The Driskill Hotel, located in downtown Austin, is a Romanesque style building which was completed in 1886. The Driskill was conceived and built by Col. Jesse Driskill, a cattleman who spent his fortune constructing the hotel.

Its four stories occupied almost half a block, with three arched entryways on the south, east, and north sides. Carved limestone busts of Driskill and his two sons, Bud and Tobe crowned the hotel on each of these sides. Six million bricks went into the structure, along with limestone features.

The hotel’s 60 rooms included 12 corner rooms with attached baths, an almost unheard-of feature in any hotel of the region at that time.

The hotel included an open design to encourage airflow throughout the building and keep it cool; its primary feature was an open rotunda at the center that extended from the first to the fourth floors and culminated in a domed skylight.

Other embellishments included an electric bell system, marble bureaus and washstands, steam heating, and gas lighting. The gas pipes throughout the building particularly led Driskill to make the hotel as fireproof as possible, with eighteen-inch-thick walls between the rooms and two layers of iron between each floor. The steam boilers, kitchen, and laundry facilities were relegated to the back (north) side of the hotel to prevent their odors from permeating the hotel.

According to legend, Driskill lost the hotel in a game of poker in 1888 to his brother-in-law, Jim “Doc” Day, who became its second owner. The hotel changed hands several times through the turn of the century, and went through boom and bust cycles along with the city of Austin.

Throughout its history, the Driskill has become a centerpiece for Austin’s high society, and especially in its early years, a common meeting place for Texas state congressmen, where many “backroom deals” were said to go down.

Today the Driskill remains one of the premier hotels in Texas, featuring lavish bridal suites, two restaurants, and a grand ballroom. It is also well-known for being one of the most haunted hotels in the United States, featuring as many as half a dozen ghosts throughout the building.