Barbara Worth Hotel
in
San
Diego
For photos and information about other
Barbara Worth facilities click:
I
have
seen
no
evidence
that
Harold
Bell
Wright
had
any
connection
with
the
Hotel
Barbara
Worth
in
San
Diego
or
the
Barbara
Worth
Cafe
in
Jacumba,
but
both
were
there
during
his
lifetime
and
he
was
undoubtedly
aware
of
them. For several months he lived in the U. S. Grant hotel,
directly across the street from the Barbara Worth Hotel in San Diego, so
he had to see it every time he left the hotel.
According to the
San
Diego
Historical
Society, the
Plaza Theatre, which
San
Diego's
Hotel Barbara Worth
was built around and
above, opened April 13, 1913, and was demolished in 1982 to make
way for the Horton Plaza Shopping Center. The second-story
Barbara Worth Hotel, which had become a de facto brothel by the
early 1960's, was demolished in July 1966, leaving the Plaza Theatre to
stand for an additional 16 years as a one-story building. (see:
http://members.cox.net/ramero/hortonplaza.htm)
Click on Small Picture to see Large Picture
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San Diego's Barbara
Worth Hotel |
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1. San Diego's Barbara Worth Hotel.
Their own advertising card. "Electric Fountain at
night--The Plaza--a beautiful park, in the center of the city and
in front of the . . . Barbara Worth Hotel. Ownership, W. W.
Whitson. Management, D. R. Lane. ONLY HOTEL LOBBY
OVERLOOKING THE PLAZA. Rooms: 75c, $1.00, up to $6.00 per
day. A HOTEL FOR YOUR MOTHER, YOUR SISTER, YOUR WIFE AND
YOURSELF."
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2. This informative advertisement for the
Barbara Worth Hotel in San Diego is from The San Diego Tourist,
July, 1915, p.71. One thing we learn from this ad is that
there is certainly no dining room in this hotel.
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3. San Diego's Barbara Worth Hotel. This is not a
postcard, but a photo (c.1918) from the files of the San
Diego Historical Society.
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4. San Diego's Barbara Worth Hotel. This is not a
postcard, but a photo (1918) from the files of the San
Diego Historical Society. The entrance to the Barbara
Worth Hotel and the first two letters of "Barbara" can
be seen on the extreme right of the photo.
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5. San Diego's Barbara Worth Hotel. This is not a
postcard, but part of a panoramic skyline photo of San
Diego. Charles Z. Bailey, the photographer inscribed these
words, "San Diego, Cal. From 5th and 'E' St's, May
1914." Use Scroll Bars to see BW Hotel and U. S.
Grant Hotel to its right.
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6. (Enlargement of San Diego's Barbara Worth Hotel from
above panorama. In my opinion the building does not look
like it is only one year old.)
.
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(7.) 223. The U. S. Grant Hotel and Plaza . .
San Diego, Cal. [Barbara Worth Hotel is visible on
right.] |
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8. Monte Carlo Cocktails, 317 "E" Street, San Diego, Calif. Wilbur
Clarke. On the inside of this match cover is printed: "In the
Barbara Worth Hotel, Wilbur Clark, Prop." |
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9.
Here is a photo of Horton Plaza, taken through a window of the U.
S. Grant Hotel in March of 2001. The fountain appears
unchanged. You might think from this photo that the Barbara
Worth Hotel was remodeled, but that is not the case. The old
buildings were demolished and new ones built. |
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