[3] During the early 20th century, before automobile use became popular, a stagecoach line, co-owned by Seagraves, was headquartered at the location of the present-day hotel.

The partnership, which also included Allentown National Bank cashier Frank Cressman, was the agent for the Hudson Motor Car Co. in eastern Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and Delaware.

With a buff-colored brick, curved Romanesque arches and romantic and superfluous balconies, it was emblematic of the nation's Coolidge-era passion for the exotic world of old Spain.

But Gomery persisted, supervising every detail, including the commission of Philadelphia artist George Harding to create the large murals for the hotel.

Hanging on one wall, The Morning Call reported at the time, was a painting of a Spanish dancing girl that depicted "the life of entertainment."

The kitchen staff of 22 was overseen by Swiss chef Werner Kloetzli, "formerly of the Palmer House, Chicago," and maitre d'hotel Frederick Botta, who "assured a cuisine that is second to none in the country," according to the newspaper's reporter, who wrote that, upon entering the building, one felt a "changed atmosphere" that created "an air of refinement, just a little bit different, that persists on intruding itself as the splendor of the surroundings unfolds."

Newspaper accounts also described the highly polished walnut furniture, travertine marble floors, colorful Harding murals, and polychrome chandeliers, which created a mood in which one could "visualize the glories of old Spain.

Celebrities and notable people who visited Allentown often stayed at the Americus, and it was common for the hotel to hold various receptions, balls, and high school graduation proms in its ballroom.

Added to the National Register of Historic Places on August 23, 1984,[1] its owners, the Moffa family, signed an agreement with developers to sell the hotel for $2 million, which included tax credits for restoring the building's original character.

Former Allentown Mayor Joseph Daddona at that time called the deal "the most exciting thing in this part of town in many years.

No other potential owners stepped forward to bid on the property and assume responsibility for the hotel's debt, however, leaving Mendelson in charge.

During this time, the Americus became part of the Clarion Hotels chain in 1995 but continued to spiral downward with broken elevators, leaky plumbing, and accumulating garbage.

In August 2002, after a series of fires, broken pipes, and elevator failures, the city of Allentown revoked the occupation permit of the hotel entirely, and its residents were forced to vacate the property.

Unpaid assessments to the Downtown Improvement District Authority increased to $21,744, back taxes and fines climbed to roughly $37,000, and a water and sewer bill reached nearly $145,000 before Allentown officials finally targeted the property for sheriff's sale.

In 2009, Mendleson filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy and the city of Allentown assumed ownership due to the $600,000 tax lien it held on the property.

[7] The project received a tentative go-ahead in February of that year with $13.2 million in NIZ tax revenues to include eighty-five hotel rooms, forty-eight apartments, ten retail storefronts, commercial office space, a street-level sports bar, and restaurants.