Michael Bushnell
Publisher

The Westgate Hotel was constructed at the junction of 9th and Main and Delaware in 1916 at a cost of roughly $400,000. The “new” Westgate Hotel was billed as a moderately priced hostelry for “cattlemen, small town merchants and traveling men of limited income.”

The building replaced the old Vaughn’s Diamond originally erected on the site in 1869. Built of reinforced concrete and terra cotta, it was operated by Elmer Williams and his brother. Capitalizing on the Craftsman architectural style that was sweeping the nation at the time, the hotel boasted warm color tones and natural woodwork with little ornamentation. It also featured the Bungalow Coffee Shop off the lobby of the hotel.

Each of the 200 rooms featured a private bath and rates per day ranged from $1.50 to $2.00. The hotel operated under the Westgate banner for years until it was sold and the new owners re-named it the Hotel Kay.
In 1954 it was razed to accommodate a more modern traffic pattern. Today the statue “Muse of the Missouri” stands on the site surrounded by modern steel and glass office towers.