Historic Hotels of America® is pleased to announce the winner of the 2020 Historic Hotels of America Historian of the Year Award. Stanley Turkel has been named the recipient of the Historic Hotels of America Historian of the Year Award for 2020. This is the third time Turkel has won this prestigious award.
Stanley Turkel is a champion of history and, especially, of historic hotels. Through his many books, he has made an extraordinary contribution to documenting the great histories and stories of the most iconic and legendary hotels built over the past 200+ years? Here are just a few of the ten books he has researched and written over the past decade: Great American Hotel Architects: Volume I; Great American Hotel Architects Volume 2; Hotel Mavens: Lucius M. Boomer, George C. Boldt and Oscar of the Waldorf; Hotel Mavens: Volume 2: Henry Morrison Flagler, Henry Bradley Plant, Carl Graham Fisher; and Built to Last 100+ Year-Old Hotels West of the Mississippi. Stanley Turkel researches and writes the wonderful Nobody Asked Me But…series including more than 240 wonderful vignettes about the history of iconic and legendary historic hotels.
The Historic Hotels of America Historian of the Year Award is presented to an individual for making a unique contribution in the research, and presentation of history and whose work has encouraged a wide discussion, greater understanding, and enthusiasm for history and our nation’s heritage. Importantly, as the author of ten books about iconic and legendary historic hotels, Stanley Turkel has helped to preserve the stories of their owners, their architects, and their famous guests.
“I am honored and delighted by this designation as 2020 Historic Hotels of America Historian of the Year,” said Turkel. “In my most recent book, “Great American Hotel Architects Volume 2” (AuthorHouse 2020), I provide a wonderful description of the complexities of designing a world-class hotel and inventory of what went into the New Yorker Hotel (Manhattan’s largest and tallest hotel in 1929), which was designed by Sugarman & Berger:
- a “vertical city”
- front desk with 20 clerks
- restaurants with world-famous orchestras
- walls of Persian walnut inlaid withhold brass
- kitchens covering an acre of floor space with 135 of the world’s famous cooks
- twenty-three elevators, speeding at eight hundred feet per minute
- bedrooms with Servidors, circulating ice water, hand telephones, bedhead reading lamps, full-length mirrors, and full-sized beds
- largest barber shop in the world: 42 chairs and 20 manicurists
- largest private power plant in the world
- 10-room “hospital”
Once again, I appreciate the wonderful work of Historic Hotels of America.”
“In selecting Turkel as the 2020 Historic Hotels of America Historian of the Year, Stanley Turkel is recognized for his dedication, enthusiasm, stewardship, and leadership in preserving and increasing the recognition and celebration of these historic, cultural and heritage treasures and their stories,” said Lawrence Horwitz, Executive Vice President, Historic Hotels of America and Historic Hotels Worldwide.
About Historic Hotels of America®
Historic Hotels of America is the official program of the National Trust for Historic Preservation for recognizing and celebrating the finest Historic Hotels. Historic Hotels of America has more than 300 historic hotels. These historic hotels have all faithfully maintained their authenticity, sense of place, and architectural integrity in the United States of America, including 44 states, the District of Columbia, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and Puerto Rico. Historic Hotels of America is comprised of mostly independently owned and operated historic hotels. More than 30 of the world’s finest hospitality brands, chains, and collections are represented in Historic Hotels of America. To be nominated and selected for membership into this prestigious program, a hotel must be at least 50 years old; has been designated by the U.S. Secretary of the Interior as a National Historic Landmark or listed in or eligible for listing in the National Register of Historic Places; and recognized as having historic significance. For more information, please visit HistoricHotels.org.
About Historic Hotels Worldwide®
Washington DC based Historic Hotels Worldwide® is a prestigious collection of historic treasures, including more than 360 legendary historic hotels including many former castles, chateaus, palaces, academies, haciendas, villas, monasteries, and other historic lodging spanning ten centuries. Historic Hotels Worldwide recognizes authentic cultural treasures that demonstrate exemplary historic preservation and their inspired architecture, cultural traditions, and authentic cuisine. To be nominated and selected for induction into Historic Hotels Worldwide, historical lodging properties must be at least 75 years old; utilize historic accommodations; serve as the former home or be located on the grounds of the former home of famous persons or significant location for an event in history; be located in or within walking distance to a historic district, historically significant landmark, place of historic event, or a historic city center; be recognized by a local preservation organization or national trust; and display historic memorabilia, artwork, photography, and other examples of its historic significance. For more information, please visit HistoricHotelsWorldwide.com.
