Book-Cadillac Hotel

The Book-Cadillac Hotel, now known as the Westin Book Cadillac Hotel, is a prominent landmark in downtown Detroit representing a complex history of luxury, decline, and rebirth. Originally conceived as a competitor to the Statler Hotel, the Book-Cadillac was built on the site of the Cadillac Hotel, which was razed to make way for the new structure. Upon its opening in 1924, the new hotel became the tallest hotel in the world, a distinction it held briefly before being surpassed by subsequent construction.

History

The story of the Book-Cadillac Hotel is inextricably linked to the history of the Cadillac Hotel that preceded it. The Cadillac Hotel's origins trace back to 1885, when Daniel Scotten constructed a four-story business block that initially housed a grocery store. When the grocery business failed, Scotten repurposed the building into a hotel in 1888. Over the next few decades, the Cadillac Hotel expanded, acquiring and demolishing the adjacent Antisdel House and adding to its footprint until, by 1891, it occupied the entire block between Washington and Shelby Streets, fronting Michigan Avenue. It quickly became one of Detroit's most esteemed hotels, hosting five U.S. Presidents during their respective terms: Benjamin Harrison, Grover Cleveland, William McKinley, Theodore Roosevelt, and William Howard Taft. Their visits reflected Detroit's growing national stature during the late 19th and early 20th centuries, when the city was emerging as a center of industry and commerce well before the automotive era reached its peak.

By the early 20th century, the Cadillac Hotel began to show its age and struggled to compete with newer establishments like the Statler Hotel, which opened in 1915. The Book brothers, Herbert, Frank, and J. Burgess Book Jr., recognized this shift and saw an opportunity to build a grander hotel on Washington Boulevard, a street they were actively developing into a premier retail and commercial destination. Their personal connection to the site ran deep. The brothers had been born within the walls of the Cadillac Hotel and spent their childhood playing in the landscaped mall outside. In 1917, they purchased their birthplace. By 1923, they made the decision to raze the historic structure entirely.

The Book brothers were among Detroit's most active real estate developers of the era. Their portfolio included the nearby Book Tower, completed in 1926, which became one of the tallest buildings in Michigan and remains a signature structure on Washington Boulevard. Together, the Book Tower and the Book-Cadillac Hotel represented the brothers' ambition to anchor Washington Boulevard as the city's dominant commercial corridor, a vision that shaped downtown Detroit's built environment for generations.

Construction and Opening

The Book brothers commissioned architect Louis Kamper to design the new hotel. Kamper had a prior working relationship with the family, having also designed the Book Tower. He envisioned a 29-story Italian Renaissance Revival structure that would be both the most extravagant hotel in Detroit and the tallest hotel in the world at the time of its completion. Groundbreaking occurred in 1923, and the Book-Cadillac Hotel officially opened on December 8, 1924.

The hotel was designed to impress. Its interiors featured a range of European architectural elements, most notably the elaborately decorated Italian Garden and the opulent Venetian Ballroom, both of which became central gathering spaces for Detroit society. The Book-Cadillac offered more than 1,200 guest rooms, each equipped with a private bathroom, a genuine luxury at the time when private baths were far from standard in American hotels. Beyond the guest rooms, the building contained three ballrooms, multiple restaurants and lounges, and a range of retail shops, making it a self-contained destination for both travelers and Detroit residents. Its scale and finish were a direct expression of Detroit's confidence during the height of the automotive boom.

Not merely a hotel, the Book-Cadillac became a social institution. The Venetian Ballroom hosted formal dances, charity galas, and civic receptions. It's the kind of space that defined how a city saw itself. For Detroiters of the 1920s and 1930s, the hotel represented the same aspirational energy that drove the city's automakers to dominate global manufacturing.

Decline and Abandonment

For decades, the Book-Cadillac thrived as Detroit's premier hospitality address. That changed in the postwar years. Like much of downtown Detroit, the hotel experienced a prolonged period of decline in the latter half of the 20th century as white flight, suburban sprawl, and the erosion of the city's industrial base reshaped the urban core. Occupancy rates fell steadily. Maintenance was deferred. The hotel's once-celebrated interiors deteriorated behind a facade that still hinted at its former grandeur.

The property eventually closed and sat vacant for nearly 25 years. Grand ballrooms and guest rooms that had once hosted presidents and socialites fell into serious disrepair. For many Detroiters, the abandonment of the Book-Cadillac came to represent the broader collapse of downtown's commercial and cultural vitality during this era, a symbol of what the city had lost alongside its industrial base.

Renovation and Reopening

After nearly a quarter-century of vacancy, the Book-Cadillac was selected for a major restoration project aimed at returning the building to active use as a luxury hotel. The project received more than $6 million in federal funding to support the transformation. The renovation preserved many of the hotel's original architectural features, including the Italian Garden and Venetian Ballroom, while incorporating contemporary design elements and modern amenities throughout the guest rooms and common spaces.

The hotel reopened as the Westin Book Cadillac Hotel under the Westin Hotels & Resorts brand, marking a key milestone in Detroit's broader downtown revitalization efforts. The restored Venetian Ballroom and other event spaces quickly found new life as venues for weddings, conferences, and civic gatherings, serving both hotel guests and the wider Detroit community. The Westin Book Cadillac continues to operate as a full-service luxury hotel, hosting guests from around the world while maintaining its historic character.

Its resurgence is widely regarded as one of the more visible signs of investment returning to downtown Detroit, alongside other high-profile rehabilitation projects on and near Washington Boulevard, including the Book Tower itself, which completed its own extensive redevelopment and reached its centennial in 2026. Together, the two Book family buildings on Washington Boulevard stand as concrete examples of historic preservation driving urban recovery. A costly and complex process, but one that has produced results visible to anyone walking the street today.

Geography

The Westin Book Cadillac Hotel is located on Washington Boulevard in downtown Detroit, a location historically significant for its concentration of upscale retail and commercial establishments. The hotel occupies the block bounded by Washington Boulevard, Michigan Avenue, Shelby Street, and Park Avenue, within the city's central business district. Its position on Washington Boulevard was intentionally chosen by the Book brothers to reinforce their efforts to transform the street into a premier destination, and that intention is still readable in the streetscape today.

The surrounding area reflects Detroit's layered architectural history, with historic buildings and more recent structures coexisting across the downtown core. The hotel is within walking distance of numerous attractions, including the Fox Theatre, Comerica Park (home of the Detroit Tigers), and Ford Field (home of the Detroit Lions). Its central location provides convenient access to the city's cultural, entertainment, and business districts, and its proximity to major thoroughfares makes it accessible for travelers arriving by car or public transportation.

See Also

• Downtown Detroit
• Washington Boulevard
• Book Tower
• Cadillac Hotel
• Louis Kamper
• Westin Hotels & Resorts