Davenport Hotel: Hall of Doges
The Hall of Doges was designed to emulate the elegance of Doge's palace in Venice, Italy. Diners were transported into the world of Renaissance art and gilded scroll work. Developer Walt Worthy preserved the hall by crating it whole and removing it during the hotel's refitting, then replacing it in 2001. Today it is a dining and meeting area outside the Grand Pennington ballroom.
Section:Then & Now
Image One
Charles Libby Collection, Washington State Archives, Digital Archives
Image Two
Jesse Tinsley
| The Spokesman-Review
Louis Davenport opened Davenport's Restaurant in 1890 in a building at the corner of Post St. and Sprague Ave. It expanded with its popularity to take up the whole building and Davenport also bought the building to the south, calling it the Pennington Hotel. Then Kirtland Cutter was hired to redesign the facades of both buildings, unifying them into mission style with red roof tile, stucco siding and arched windows. And Spokanites hadn't seen anything like the ornate Hall of Doges when it was completed by Cutter in 1904. Designed to emulate the elegance of Doge's palace in Venice, Italy. Diners were transported into the world of Renaissance art and gilded scroll work. Developer Walt Worthy preserved the hall by crating it whole and removing it during the hotel's refitting, then replacing it in 2001. Today it is a dining and meeting area outside the Grand Pennington ballroom.