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While San Francisco was finding its way out of the chaos of
the devastating earthquake and fire of 1906, several enterprising
businessmen were drawing up plans for a hotel in downtown Berkeley.
Francis Kittredge Shattuck, born in New York, was one of the
adventurous gold seekers who headed for the Mother Lode shortly
after the cry "Gold Discovered in California" rang
across the land. Along with William Hillegass and George Blake,
he acquired a considerable amount of real estate, some of which
encompasses the site of the University of California Campus
and much of the present business district. In 1868 Francis Kittredge
Shattuck built a Victorian estate on the west side of Shattuck
Avenue. Subsequently, part of the Shattuck property was donated
as the Site of the Berkeley Public Library.
In 1907 Shattuck Avenue and Allston Way was selected as the
site of the Shattuck Hotel. The hotel opened on December 15th,
1910 and was immediately recognized as the City's finest hotel.
Constructed of reinforced concrete, the hotel is one of the
few downtown buildings in the Mission style which represents
California's Architectural heritage. The Annex was begun in
1914 and was designed "to allow the greatest freedom of
air and sunshine". The addition increased the hotel's size
by 400%, adding 120 guest rooms. It was the largest structure
in any of the Bay Cities--5 feet longer than the Emporium building
in San Francisco.
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