DUANE
Duane's take
Here's how the official marker tells it, and I'll do my best to do it justice. Now, every great empire's got to start somewhere — and the Hilton empire, one of the most recognized names in the hospitality business the world over, started right here in Dallas, Texas, with a building designed by the architectural firm of Lang and Witchell and built in 1925. That's the one.
The very first hotel to bear the Hilton name. Conrad Hilton had it built, and whatever he was dreaming of back then, this was where that dream first hung out its shingle. The hotel advertised comfortable guest rooms and superior service at moderate prices — which, if you think about it, is about as solid a promise as a hotel can make.
Nothing fancy in the pitch, just a straight deal. Come stay, be comfortable, don't break the bank. The building itself, though — that's where they let a little flourish in.
Fourteen stories tall, built in a U-plan, clad in brick, and featuring elaborate terra cotta details right there at the two entries. Somebody wanted you to know, the moment you walked up, that this place had some dignity to it. Now, the story doesn't stop with Conrad Hilton.
In 1938, a man by the name of A. C. White took over operations, and the hotel carried on under a new identity — the White-Plaza — and it answered to that name all the way through 1974.
Thirty-six years of history under one roof, just wearing a different hat. That's the thing about a building that's built right — it outlasts the names people put on it. The marker's been keeping the full story straight since 1988, and that first-ever Hilton is still standing in Dallas, holding its ground.
What the marker says
Designed by the architectural firm of Lang and Witchell, this hotel was built in 1925 for Conrad Hilton, and was the first to bear the Hilton name. The hotel advertised comfortable guest rooms and superior service at moderate prices. The fourteen-story, U-plan brick-clad building features elaborate terra cotta details at the two entries. Operated by A. C. White beginning in 1938, it was known as the White-Plaza until 1974. RTHL - 1988