Allen County, Indiana Genealogy

1. A work in progress

2. No. 12.

   1921 - Stories of Old Ft. Wayne - No. 12 by B. J. Griswold - Aveline Hotel

   Article from Jul 10, 1921 The Fort Wayne Journal Gazette (Fort Wayne, Indiana) Aveline hotel, Griswold, Old fort wayne

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   1921 - Stories of Old Ft. Wayne - No. 12 by B. J. Griswold - Aveline Hotel The Fort Wayne Journal-Gazette, Fort Wayne, Indiana, Sunday, July 10, 1921, page 22.

   STORIES OF OLD FT. WAYNE - NO. 12 BY B. J. GRISWOLD

   THE ORIGINAL AVELINE HOTEL

   A Beautiful Hotel Without Any Furniture

   At one time, Fort Wayne had a "beautiful" new hotel, which couldn't open for business because the owner found it impossible to get the money to buy the needed furniture. Thus it lay for some time But when it did start on its career it continued for nearly half a century of real service. To many people of today, the Avellne will be remembered only as the scene of this city's greatest holocaust when on the early morning of Sunday, May 3 1908. It was destroyed by fire of unknown origin, claiming twelve men and women as its victims.

   The illustration shows the hotel as it looked originally as built by Frances Aveline during the year 1860, 1861 and 1862. For a period of forty-five years the Aveline was Fort Wayne's leading hotel. It stood on the site of the Shoaff building at the southwest corner of Calhoun and Berry streets.

   The Aveline hotel was built after three year of effort to secure financial support. Originally, it was a four story brick structure, the largest hotel in this region. D. J. Silver was the builder and contractor. In January, 1863, the hotel was finished, but the proprietor found himself embarrassed by conditions which are revealed in the comment of one of the newspapers of that day which observed that "this house, now finished remains unopened for want of means to furnish it. This being so, are there no moneyed men here to aid in the opening? The edifice is a credit to the city and without being opened is only a thing if beauty. The situation was relieved by the substantial assistance of public-spirited citizens and the hotel was opened with a grand banquet later in the year. One of the toasts of the evening bore the title, "Washington Hall (the first tavern) and the Aveline House-- the First Represented the Primitive Condition of the City, and Latter Our Present Growth and Prosperity."

   The Aveline entertained some of Americas most noted people during the near half-century of its existence.

   France Aveline was born in Vincennes, Indiana, in 1814, and came to Fort Wayne in 1820, with his parent Mr and Mrs. James Avellne. With Francis Comparet, he built the reservoir which today is known as Sylvan Lake, at Rome City, originally intended to serve as a storage reservoir for water to supply Fort Wayne-to-Lake Michigan canal. He was the contractor and builder of many of the larger pioneer buildings of Fort Wayne. His death in 1865 followed a period of intense grief over the loss of his son, Frank Aveline, who was killed in the Chattanooga campaign in the civil war.

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