NPS Form 10-900 United States Department of the Interior, National Park Service

OMB No. 1024-0018

NATIONAL REGISTER OF HISTORIC PLACES REGISTRATION FORM

This form is for use in nominating or requesting determinations of eligibility for individual properties or districts. See instructions in "Guidelines for Completing National Register Forms" (National Register Bulletin 16). Complete each item by marking "x" in the appropriate box or by entering the requested information. If an item does not apply to the property being documented, enter "N/A" for "not applicable." For functions, styles, materials, and areas of significance, enter only the categories and subcategories listed in the instructions. For additional space use continuation sheets (Form 10900a). Type all entries.

1. Name of Property

Clermont Hotel

historic name Bonaventure Arms Apartments other names/site number N/A 2. Location street & number 789 Ponce de Leon Avenue NE city, town Atlanta ( ) vicinity of county Fulton code GA 121 state Georgia code GA zip code ( ) not for publication 3. Classification Ownership of Property: (X) ( ) ( ) ( ) private public-local public-state public-federal Category of Property: (X) ( ) ( ) ( ) ( ) Contributing 1 0 0 0 0 building(s) district site structure object Noncontributing 0 0 0 0 0

30306

Number of Resources within Property: buildings sites structures objects total

Contributing resources previously listed in the National Register: N/A Name of previous listing: N/A Name of related multiple property listing: N/A

Clermont Hotel, Fulton County, Georgia

4. State/Federal Agency Certification

As the designated authority under the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966, as amended, I hereby certify that this nomination meets the documentation standards for registering properties in the National Register of Historic Places and meets the procedural and professional requirements set forth in 36 CFR Part 60. In my opinion, the property meets the National Register criteria. ( ) See continuation sheet.

________________________________________________________ Signature of certifying official Historic Preservation Division Director Deputy State Historic Preservation Officer

____________________________ Date

In my opinion, the property ( ) meets ( ) does not meet the National Register criteria. ( ) See continuation sheet. ______________________________________________________________________________ Signature of commenting or other official ________________________________________ Date

_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ State or Federal agency or bureau

5. National Park Service Certification

I, hereby, certify that this property is: ( ) entered in the National Register ( ) determined eligible for the National Register ( ) determined not eligible for the National Register ( ) removed from the National Register ( ) other, explain: ( ) see continuation sheet ____________________________ ___________ ____________________________ ___________ ____________________________ ___________ ____________________________ ___________ ____________________________ ___________ ____________________________ ___________ Keeper of the National Register Date

Clermont Hotel, Fulton County, Georgia

6. Function or Use Historic Functions: Apartment Building/Hotel Current Functions: Vacant 7. Description Architectural Classification: Neo-Classical Materials: foundation walls roof other concrete exterior, concrete with brick curtain walls; interior, clay tiles flat, built-up composite limestone trim

Description of present and historic physical appearance:

According to the City of Atlanta building permit (Attachment 7), the Clermont Hotel was completed June 17, 1924. It was constructed as the Bonaventure Arms Apartment with 85 units. Originally the building was supposed to be six stories on the front (Ponce de Leon Avenue) elevation and seven stories overall (The Atlanta Constitution, July 15, 1923, p.2). Due to the slope of the lot, the building was constructed with five stories on the front faade, and seven stories plus a sub-basement overall. Probably the Ponce de Leon Avenue elevation included window wells that enabled light to get into the lower first (or ground) floor where there were apartments on the north side of the building. The historic photographs (Attachments 19-21) do not show that area in detail, and any windows that might have existed have since been eliminated. Exterior The building has been well described by Georgia Tech student Blake M. Yamaato in 1990 and Georgia State students Lannie Ethridge and Laurie Sedicino in 2002. This description will make extensive use of their work. The Clermont Hotel "is a modest "L" shaped building set back thirty feet from the curbside..the neo-Classical structure is built of red brick with a flat, parapeted roof.the building is constructed of concrete with twelve inch thick brick curtain walls laid in a Flemish bond. The symmetrical faade is divided into three bays. Located in the central pedimented bay, the main entrance is marked by double doors, a surrounding marble veneer, and a neon marquee (Yamaato, p. 1). " Most of the windows are six-over-six double-hung wood windows (Photos #4, #8 and #21). On the north (Ponce de Leon Avenue) elevation they are arranged in a regular pattern as either single windows or in pairs. On the east and south and west elevations four-over-four windows are present in some of the bathrooms (Photos #7, #15, #17, and #56). There are two rows of two-over-two windows on the north part of the west elevation. The symmetry of the north elevation is also evident on most of the east (Bonaventure Avenue) faade, and to a degree on the west elevation. The south side of the building was obviously less visible, and there the brick is laid in common bond and there is no special rhythm to the fenestration. Although most of the
Clermont Hotel, Fulton County, Georgia 3

NPS Form 10-900-a United States Department of the Interior, National Park Service

OMB Approved No. 1024-0018

National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Section 7--Description

windows are original, there are occasional replacement metal windows in rooms on the south and east sides of the upper floors (Photos #18, #86, #90-#91, and #98). The central bay on the Ponce de Leon Avenue faade protrudes slightly from the flat surface of this elevation. It is delineated by simple rusticated quoins, which also mark the ends of the building on the north and east elevations as well as the north half of the west elevation. A low pediment is another decorative feature of the central bay on the north side of the building. It includes a "limestone sun-like medallion and garland swags.Other exterior architectural detailing includes the ten ornamental urns which dot the building's roofline on the northern and eastern facades. These decorative urns appear at key points on the faade and mark a change of rhythm or repetition in window placement (Photo #102, Yamaato, pp. 2-3)." There is a limestone stringcourse between the fourth and fifth floors on the north and east elevations and the north portion of the west elevation. Two stringcourses mark the division between the ground and first floors on the section of the "L" shaped building that faces Ponce de Leon Avenue. However, on the Ponce de Leon faade only the upper of the two stringcourses remains, a probable result of street work in the 1940s. A distinctive feature of the built-up composite roof is the tall metal tower, which proclaims Clermont Hotel (Photo #106). It was once lighted in neon and would appear to be a copy of the similar tower on the Biltmore Hotel on West Peachtree Street. The tower may well have been added when the apartment building was converted into a hotel as it is present in the 1940s postcard (Attachment 21). The flat roof has a low parapet wall on the north, east and part of the south and west sides of the building. A metal railing of the same height is present on the less visible section of the roof. Photos #101-#106 show the roof. Interior When the Bonaventure Arms Apartment opened in 1924, it had 85 apartments, a comparatively large number for an Atlanta apartment building. In the early years there was a restaurant on the first floor of the building (Attachment 24). The conversion to a hotel in 1939 caused little alteration to the original layout of the building, and a number of apartments were maintained as long-term rentals. Attachment 26 dates from 1958, and indicates the hotel had 100 rooms and 33 efficiency and one-bedroom furnished apartments. That configuration is almost identical today. As of April 24, 2009, there were 22 rooms and apartments on each of the second through the fifth floors, fifteen on the first floor, ten on the lower first floor and one in the basement, for a total of 114 rooms. By the time the hotel was closed on December 31, 2009, the total was 111 rooms. Of those, thirteen were one-bedroom apartments, seventeen were efficiency apartments, nine were small efficiency apartments, eight were double rooms and sixty-four were singles. The Clermont Hotel has seven floors and a basement. Current nomenclature has it with a sub-basement (originally the basement); basement (the location of the Clermont Lounge), which once had at least ten rooms, but now only one; ground floor or lower first floor or atrium floor; first floor (the location of the lobby); and floors two through five, which are identical. The lower first floor through the fifth floor have identical layouts that feature a "L" shaped corridor with rooms opening off either side. In the lobby area the corridor is part of the lobby. The basement level still has the corridor on the east (Bonaventure Avenue) wing.

"The outer double doors of the main entrance lead to a marble-walled vestibule and another set
of metal-framed glass double doors, which look original to the era of the building's construction. This opens to a marble-floored lobby, a registration desk to the left with an antiquated switchboard..notable features of the interior include seven-foot wide carpeted hallways, two 'car switch' passenger elevators controlled by a hand throttle, slatted exterior privacy doors to rooms, metal plates above the doors with room numbers, varying sized doors to rooms, and baseboard molding in the hallways and rooms." (Lannie Ethridge and Laurie Sedicino, p. 9)
Clermont Hotel, Fulton County, Georgia 4

NPS Form 10-900-a United States Department of the Interior, National Park Service

OMB Approved No. 1024-0018

National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Section 7--Description

There are two sets of stairs, one in each leg of the "L," both of which open onto the roof. The main set is located off the lobby and was originally an open stair on at least the lower two floors. Closed off to meet fire code requirements, it has recently been reopened on the first floor (Photos #40-#41, #53, #82 and #100). This concrete u-shaped stair with treads and risers covered with terrazzo was obviously intended as a major decorative feature of the building. It has an Art Deco feel. The other stair, located at the south end of the east wing, is a typical fire stair with metal access doors (Photos #32 and #88). The building has two elevators centrally located where the two corridors intersect. The elevators are unusual in that they are manually operated (Photos #29-#29B, #59 and #85). Doors and windows, their surrounds, baseboards, molding, bathroom tiles - both floor and wall - and some bathroom fixtures all appear to be original, or at least date from 1939, the time of the conversion from apartment building to hotel. Many of the rooms still have operable radiators, and many have window air conditioning units. The corridors on the upper floors, lower first floor and the portion of the first floor where there are rooms are all carpet and/or vinyl tile over the concrete floors. The rooms are also carpeted.

Clermont Hotel, Fulton County, Georgia

8. Statement of Significance Certifying official has considered the significance of this property in relation to other properties: ( ) nationally ( ) statewide (X) locally

Applicable National Register Criteria: (X) A ( )B (X) C ( )D

Criteria Considerations (Exceptions): (X) N/A ( )A ( )B ( )C ( )D ( )E ( )F ( )G

Areas of Significance (enter categories from instructions): Criterion A: Community Planning and Development; Entertainment/Recreation Criterion C: Architecture Period of Significance:

Significant Dates: 1924, apartment building completed 1939, reopened as a hotel 31 December 2009, closed as hotel Significant Person(s): N/A Cultural Affiliation: N/A Architect(s)/Builder(s): Architect unknown, possibly William Harald Butterfield Builder, Shelverton Construction Company

Clermont Hotel, Fulton County, Georgia

NPS Form 10-900-a United States Department of the Interior, National Park Service

OMB Approved No. 1024-0018

National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Section 8--Statement of Significance

Statement of significance (areas of significance) The Bonaventure Arms Apartment/Clermont Hotel is significant in the area of Community Planning and Development. Constructed in 1923-24 as one of a number of large apartment buildings built to house Atlanta's growing population, including three in the Ponce de Leon Avenue corridor, it represented the height of modernity for its time. The building is one of the few from its era to survive, and is also one of the few apartment buildings of its size to be built in Atlanta. The building was converted to hotel use in 1939, and has served the Atlanta community as a hotel ever since. It is significant in the area of Entertainment/Recreation for its long life as a major hotel presence on Ponce de Leon Avenue, and particularly for the "famous" Clermont Lounge, located in the basement of the building. The Clermont Hotel is a landmark presence on Ponce de Leon Avenue. It is significant in the area of Architecture as an excellent example of a large (more than 70 apartments; it had 85) hotel-style apartment building, an uncommon type in 1920s Atlanta. The fact that it retains so much original fabric gives it additional significance in this area. National Register Criteria The Bonaventure Arms Apartment is significant under Criterion A for its role as a very visible part of the developing Ponce de Leon Avenue corridor. In addition it represented the movement of development away from the downtown area along important arterial surface streets like Ponce de Leon Avenue. Since its conversion to a hotel in 1939, it has served as an entertainment destination for visitors as well as native Atlantans. The building is significant under Criterion C as an excellent example of a large hotel-style apartment building. Criteria Considerations (if applicable) N/A Period of significance (justification) The period of significance is from 1924, when the building opened as the Bonaventure Arms Apartment, until 1960, the 50 year cutoff date. However, the building continued in operation as a hotel until 31 December 2009. Contributing/Noncontributing Resources (explanation, if necessary) The building is the only contributing resource

Clermont Hotel, Fulton County, Georgia

NPS Form 10-900-a United States Department of the Interior, National Park Service

OMB Approved No. 1024-0018

National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Section 8--Statement of Significance

Developmental history/historic context (if appropriate)

Bonaventure Arms Apartments The Bonaventure Arms Apartment/Clermont Hotel is located in District 14, Land Lot 17 on the southwest corner of the intersection of Ponce de Leon Avenue and Bonaventure Avenue in the area of Atlanta known as Poncey-Highlands. It comprises Lots 1, 2 and 3 of the George F. Payne property, which was subdivided in June 1905 (Attachment 10). The original owner/developer of the building was Jesse L. Morrison. Morrison was described as an "Atlanta capitalist and business man." (The Atlanta Constitution, June 8, 1924, p. 11) He owned the Morrison Realty Company in Atlanta for at least 30 years. Morrison took out a building permit on August 14, 1923, but plans for the building were well underway before then. An article in the Atlanta Constitution on July 15 of that year described the planned "apartment house." "The Bonaventure Arms, when completed, will rank with the handsomest and most modern apartment houses in the south. It will be of reinforced concrete construction, faced with brick." The article went on to discuss the financing for the building, and finished with a description of the leasing arrangement. (Atlanta Constitution, July 15, 1923, p. 2) As the building neared completion in the summer of 1924, The Atlanta Constitution published another article extolling the virtues of the new building. The entire article is included as Attachment 19, but a description of the amenities offered follows: "the Bonaventure will have the advantage of the well-known hotel service inaugurated in Atlanta by the Grant-Jeter company, an arrangement that provides every type of domestic service.A large dining room has also kitchens and breakfast roomsElevators running at all hours, private delivery of packages, maids and messengers.Among the features of the several one-room bachelor apartmentsare Murphy in-door bedsOther features found only in this apartment building are carpeted floors for each apartment room, with high class linoleum for kitchens, hallways and bathsit is said to be one of the most elegant structures of its kind to be found in the city." The article also said the Bonaventure Arms cost something more than $600,000, a large sum for 1924. It was anticipated the clientele for the new apartment building would consist primarily of middle to upper-middle class renters. A brief survey of the early residents (1925-1927 Atlanta City Directories) showed such occupations as salesman, sales manager, office manager and district manager. There were also several vicepresidents of widely varying types of businesses, and the president of the Phoenix Supply Company. There were a number of single men and women; also several widows. Unmarried women were teachers, secretaries and salesclerks. Several residents appeared to have two apartments, often adjoining. One interesting observation was that the turnover in the apartments from year to year, at least for the first three years, was close to 90%. According to the numbering of the rooms, the Caf/Restaurant was always on the lower floor (the present location of the Clermont Lounge). There were also eight apartments including the restaurant operator's on that floor. They would have been located in the east wing of the building where there are offices today (Photo #10, Attachment 24). Morrison purchased the building on 9 August 1923 (Attachment 12), but a month before that, on July 2 he took out a series of bonds totaling $475,000 to finance the apartment building (Attachment 13). Unfortunately he was unable to pay his taxes and the building went into City of Atlanta receivership. It was sold in 1926 to W. C. Foster, who resold it to Asa G. Candler in 1928. Candler in turn sold the building to Bonaventure Arms, Inc. in 1931, and five years later it went to the Briarcliff Investment Company, who were listed as owners when the apartment was converted to a hotel in 1939. (Attachments 14-17)
Clermont Hotel, Fulton County, Georgia 8

NPS Form 10-900-a United States Department of the Interior, National Park Service

OMB Approved No. 1024-0018

National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Section 8--Statement of Significance

Clermont Hotel On April 5,1939 the Briarcliff Investment Company took out a building permit (Attachment 8) to "make alterations & change Apartment House to Hotel." The work was completed by 9 September of that year, and the change is reflected in an advertisement in the 1940 Atlanta City Directory, which described the Hotel Clermont as the "Newest in ATLANTA." The Clermont was always an "extended stay" hotel with rooms ranging from singles through one-bedroom apartments with small kitchens, the same configuration the building has today. The ownership records become clouded, but Glenn S. Loudermilk is listed as proprietor in the 1958-59 Atlanta City Directory (Attachment 26). The Loudermilk family owned the hotel until 2003 when Lillian T. Loudermilk, widow of Glenn S. Loudermilk, sold it to Inman Park Properties. Loudermilk and his wife moved into the Clermont in 1975. He died in 1977, and she remained in the hotel, residing in Room #220, a one-bedroom apartment (Photos #62#66). Her son Philip, now deceased, lived in the apartment next door, Room #221, described as a "small efficiency." The hotel was closed on December 31, 2009 by Fulton County health inspectors, citing unsanitary conditions (Atlanta Journal-Constitution, December 31, 2009, Section B, p. 6). The Clermont Lounge When the building opened in 1924 as the Bonaventure Arms Apartment, there was a restaurant on the basement level. The 1937 Atlanta City Directory listed a Bonaventure Arms Caf on the first floor (Attachment 29). Sometime in the mid to late 1940s the basement became a nightclub. It underwent at least five changes, including a brief stint as a rogue Playboy Club, until it became the Clermont Lounge in 1965 (Attachments 3032). Today, the Lounge is still operating. It is under separate ownership from the hotel, and leased on a month-to-month lease. Developmental History - Neighborhood From Lannie Ethridge and Laurie Sedicino, National Register of Historic Places Nomination form, pp. 10-11: In the 1920's, as a result of a significant growth boon and the need for additional housing, the Bonaventure arms Apartments was a major commercial venture in what was previously a suburban area of Atlanta in transition from strictly single-family residences. It is likely that the construction of the Bonaventure arms Apartments was determined by this real estate situation at the time. It was made possible largely due to the development of the trolley system and the increased use of the automobile. The Bonaventure Arms location was along a popular trolley car line that brought people to Ponce de Leon springs, later Sears Roebuck, and the baseball field. The bulk of apartments constructed between 1910 and 1930 were in northeast Atlanta, and continued to shift further east, with the larger apartment complexes located along major streets including Peachtree Street and Ponce de Leon Avenue. The Ponce de Leon corridor was an important artery to the then planned suburbs of Druid Hills and Virginia Highlands, connected to downtown Atlanta and each other by this network of electric trolley lines. The "PonceyHighland" neighborhood, in which the Bonaventure Arms is located, was one of the developing neighborhoods during the trolley era between the turn of the century and the 1920's when the automobile came into its own as a shaper of the city. The Sears and Roebuck Building and
Clermont Hotel, Fulton County, Georgia 9

NPS Form 10-900-a United States Department of the Interior, National Park Service

OMB Approved No. 1024-0018

National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Section 8--Statement of Significance

Ford Motor Assembly Plant, constructed in 1926 and 1916 respectively, indicated Midtown's development. In addition, the Atlanta Crackers baseball field was located across the street from the Sears building, home to the minor league black and white baseball teams from the turn of the century to the mid-1960's. These substantial businesses attracted other commercial businesses and specialty shops to the immediate area. The Bonaventure Arms Apartments, constructed in 1923-1924, was located in the center of this prospering vortex and was a major source of housing for the new professional population, offering an alternative to the single-family suburban home.

Clermont Hotel, Fulton County, Georgia

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9. Major Bibliographic References @ Previous documentation on file (NPS): (X) N/A ( ) ( ) ( ( ( ( ( ) ) ) ) ) preliminary determination of individual listing (36 CFR 67) has been requested preliminary determination of individual listing (36 CFR 67) has been issued date issued: previously listed in the National Register previously determined eligible by the National Register designated a National Historic Landmark recorded by Historic American Buildings Survey # recorded by Historic American Engineering Record #

Primary location of additional data: (X) ( ) ( ) X) (X) (X) State historic preservation office Other State Agency Federal agency Local government University Other, Specify Repository: Atlanta History Center Archives

Georgia Historic Resources Survey Number (if assigned): N/A

Clermont Hotel, Fulton County, Georgia

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10. Geographical Data Acreage of Property UTM References A) Zone 16 Easting 744224 Northing 3740274 approximately three acres

Verbal Boundary Description Beginning at the southwest corner of Ponce de Leon Avenue and Bonaventure Avenue, west along the south side of Ponce de Leon Avenue 161 feet; south 200 feet to lot line; west 14.5 feet; south 40 feet to southern boundary of an abandoned alley; east 161 feet; north along the west side of Bonaventure Avenue 240 feet to point of beginning. The property also includes an abandoned 40' wide alley behind the property, giving a total north-south depth of 240 feet, and adds an additional 14.5 feet to the west on the southwest corner of the property. Boundary Justification Legal boundary description

Clermont Hotel, Fulton County, Georgia

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11. Form Prepared By State Historic Preservation Office name/title @ organization Historic Preservation Division, Georgia Department of Natural Resources mailing address 254 Washington street SE, Ground Level city or town Atlanta state Georgia zip code 30334 telephone (404) 656-2840 date @ e-mail @ Consulting Services/Technical Assistance (if applicable) ( ) not applicable name/title Marion Ellis, President organization Ray & Ellis Consulting, LLC mailing address 380 West Spalding Drive NE city or town Atlanta state Georgia zip code 30328 telephone 770-395-0813 e-mail mamaellis@aol.com ( ) (X) ( ) ( ) property owner consultant regional development center preservation planner other:

Clermont Hotel, Fulton County, Georgia

13

NPS Form 10-900-a United States Department of the Interior, National Park Service

OMB Approved No. 1024-0018

National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Photographs

Name of Property: City or Vicinity: County: State: Photographer: Negative Filed: Date Photographed:

Clermont Hotel Atlanta Georgia James R. Lockhart Georgia Department of Natural Resources @

Description of Photograph(s): Number of photographs: .

(HPD WORD form version 11-03-01)

Clermont Hotel, Fulton County, Georgia

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