof.

This is the boxy room that was added where we now have the public balcony.

The stained glass window that used to be on the second floor was actually--had been relocated to the fourth floor and it was only visible from the exterior.

female announcer: This photo shows a fire drill at the hotel.

A routine exercise due to the fire risks from fireplaces leading to the removal of chimneys and the main lobby fireplace.

This resulted in the relocation of the coronation stained glass window to the fourth floor for nearly three decades.

Gina: The coronation window, as it was referred to, was visible from both inside and outside.

It was inside, you could see the window through the fireplace above that large English mantle as well as view it from outside.

♪♪♪ female announcer: Over the years, the Del underwent significant changes to expand guest and office space.

The front porch was extended several times between the 1930s and 2000, adding 30 feet.

During the restoration, 15 feet were removed but the original 1887 footprint couldn't be fully restored due to essential operational needs in that area.

David: The heart of this project is where we are right now which is this front veranda.

It serves as the main entrance.

It serves as a disabled access.

It's the front door of the hotel and it's been brought back as close as we could to how it looked when they cut the ribbon in 1888. female announcer: The amended master plan aimed to restore original features and revive lost historical elements.

Despite the challenges of COVID-19 in 2020, the project moved forward meeting all major milestones.

David: Luckily this is one of the most photographed buildings in all of Southern California.

And so, we had historic images from almost every era and almost every angle.

So we were able to use those to confirm things, to verify things-- it didn't show us everything.

In fact, where I'm sitting right now looking at the backside of the veranda, you know, we never had a single photograph that showed this.

So, I'm seeing it for the first time as they probably did in 1888. female announcer: By 2021, the restoration project had successfully restored key historical elements including a recreated veranda, the two main entry stairs, and 21 replica stained glass windows.

David: This also shows the porte cochère that was completed around 1979 and it wasn't very Victorian looking.

It had a stucco ceiling and fluorescent lights.

So, we've completely replaced that with a new porte cochère which is a much lighter structure.

It's open to below.

You can see the wood structure and it has lighter columns as well.

We've also installed some chandelier fixtures, some pendant lights that have a more Victorian look.

So, we think that's a much better fit for the hotel and still provides the same function.

female announcer: Plans to restore the Hotel del Coronado have been in the works since the 1960s but the plan wouldn't be approved until 2008 with the restoration project starting ten years later in 2018.

This ambitious project, the first full scale renovation in the hotel's history, spanned over seven years, successfully restoring and preserving its Victorian charm.

♪♪♪ Elsa: As one of the most iconic and largest surviving Victorian beach resorts in the US, the Del captivates visitors from around the globe.

Restoring its main entrance and facade was crucial to preserving its historic integrity.

Through meticulous recreation and preservation, the Del's history is secured for future generations to enjoy.

female announcer: The Del's original plans evolved under architect James Reid.

Many years later, changes included removing the railroad tracks to the Victorian building.

They would later be replaced by a parking lot.

Today, the design reflects the hotel's original 1888 appearance.

Gina: These are the architectural details that made up the hotel.

It was never a formal main set of plans for the construction of the hotel.

But we do have individual drawings.

Whether it's the foundation, whether it's the framing in the crown room or the bowl room or the office rotunda, the archways.

All of these plans are available.

We have them and extremely important, especially as you try to do a historic restoration.

Rob: It's such a unique piece of real estate which--with such a unique history.

That was really one of the very interesting parts of putting together a business plan around renovating the asset.

female announcer: The 2018 through 2025 restoration under the amended master plan revived many historical elements of the Victorian hotel.

A comparison between the late 1800s and the replica entrance completed in 2021 revealed the careful reintegration of numerous lost features.

David: And what we realized is when we were looking at old historic photographs like this one, this is probably from right around the turn of the century which shows pretty much the original configuration, is that a lot of alterations had happened over the years that people aren't--weren't aware of.

And you know, they would enclose the veranda then they'd add on a new veranda onto it.

Then they'd enclose that veranda and then they add another one that encloses that veranda.

Rob: You have architecture and history here that needs to be preserved so that we're going about this in a very thoughtful manner.

We've engaged preservation experts, historians, architects, we've engaged a lot with the local community because this hotel is such a large part, you know, of Coronado.

female announcer: Preservation architects, historians, and artisans meticulously researched the Del's lost Victorian features, studying archival drawings, photographs, and correspondence from the original owners, architects, and builders to accurately restore the hotel's intricate details.

David: Our mission as the preservation architect was to recreate the exterior of the building the way it looked as closely as possible.

And so, we did a lot of research with the old drawings and photographs and our job was to create drawings and specifications that clearly showed what we needed for the contractors.

female announcer: Heritage Architecture and Planning helped preserve original elements, replicate historical features, and incorporate modern conveniences and building codes following common methods used in historical restoration including the Del's.

David: There were approximately 80 windows that had to be recreated that had been removed in prior years.

Almost all of the windows on the front facade, other than maybe the turret, had been replaced.

And so, we went by historic photographs and by the surviving windows and we basically made more of them.

And then reintroduced them to the facades to give it that original look.

female announcer: The completed veranda showcases the restored and recreated Victorian details, returning the architectural design to its 1888 appearance.

This restoration ensures that future generations can experience the hotel's original design.

[water splashing] Elsa: As the crown jewel of Coronado, this iconic landmark was once the largest wooden Victorian resort outside of New York in the 1800s.

It's exquisite architectural design symbolizes the grandeur of the Victorian era.

Restoring the lobby and first floor was crucial to preserving the hotel's historical character.

female announcer: The Hotel del Coronado's rotunda or lobby is stunning, ornate, and impeccably preserved.

As one of the most spacious areas in this iconic Victorian hotel, it captivates visitors with its intricate details and rich history.

David: I actually have a historic image from around 1888 which shows the lobby.

The main configuration is still very much the same, column locations and coffered ceiling.

But the front desk used to be very small.

It was in the back corner there and then there was a small little newspaper stand that was adjacent to it.

female announcer: Architectural plans and historic black and white photos reveal incredible details of the Hotel del Coronado's rotunda, showcasing the check-in and newspaper areas as well as the Victorian architecture and decor.

The original floor plan shows how the activity rooms on the first floor have changed to accommodate guest needs.

David: When the building was first constructed, there were kind of these lace curtain partitions between the rooms but there were not walls.

So, in later years they built these walls that you see and there's a gift shop behind us and a little bit further down there's an entry hallway and then the stairs.

But in this photo, you can look all the way through and see the stairs and these are still there.

female announcer: And in 2020 the amended master plan restoration focused on the first floor and lobby.

Preservation architect, David Marshall, from Heritage Architecture and Planning, helped recreate lost features including stained glass windows, intricate woodwork, and exterior details.

Workers meticulously restored the original detailed woodwork by stripping away layers of paint.

The restoration also involved dismantling and numbering each piece of the coffered ceiling for reassembly as new beams were installed to support and expand the lobby's check-in area.

David: The ceiling is made up of four bays and the bays to my left here behind me are the original ones and then these other two are are recreations or replicas of that.

But the process that was involved was we had to document and dismantle that ceiling.

So, you know, just a big puzzle basically.

So, all those individual pieces were labeled and numbered in North, South, East, West.

female announcer: Historic photos played a crucial role in uncovering missing elements and decor.

A rare architectural plan revealed the grand lobby fireplace with a stained glass window above it, both of which were removed, the fireplace due to fire hazard concerns.

Gina: We know that it was about 20 feet wide.

It was quite large and ornate.

We do have the original drawings provided by Reid that show us what it was--should have looked like.

But very ornate, it was supposed to heat the entire lobbies.

female announcer: The mezzanine on the second floor offers a stunning view of the lobby, highlighting the intricate woodwork that adds to the Victorian charm.

It transports you back to the hotel's early days in the late 1800s.

Gina: And this is a drawing of the ceiling from the second floor of the lobby or rotunda.

And so, this shows the detail in the woodwork and they used Illinois oak to construct the ceiling and it was--that which has all been restored.

It was lighter originally and over the years, it darkened with stain and paint in one instance.

And so, now it's been refinished and restored to its original splendor.

female announcer: Most of the original stained glass windows on the building's facade were lost.

But as part of the hotel's restoration, 21 new windows were recreated by Barrow Stained Glass Studios in San Diego.

Together with four surviving historic windows, these 25 pieces preserve the Del's timeless Victorian elegance.

Besides the stained glass windows, the lobby restoration includes new hardwood floors, a new chandelier, elegant seating, beautiful wallpaper and the expanded check-in area with a Victorian key rack reminiscent of the original from 1888.

The restoration will ensure the Del's preservation.

♪♪♪ Elsa: That's all for now.

Thank you for joining us on "Historic Places" where we help preserve Southern California's rich history.

I'm Elsa Sevilla, until next time.

♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ female announcer: Support for this program comes from the KPBS Explore local content fund, supporting new ideas and programs for San Diego.