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Overview

San Francisco's Commercial Hotel was in operation by at least 1876. (See Langley's San Francisco Directory for the Year 1876, p. 213.) According to the San Francisco city directory of 1877, the hotel was situated on the southeast corner of Montgomery Avenue and Pacific Avenue. (See Langley's San Francisco Directory for the Year 1877, p. 224.) The 1878 city directory indicated that it stood on the corner of "Kearny and Montgomery av." (See the Langley's San Francisco City Directory of 1878, p. 984.) The hotel occupied the southeast corner of a three-way intersection, with Kearny Street and Pacific Avenue meeting congruently, and Montgomery Avenue intersecting diagonally.

Montgomery Avenue was the original name for Columbus Avenue, renamed in 1909.

Building History

The Commercial Hotel opened under this name in either late 1875 or early 1876. Over the years, managers came and went with regularity.

In 1876, Hornblower and Saxe managed the Commercial Hotel in San Francisco. (See Langley's San Francisco Directory for the Year 1876, p. 213.) Management changed rapidly in its early years. John Kelly, Jr., supervised the establishment in 1877. (See Langley's San Francisco Directory for the Year 1877, p. 224.)

W.G. Graham managed the 200-room hotel in 1887. Edward Holland was the Commercial Hotel's manager in 1890. The building continued to have approximately 200 rooms in that year, with each costing between 50 cents and $1.50 per night.

Building Notes

The building had a triangular shape with the end facing Montgomery Avenue and Pacific Avenue truncated. An open, triangular courtyard stood in the center. Facing Montgomery (south), 11 storefronts numbered 118, 120, 122, 124, 126, 128, 130, 132, 136, 138 and 140, accommodated the hotel and various businesses. A restaurant stood at 122 Montgomery and an office at 124. The hotel office and barbershop occupied the middle of the Montgomery-facing block at 126-128. The hotel's grand entrance stood at 130 Montgomery with its lobby featuring two curving stairways. A shirt factory was situated at 136, and a saloon at 138.

On the truncated corner at Montgomery and Pacific (north), a drugstore did business. This portion of the building had a domed turret rising above.

The storefronts had the numbers 529-531, 533, 535, 537, 539 and 541 along the Pacific facade. First-floor spaces at 541, 539, and 529-531 were marked "Sal." (for saloon) on the Sanborn-Perrin map of 1899, while the spaces at 533 and 535 were marked simply "S." for store. It is not clear if the saloons were separate or composed on large space with multiple entrances.

Along the first floor's east wall, the Commercial Hotel maintained its kitchen and main dining room. The restaurant at 122 Montgomery Avenue was also served by this adjacent kitchen.

Demolition

The Commercial Hotel was destroyed in the days of fire (likely on 04/20/1906) following the San Francisco Earthquake of 04/18/1906.

PCAD id: 20084