Harper House (Rock Island, Ill.)

Abstract The Harper House Hotel was built by Benjamin Harper, a Rock Island businessman. There had been a hotel on the land on which he built the structure since 1846. The five-story brick building cost $100,000 to build and opened on February 21, 1871. Harper included fire escapes in every room – a first for hotels in the Midwest. Visitors proclaimed it one of the most lavish hotels west of Chicago. The Harper House Hotel was purchased from Harper in 1907, and passed through the hands of three...