Palace Hotel, Houston, Texas
historic place
The Palace Hotel, a historic place in Houston, Harris County, Texas, was constructed in 1903. This three-story masonry building stands at the northwest corner of Congress Avenue and La Branch Street in downtown Houston. It was built in the Romanesque Revival style. The hotel is notable as one of the few surviving early 20th-century buildings in the Second Ward. Its distinctive architectural details suggest a possible design by Olle J. Lorehn, a prominent Houston architect. Grocer William A. Burkett and his wife Kate commissioned its construction in 1902. The building initially operated as a hotel and business, later housing Askew Drug for decades. The Palace Hotel was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on September 13, 2006. This site is significant for its architecture and its connection to early 20th-century Houston's commercial and social history.