Irwin history goes up in smoke

When a raging fire consumed the Irwin Hotel on March 5, a part of Irwin's history went with it.

The landmark Main Street hotel was a total loss, along with all the possessions of the 17 people who called it home.

Growing up with the town, the hotel has a long, distinguished history. Irwin was established along the Pennsylvania Railroad's main line and the rapid growth of the coal industry allowed the town to develop into a thriving community and Irwin quickly became a commercial center. People came to transact business, shop at a wide variety of stores, do their banking or get a good night's sleep.

Salesmen arrived by train and traveled throughout the region on a far-reaching trolley system.

The Pittsburgh, McKeesport and Greensburg trolley line, which later became part of West Penn Railways, provided transit service or connections to points throughout Westmoreland, Fayette and Allegheny counties. A livery stable also was available for those who preferred to travel by horse and buggy.

All this commercial activity resulted in extensive demand for sleeping accommodations in Irwin. By 1891, there were as many as eight hotels here.

The original Irwin Hotel was on Main Street, north of the present-day Irwin Hotel; it was one of the largest and best-furnished hotels in town. The proprietor, Michael Clohessy, moved to Irwin in 1872, purchased the building from Jonas Miles and, after extensive remodeling, opened what was said to be one of the most pleasant and convenient hotels in town.

The Irwin Hotel was described by William Gordon Bennett in 1891: "Everything has been arranged with a view to securing pleasure and convenience to the guests. The rooms are all well and handsomely furnished; the carpet, of which was used 2,000 yards, with 300 yards of oil cloth, is of excellent quality. The entire building is fitted with electric lights, mountain water and all modern improvements, and the genial landlord expends every effort for the comfort of his patrons."

In 1889, T.C. Patrick opened the Commercial Hotel in the Cort Building, which had been built four years earlier. This Main Street hotel claimed to be the "headquarters for commercial men." Previously, the building had been used as a hotel by Joseph McQuistion. Shortly after Mr. Patrick took possession, the hotel was enlarged and remodeled; there were 42 rooms, 36 of which were sleeping rooms.

In 1891, the Commercial Hotel was described in Industries of Irwin and Vicinity: "The rooms are bright, cozy and cheerful, and are very handsomely and tastefully furnished, and supplied with electric lights and every modern convenience. Mr. Patrick is a model landlord, thoroughly understanding what a hotel should be, and exerting every effort to make the hotel a model one. The dining room management is deserving of much praise.

The people of Irwin show their appreciation of Mr. Patrick's efforts, a number preferring to take their meals there than have them prepared at home. Commercial men, who, a few years ago avoided Irwin on account of the lack of good hotels, now seek it, saying that we have the best hotel in the county."

In 1904, the Commercial Hotel advertised the availability of rooms for the rate of $2 per day with "special terms for regular boarders." Ed Brown, the proprietor at the time, spent $5,000 on reconstruction, redecorating and refurnishing the hotel. The ad stated, "The dining room is large and airy and bed rooms finished in white. All conveniences expected by guests are at hand. The traveling public will find the table supplied with the best and all accommodations first-class."

Renamed

After the original Irwin Hotel burned down, the Commercial Hotel was renamed the Irwin Hotel, and has been known as such ever since.

As the popularity of the automobile grew, travel by trolley and railroad declined. Southwestern Pennsylvania's street railway service finally came to an end in 1952.

The Lincoln Highway bypassed the town and the need for downtown Irwin's hotel accommodations was greatly diminished. Guest rooms eventually were converted into apartments for permanent residents. One by one, the grand old hotels closed, signaling the end of an era.

R. Scott Carlton has owned and operated the hotel and bar for the past three decades. Before Carlton, Anna Redenziak and later, her son, Johnny, owned the business. Another previous owner, Albert "Boots" Cervi, was a North Huntingdon commissioner.

Although guest rooms long ago were replaced with apartments, the building's exterior retained much of its original 1885 appearance. Throughout its existence, the building featured a second story balcony. It's likely that early guests sat there in the evening, observing the horse and buggy traffic on the busy street below.

Over the years, there were many changes to the old hotel's interior. The hotel lobby became Carlton's office. Transient guest rooms were converted to efficiency and one-bedroom apartments.

With an appreciation of the hotel's historic past, Carlton displayed old photos on the wall in the bar, including a photo of the original Irwin Hotel, the Commercial Hotel, and a 1915 photo of the later Irwin Hotel.

Last one standing

With the arrival of the 21st century, only two of Irwin's early hotels remained as symbols of that golden age of rail transportation. Across the street from the Irwin Hotel, Tod and Susan Evans, the current owners of the Albion Hotel building, have named their establishment "Major Tom's" in honor of Tod's father, Tom Evans. Originally built in 1895 by the Bricker family, this distinguished building was first known as the Bricker Hotel.

There are seven apartments above the remodeled bar and restaurant. Tod believes a hidden room in the basement may have been used as a speakeasy during Prohibition. Now that the Irwin Hotel has been destroyed by fire, the Albion Hotel building is the last one standing, providing a lasting reminder of Irwin's heritage.

Other hotels that operated during Irwin's bustling commercial era included the Brunswick Hotel, the Guffey House, the Jones Hotel, Hotel Shepp, the Crescent Hotel, Hennessy House, the Arlington Hotel, Ed's Beds and Tom's Hotel.

Irwin native Jim Lavelle, has fond memories of the Irwin Hotel's bar and restaurant.

"When I was a little kid, my dad would take me with him to the bar. I'd drink a bottle of orange pop while he talked to his buddies. A lot of guys would get off the train after work, walk up the hill from the station and stop here to have a drink," he said. "In the mid-1950s, we'd come here Thursday nights for spaghetti dinners. Dinner included a salad and Italian bread for 50 cents.

"Johnny Redenziak's mother, Anna, made the best pizza," Lavelle continued. "It was only available Friday nights. People still talk about it today. At one time, Chet Simpson's Barbershop occupied the basement. His brother, Glenn, had a barbershop up the street where S&T Bank is now."

Wilbur Dudley began patronizing the hotel's bar in 1938.

"It was a popular meeting place," he said. "I used to meet up with my friends there before going to basketball games. My dad had a second-hand shop near the hotel in a building where the post office is now. So many of the old buildings are gone."

Change has been constant in downtown Irwin since the trains quit. The passing of the Irwin Hotel is the latest loss in the town's historic business district, but the hotel's patrons and residents have lasting memories of the grand old Main Street establishment.