My dog's name is Tilly and coincidentally, there once was a Tilly ('s) Hotel in Shreveport, Caddo Parish, Louisiana. So OF COURSE I had to learn more about it, since they named it after my dog.
Well, okay, not really. Tilly's Hotel was named after its owner. When it opened in 1884, it was considered one of Shreveport's most luxurious accommodations. It was even mentioned in the Congressional Record, when a Representative chastised a colleague for having purchased lemonade while staying there. A mere four years later, though, it succumbed to a disastrous fire that killed a traveling salesman from Ohio.
The hotel was not out of the game, though -- it was resurrected by 1890 as the Phoenix Hotel, which became kind of a landmark: businesses advertised their addresses as to the hotel's location. This corner of Market and Texas Streets appeared to be the heart of the city, and it became even more so when Peter Youree purchased the hotel, together with all the surrounding lots and properties on this block, in 1899. By January 1914, the Phoenix was reborn again as the Youree Hotel.
The Youree Hotel, which later became the Washington-Youree Hotel to reflect a business partnership, was hailed near and far as a luxury hotel that boasted telephones (and I believe air conditioning) in every room. It had restaurants, ballrooms, a switchboard, barbershop, and other kinds of enticements that made a stay in this place worthwhile. During the 1920s, with the Washington Hotel partnership, it expanded to encompass the Travis Street side, too. In 1953, the Youree part of the hotel was renamed the Captain Shreve Hotel.
Due to a variety of factors, like the construction of Interstate 20, the decline in regional travel, the uptick in motor courts in the mid-century, and simply business decisions, the marbled glamour of this hotel block faded. The hotel buildings found themselves victims to the wrecking ball December 1979.
Today, the Louisiana Tower stands in the Tilly aka Phoenix aka Youree aka Washington-Youree aka Captain Shreve Hotel's former site in downtown Shreveport. Although it's a lovely skyscraper, it doesn't have that Hollywood glam feeling to it.
To see more photos of the Youree Hotel, visit Twin Blends - Northwest Louisiana History Hunters, who uncovered a treasure trove of images from LSU-Shreveport's archive (do a search for Youree).
