Bowman-Biltmore Hotels - Florida

Florida

• The 'Belleair Biltmore' in Belleair, Florida, first opened in 1897 as the Belleair Hotel, and was acquired by the Biltmore chain in 1920.

• The Coral Gables Biltmore Hotel opened in 1926, by Bowman and George Merrick, in Coral Gables, Florida is a National Historic Landmark. It served as a hospital during World War II and as a VA Hospital and campus of the University of Miami medical school until 1968. The African American population was not allowed admittance until the civil rights movement caused the hotel to change its practices in the 1960s. It became a hotel again in 1987 managed by Seaway Hotels Corporation.

President Obama stayed at the Biltmore prior to delivering a speech at the University of Miami.