Even before the 10-story Severs Hotel was completed in downtown Muskogee, it was witness to the town’s history. First was the sad passing of its visionary and builder Frederick Severs who died in 1912 just before the hotel was completed. This soldier, merchant and cattleman had dreamed of creating the finest hotel in the southwest and had been committed enough to the project to move his own grand house to make room for it.
By the time the hotel opened at the end of August 1912, its reputation for excellence and high style was already established. Though it welcomed all comers who could afford to stay amidst its fine furnishings, it quickly became “the” place to spend the night for politicians, entertainers, athletes and other famous visitors to northeastern Oklahoma.
These visitors included athletes such as Babe Ruth and his Yankees teammates who came for an exhibition game at Athletic Park. Entertainers Will Rogers and stage star Sarah Bernhardt also came. So did political leaders such as Vice President Charles Dawes and his successor Charles Curtis, First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt and President Harry Truman.
Film stars staying at the Severs included Douglas Fairbanks, Bette Davis and Burt Lancaster who portrayed Jim Thorpe during the filming of a movie about his life. The entire cast of "Jim Thorpe: All American" stayed at the Severs Hotel for several weeks while Muskogee served as the backdrop for the movie. Heroes such as Helen Keller and villains like Charles “Pretty Boy” Floyd also spent a night at the grand downtown hotel.
But the hotel didn’t serve just the rich and famous. It was the center of town life and all the history associated with it. During World War I, soldiers marched and drilled on the south lawn. When the Muskogee Rotary Club hosted a large convention in 1922, many Rotarians stayed in the hotel while the local Boy Scouts camped outside to act as messengers and provide assistance with luggage.
During World War II, the basement of the Severs was converted to an Officers’ Club for the many military leaders serving at Camp Gruber. Dances and USO functions were also held in the hotel’s ballroom on the second floor.
The ballroom hosted many social functions, not just for Muskogee but for the surrounding towns as well. High school proms, wedding receptions, social suppers, fundraising events all filled the hotel with music, dancing, laughter and conversation. Several civic organizations held their weekly meetings at the Severs as well.
By the late 1970s, the Severs was in decline just as the city was seeing a financial crisis due to the Penn Square Bank failure. The hotel was forced to close, but saw a rebirth 20 years later to rise out of its own “ashes” to become once again one of the finest buildings downtown.
Email Jonita Mullins at jonita.mullins@gmail.com.
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