Hotel Buffalo

279 Washington Street

alternate name: Hotel Statdler (first location)

architect: Esenwein & Johnson
(August Esenwein & James A. Johnson)

owner: Ellsworth M. Statler

years built: 1908

demolished: 1968

Superficially derived from Sullivan’s Prudential Building, this structure misses many of the virtues of the original. The wider piers and reduction of the windows produce a scheme like that of conventional eastern skyscrapers. However, the clean, sharp silhouette and the interesting surfaces of colored terra-cotta have considerable character of their own which sets this pre-war building apart from the less interesting skyscrapers erected in the twenties.