The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1903-03-16
Henry w. Lawrence, the Proprietor,
Hopes to he Able to Open the Host
elry to the Public by April Is.
DECORATIONS AND FURNISHINGS
PRONOUNCED RARELY BEAUTIFUL
BY FORTUNATE BEHOLDERS.
Local Concerns Have the Carpet
and Furniture COntracts-Ideas
Worked Out Step by Step.

the complexion or the new CldypOol Hotel.
The contractors are putting in finishing
touches on the building and expect to be
able to turn 1t over to the hotel company
within the next two or three days. Then
there will remain but the work of complet-
ing the decorating. cleaning up, laying the
carpets, hanging the draperies and putting
in the furniture, and the hotel will be ready
for the opening. This work cannot be done
in week, or in a month, but the situation
is such that there can be no more vexatious
delays and Henry w. Lawrence, the presi-
dent and general manager of the new
hosiery, can at least breathe sigh Of re-
lief in the assurance that in very few
weeks he will be able to open to the pub
lie one of the finest hotels in the country.
Mr.. Lawrence was the prime mover in
the formation of the company to build
the Claypool and for over a year he has
given his closest attention to every step of
the work. He planned the building in
every detail of the arrangements, animated
by a desire to give Indianapolis hotel
perfect in all its appointments, the finest
product of modern thought and architec-
ture. From day to day he has watched
his ideas take form and substance, and
now he can see that his dreams and hopes
are coming true. That the new Claypool
will be all that he has worked for so
earnestly, the fortunate few who have
been shown over the building within the
past week or ten days will testify. Even
in its present unfinished condition the hotel
is a revelation of beauty, luxury and con-
venience and 1T is impossible to conceive
of improvements that could be made. The
Claypool is not the largest hotel in the
country, but there is none that surpasses
it in perfection of arrangement. This is
the verdict of experienced hotel men and
commercial men who have recently in
spected it.
COMPLETION OF STAIRWAY.
The work that the contractors have yet
on hand is the completion of the grand
stairway that leads from the rotunda to
the balcony on the second floor, the build
ing of the marble desk in the north end of
the rotunda, putting in the cages for the
elevators. and giving the finishing touches
to the basement, which includes the Turk
ish bathroom. the barber shop and the
rooms that contain the vast amount of
machinery necessary to a building of that
SIZE The decorators have already accom-
plished wonders in their work. Most of
the rooms on the upper floors have been
papered and the decorations of the main
dining room, ordinary, ladies' cafe, state
suite, bridal suite, reading and writing
rooms, drawing room and Oriental lounging
room on the second floor are almost COM
pleted. The beauty of the decorations in
these apartments begagrs description and
they must be seen to be appreciated.
The carpets have been laid in a number
of the rooms on the upper floors and as
rapidly as the decorators complete a room
the carpets are put down. Few persons
have an idea of the vast amount of carpet
that will be used in the hotel and even
when informed that over 10000 yards are
required they cannot realize what that
means. The New York store is furnishing
all the carpet, and the contract is by far
the largest carpet contract ever handled
by an Indiana firm.
None of the furniture has been placed in
the rooms as yet, but it is here, ready to be
uncrated and unpacked as the
rooms are prepared A great quantity Of
the furniture is at present stored in the
rooms on the main floor and four carloads
are standing on siding at freight depot
ready for unloading.
In the planning of this great hotel the
very important factor of furniture was
carefully considered. Usually the selection
of furniture for a hotel is based on mere
durability and price. but in this case both
architect and owners insisted on a COM
and finest finish. The whole contract was
awarded the Sander & Rocker Furniture
| Company of this city and is easily the larg-
| est contract ever let in the State. Much OF
| the furniture was specially designed and
constructed con. by several of the representa-
| large part however, Is being manufactured
here in Indianapolis.
BEDROOM FURNITURE.
| The bedroom furniture Is all executed in
| mahogany in the colonial and French
styles. Most of the beds, however, are all
| brass. each fitted with a specially con-
| structed box spring and finest quality hair
mattress. No ordinary wood or iron beds
| are used, but several of the chambers are
| furnished with complete mahogany suites,
| and these include sumptuous wooden beds
The draperies and hangings for the hotel
| have all been imported from Switzerland.
| and a large consignment was received last
week and is now in the custom house ready
for delivery.
arrive from Chicago this week and a large
| force of girls will at once be put to work
| cleaning and Strengthening up the apart
! ments, following closely in the wake of the
| decorators and carpet layers. AS soon as
/ a room is cleaned and all the furniture is
| put in ii will be locked and will not be
| opened again until the entire house Is fur
| nished. In this way the hotel will really
| be finished room by room in the most sys-
tematic manner, and when the last days
| come IL will not be necessary to go all over
| the entire building putting on the last
| touches here and there.
| To the layman the new hotel Is a series
| of surprises from the basement to the palm
| garden on the roof The hotel will be in
| reality modern city complete in every
| respect. 1t includes a water works plant,
electric light plant, telephone system, fire
| protection system, pumping station, ice-
| making plant. mechanical refrigeration
| system, steam laundry, Turkish bath,
| swimming pool, barber shop, and about the
! only things that the hotel will not do in its
| own building is to butcher its own meat
| and raise it's vegetables and other produce
| Practically all of this wonderful array OF
| machinery is located in the basement The
| electric light plant includes three dynamos
| and three go horse power engines with a
| normal capacity of 5000 lights and a posi-
| BILE capacity in emergency OF 1900 lights
| The engines were built by the Atlas engine
| works of this city and were especially de-
| signed for the Claypool They are directly
| connected with the dynamos and there Is
! with a view of economiZing space and pro-
ducing a greater speed
wATERwORKS SYSTEM.
The waterworks system. which includes
| a pumping station, filtering plant and fire
protection, is nonetffeless wonderful The
water is pumped from two 5Oo-foot wells
| drilled under the hotel. where ii is filtered
and purified by an air compressor. Three
3oo-horse-power water tube boilers. with
mechanical stokers and smoke consumers
furnish the hot water and steam heat fol
the house. Water is also used In a hy.
| the machinery is in duplicate, so that In
| "a go one plant breaks down or gets ont n,