Riverview Hotel

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Riverview Hotel

The Riverview Hotel was constructed in 1916 by a corporation that included Mrs. Katherine Wadley as the principal owner, George Brandon, Jr., J-R- Bachlotte, and F. M. Hawkins. J. H. Banks was the contractor. The hotel opened for business in October, 1916. The second floor contained 21 guest rooms while the first floor contained shops, a dining room and living quarters for the manager (SE Georgian, 9 June 1916 and 8 December 1916).

In 1931, Miss Sally Brandon purchased the hotel from the original owners. Among the notables visiting Riverview Hotel have been Georgia's Governor Dorsey, Florida author Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings, Cartoonist Roy Crane and Admiral Chester Nimitz. (Various news clippings). Ms. Brandon managed the hotel for a number of years and later her nephew Ben Brandon, operated it until it shut down in the late fifties for lack of business. The guest list dwindled as visitors preferred the more modern hotels in Kingsland and Jacksonville. During its first 40 years of operation, the Riverview was a popular social spot in St. Marys, featuring an excellent dining room and Saturday night dances (Camden County Tribune, 3 November 1950).

In January, 1976, Dr. Richard Brandon, Sally Brandon's great nephew, began extensive renovations of the hotel. Interior was gutted, wiring and plumbing reworked. Room arrangement altered to provide private baths and air-conditioning. (Ga.Trust Nomination form). The inside was completely re-done, and the outside porch was replaced. The hotel re-opened on March 1, 1977, and the restaurant re-opened the following year.

[All historical information is from the “1985 Historical Buildings Survey of Saint Marys, Georgia” by Eloise Bailey and Bruce Powell, July 1985]

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