The building was originally built and owned by an Ottoman Pasha Rabbah Daoud Amin Effendi al-Husseini, who lived there with his harem of four wives.

In 1895, the building was sold to a Christian group who arrived in Jerusalem in 1881 to set up a commune.

[3] Today the American Colony Hotel calls itself an oasis of neutrality in the Palestinian–Israeli conflict.

[2] Its famous guests include Jack Greenberg, Leon Uris, Lawrence of Arabia, Christiane Amanpour, Winston Churchill,[8] Bob Dylan, Tony Blair, Philip Roth, Eric Frattini, and John le Carré.

[2] In 1987, Michael Winner filmed much of the 1930s-set Agatha Christie mystery Appointment With Death at the hotel.