would want to live there. They were wrong. World War I created a serious housing shortage in Washington with increasing numbers of politicians and military brass looking for a nice place to live. Architect Frank Russell White based the design of the new hotel on Wardman’s favorite golf resort, The Homestead in Hot Springs, Va. The new structure — the largest hotel in the capital — features such storied amenities as a massive dining room that doubled as a ballroom, tea and billiard rooms, Turkish baths and a grocery store. Although the Spanish Flu epidemic of 1918 prevented the hotel from staging a grand opening, it was immediately filled to capacity. Wardman was already dreaming of his next project, a luxury apartment tower nearby so tenants could live in even larger luxury suites. The perfect spot turned out to be right next door, which happened to be where Wardman himself lived. In 1928, while his wife was