Designed by Alonzo H. Gentry, the Robert E. Lee Hotel at 18th and Pine streets lies only a few blocks north of Union Station and represented a new type of lodging in St. Louis.

Opening in 1928, the Robert E. Lee was a simple, “no frills” style of hotel, and catered to businessmen who probably rushed to and from trains at the nearby terminal.

Obviously, the giant Salvation Army sign on the roof speaks to its later life as a women’s hotel, where single workers could have a safe place to live in the big city.

Described as Renaissance Revival, it is also a stripped form of Classical Revival, with elements one might see in Florentine civic buildings as well as this interesting simplified pilastered two story section below.

The first floor serves as a solid base, with lightly rusticated stone.