Rare Antique Hotel Key & Key Fob - The Continental Hotel, Philadelphia 1860-1923

Description

Rare Antique Hotel Key & Key Fob - The Continental Hotel Philadelphia 1860-1923
Room 136
The Continental Hotel
(1860, demolished 1923–24) on Chestnut Street, built on the site of a former museum and circus, was the most revolutionary hotels in Philadelphia. Designed by John McArthur, Jr.
(1823-90), who later became the architect of Philadelphia's City hall
, the “monster”–scale establishment had six floors with seven hundred rooms that could accommodate up to twelve hundred guests. The elaborate and richly ornamented entrance, completed by Frank Furness
(1839–1913) in 1876 in
palazzo
style, made the hotel one of the most significant architectural sites in the city. The establishment was also notable for its new technologies, such as bell wires and speaking tubes, and steam powered special-purpose machinery, such as a passenger elevator (
one of the first elevators in the country)
, kitchen equipment, and laundry service. Systems of gas lighting, central heating, air ventilation, and interior plumbing were equally impressive and set a  standard for other comparable establishments.
Source: The Encyclopedia of Greater Philadelphia
Among its famous guests were Ulysses S. Grant, Andrew Johnson, Charles Dickens, King Edward VII
,
and Brazilian Emperor Dom Pedro. However, its most notable guest was president-elect Abraham Lincoln, who gave a speech from the hotel's balcony just before his inauguration on February 21, 1861. The lamp from the balcony Lincoln spoke from was retained for the new structure and still hangs today on a balcony known as the "Lincoln Balcony," at the same spot as the one from which Lincoln spoke.
After The Continental Hotel was demolished, the Benjamin Franklin Hotel was constructed on its site in 1925. This structure still stands and is called the Franklin Residences.
Source: Wikipedia
Condition:
This item is used and shows signs of use and wear.  See photos for condition.