De Soto House

The De Soto House

OPENED IN APRIL, 1855, THE FIVE-STORY 240 ROOM DE SOTO HOUSE WAS “THE LARGEST AND MOST LUXURIOUS HOTEL IN THE WEST.” ABRAHAM LINCOLN SPOKE FROM ITS BALCONY IN 1856 AND STEPHEN A. DOUGLAS IN 1858. ULYSSES S. GRANT MAINTAINED HIS 1868 PRESIDENTIAL CAMPAIGN HEADQUARTERS HERE. BY 1880 GALENA’S PROSPERITY HAD FADED AND THE HOTEL’S TWO UPPER STORIES WERE REMOVED.

ERECTED BY THE ILLINOIS STATE HISTORICAL SOCIETY 1959