Half Moon Bay in San Mateo County, California — The American West (Pacific Coastal)

Hotel El Granada

Photographed By Barry Swackhamer, March 1, 2017

1. Hotel El Granada Marker

Inscription. Hotel El Granada, a two-story stucco building in the Mission-style opened in 1908 with twenty guest rooms upstairs and a ballroom downstairs. The town's first commercial building and site of the first post office boasted of piped in water and a modern sanitary system. Rates were two dollars a day.

The developers of the Ocean Shore Railroad catered free lunches at the hotel to attract vacationing families and home site buyers to Granada. "Jewel of the Coast" lots sold for $250 to $1000. After the demise of the railroad in 1920, the hotel hit hard times.

During Prohibition years, the hotel gained notoriety as a speakeasy. In later years the hotel became a dormitory for a local girls camp. Fire destroyed the hotel El Granada May 25, 1954. The two nearby steps remain to mark its entrance.

Erected 2004 by Dirk Muyskens and Jim Gordon.

Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Entertainment • Industry & Commerce. A significant historical year for this entry is 1908.

Location. 37° 30.192′ N, 122° 28.3′ W. Marker is in Half Moon Bay, California, in San Mateo County. Marker is at the intersection of Avenue Balboa and Avenue Alhambra, on the right when traveling north on Avenue Balboa. Touch for map

Paid Advertisement

Click on the ad for more information.
Please report objectionable advertising to the Editor.

Click or scan to see
this page online

. Marker is at or near this postal address: 118 Avenue Balboa, El Granada CA 94018, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 4 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies. Ocean Shore R.R. and Granada (about 600 feet away, measured in a direct line); Granada's Burnham Plan (about 700 feet away); In Memorial to the Commercial Fisherman Lost at Sea (approx. 0.6 miles away); Miramar Beach Restaurant (approx. 0.7 miles away); The Moss Beach Distillery (approx. 2½ miles away); Bob Breen: Fitzgerald Marine Reserve's First Park Ranger (approx. 2.8 miles away); First Concrete Bridge Erected in San Mateo Co (approx. 3½ miles away); Zaballa House (approx. 3½ miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Half Moon Bay.

Photographed By Barry Swackhamer, March 1, 2017

2. Hotel El Granada Marker

The marker is to the right of then entrance walkway.

Credits. This page was last revised on March 2, 2017. It was originally submitted on March 2, 2017, by Barry Swackhamer of Brentwood, California. This page has been viewed 489 times since then and 21 times this year. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on March 2, 2017, by Barry Swackhamer of Brentwood, California.