Nimitz Hotel
Fredericksburg, Gillespie County, Texas
Marker Inscription
This property was purchased by Charles Henry Nimitz, Sr., in 1855. By 1860 the Nimitz Hotel was established, hosting frontier travelers and providing a home for the large Nimitz family. Expanded in the 1870s to feature a steamboat shaped facade, the hotel was a center for community activities. It was sold by the family in 1926 and underwent major alterations. In 1964 it became a museum honoring Fleet Admiral Chester W. Nimitz and those who served with him in World War II. The steamboat facade was later rebuilt and remains a local landmark. (1989)
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
Charles Henry Nimitz bought this property in 1855 and by 1860 was running a hotel that fed and housed frontier travelers while sheltering his own large family. An 1870s expansion gave it a whimsical steamboat-shaped facade, and it became a hub of community life. In 1964 the building became a museum honoring the founder's grandson, Fleet Admiral Chester W. Nimitz, and those who served with him in the Pacific during World War II.
Why it matters
A frontier Hill Country hotel became a national shrine to Pacific naval command, linking the German-Texan settlement of Fredericksburg to the global reach of World War II.
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Related people
- · Charles Henry Nimitz
- · Chester W. Nimitz
Themes & tags
Nearby & related markers
Birthplace of Fleet Admiral Chester W. Nimitz, USN
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Carl Basse built this typical early Fredericksburg house in 1866, and the Henke family—who ran a butcher business from its front porch and back yard—expanded it for their twelve children. In a small back room on February 24, 1885, Anna Henke Nimitz gave birth to Chester W. Nimitz. He rose from the U.S. Naval Academy to command the Pacific Fleet after Pearl Harbor, was made Fleet Admiral in 1944, and signed the Japanese surrender aboard the USS Missouri in Tokyo Bay in 1945.
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