The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1897-07-16
OLD BoEERr LANDMARK DooMED.
The Occidental Hotel to He Replaced Soon BY
q Modern but Leas Interesting Structure.

. Modern but Less Interesting Structure.
One of New York's old landmarks, the occt
dental Hotel. at the Bowery and Broome street,
Is to change hands in a few days. c. L. Chase,
the proprietor for twenty-five years, has made
arrangements to sell out, but it Is not known
yet whether the purchaser means to conduct
a hotel there or to tear down the building and
make room for a business edtfice. II the place Is
torn down the bricks from the foundation ought
to be almost as valuable to relic hunters as those
from the old Grant tomb, for the Occidental is q
famous place. and was New York's first hostelry
q little less than a century ago.
For l25 years there has been a hotel on tho
present foundations. but sixty years ago the
walls were rebuilt and tho name changed from
the Westchester House to the Occidental Hotel.
There are not many New Workers left who re-
member the Westchester House, and there is
probably none alive who remember the first few
years Of the hotels existence. The records
which remain in the place don't tell very much
Ii was stiili regarded as being away uptown
years. The Bowery was the Boston post road in
those days, and was marked by the granite mile
ito t:x Malsh p aSs sedll be Of s sssR R gSSsSnfRfa from
Mr.. Chase hasn't bothered himself much in
making researches, and consequently knows
tory OF the hotel. He says that he used to know
all about it. but that ne forgot long ago. He is
adays, but he consented yesterday to look up
some of his records for q reporter. The first
proprietor that IL was possible to get any trace
OF was Charles Matthews, whose son Is said TO
be one OF the owners of the Palmer House In
Chicago at present. He formerly had q place at
% Bowery; but seventy years ago. he purchased
the Westminster House and conducted 1t as q
flrst-class hotel. Who his predecessors were no
one seemed TO know. They do not appear on any
OF the records now in Mr.. Chases possession.
Under Mr.. Matthew's management the hotel
became y rendezvous for Senators, congressman,
arfnrl who ulaynI in the Old Rnyyery Theatre
sporting men and Westerners. Western men
would not stop anywhere else while they were
in New York. and as @ compliment to these old
patrons Mr.. Matthews named the place the Occi-
dental when he rebuilt 1t.
When he went out OF the business the lease
was taken by a man named barrow, who ran 1t
as a frst-class hotel. Then. twenty-five years
ago. barrow retired and Mr.. Chase took con-
troll. At that time It was still a frst-class house.
and was patronized by politicians and Western
ers. AS business moved uptown, however, 1t
lost prestige, and was finally deserted by all but
the downtown sporting set. John L. sullivan
and other famous, p%ugilists used to stop there.
Harry Howard and the old.timers who ran with
him in the days of the Volunteer Fire De-
partment used to sit around the cafe and SWAT
stories. Even these men drifted with the up
town current. however, and the character of the
Occidental guest has changed gradually but
steadily for the worse.
There is one guest of tho hotel who lived there
when Mr.. Chase FIST went in and who says no
will remain as long as there IS u hotel on the
corner. He In old Tom Brown, an eccentric
man who made q fortune as q butcher years
ago. He had a stand in Essex Market. II Mr..
Brown would consent TO talk ne could tell some
interesting stories Of old New York, but he alb
s~o!utely declines TO do so. He Is about so years
old.