Historic Grand Hotels on the Mississippi Gulf Coast

In 1870, the Louisville and Nashville Railroad was constructed through the southernmost section of Harrison County, Mississippi, connecting New Orleans, Louisiana, and Mobile, Alabama.

[2] These railroads provided an inexpensive means for moving passengers as well as goods, and opened south Mississippi to both industrial and recreational development.

[3] Rapidly progressing lumber and seafood industries transformed the Mississippi Gulf Coast in the 1920s, and people arrived from throughout the United States to take advantage of the economic boom.

[3] Northern tourists were attracted to the Mississippi Gulf Coast because of mild winters and cool sea breezes in summer, before the introduction of air conditioning.

Besides the weather, other tourist attractions included seafood restaurants, swimming, golf, schooner races, sailing to offshore islands, and recreational fishing.

During this period of economic expansion, grand hotels were constructed along the Mississippi Gulf Coast to accommodate businessmen, tourists, and transient workers.

James Love, Jr., owner of Biloxi's Buena Vista Hotel, acquired the White House property in 1940, modernized the buildings, and added a swimming pool.

In 1989, the son of James Love bought the hotel with plans to return it to its former glory, but did not begin restoration until 10 years after he acquired the property.

Renovation efforts stopped when financing fell through after the 2001 terrorist attacks on the U.S. and subsequently by devastation to the Mississippi Gulf Coast from Hurricane Katrina, and harsh economic times from the Great Recession.

In May 2012, the hotel was added to Biloxi's list of blighted properties, and the owner was given the choice of demolishing the structure, renovating it to meet city codes, or selling it to a developer.

With the construction of motel chains and the Interstate Highway System in the 1960s, business began to decline at the Buena Vista because tourists had more lodging options throughout the Gulf Coast.

The death blow came in 1969 when Hurricane Camille blew out windows and its tidal surge flooded the hotel lobby and ground floor.

In 2013, the Governor of Mississippi and Biloxi city officials announced plans for a minor league baseball park to be built on the site of the former Buena Vista Hotel.

In the formal dining room, guests ate on fine china atop heavy linen tablecloths with a view of the Gulf waters.

The hotel complex was situated on 600 acres (243 hectares) that included gardens, a golf course, tennis courts, and a glass-enclosed swimming pool.

[18] In 1953, the Oblates of Mary Immaculate Religious Order purchased the property and operated a seminary until 1968; in 1969, Hurricane Camille caused significant damage to the hotel structure.