To spot the Plaza Hotel, look up for a tall, brown-brick Art Deco skyscraper towering above the corner of Mills Avenue with the word “PLAZA” shining bright near the green-tiled rooftop.
Now, let’s set the scene-imagine the year is 1929, and you’re standing in the middle of a dusty, bustling El Paso. Right where this skyscraper rises, the famous Sheldon Hotel had just burned down, leaving behind nothing but ashes and wild stories of revolutionaries plotting inside its walls. That’s right, this was once the unofficial headquarters for both sides of the Mexican Revolution! Talk about hot historical gossip, huh?
Suddenly, a man named Conrad Hilton-yes, that Hilton-swoops in, bursting with ambition. Just nineteen days after construction began, the stock market crashed and the Great Depression hit. But did that stop Hilton? Not a chance. Against all odds, the hotel shot up, a sparkling Art Deco beacon faced with brown brick and crowned with a dramatic pyramidal roof-like a cake topper for the city.
By the time it opened in 1930, it was the tallest building in El Paso. Conrad Hilton himself lived here for years, and his mother too. In a twist straight out of Hollywood, Elizabeth Taylor, married to Hilton’s son Nicky at the time, called the penthouse home while filming the classic movie Giant. Imagine running into her in the hallway!
Over the years, the hotel saw parties, secrets, changing hands, and finally closed its doors in 1991. But in true El Paso spirit, it wasn’t down for good. After a splashy $78 million renovation, the Plaza reopened in 2020, keeping its original elegance-brown brick, grand setbacks, and all. So as you look up at those nineteen stories, know you’re gazing at a survivor with style, stories, and a dash of movie-star sparkle.
