Clinton House

Multi-Family Construction: ; 

Roof of Main Structure: Non-combustible; 

Additional Sections: 

Section 1, right (N), 3 stories, non-combustible roof, frame cornice, exterior stair / 

Section 2, left (S), 3 stories, non-combustible roof, frame cornice / 

Section 3, back of Section 2, (W), 3 stories, non-combustible roof / 

Section 4, back (W), 3 stories, non-combustible roof, "Dining Rm" (room) / 

Section 5, back of Section 4 (W), 2 stories, non-combustible roof, "Kitchen" / 

Section 6, left of Section 5 (S), 2 stories, composition roof, wood frame, "Kitchen" / 

Section 7, left of Section 4 (S), 3 stories, non-combustible roof, wood frame / 

Section 8, triangle in corner of Section 6 and Section 7 (SE), 1 story, "Ir. Cl." (iron clad), no roof detail, exterior stair; 

Porches: Porch 1, front of Main Structure, 3 stories, non-combustible roof, wood frame, frame cornice / Porch 2, right of Section 5, 1 story, composition roof, wood frame; 

Outbuildings: ; 

Other: Main Structure is at #118 N Cayuga St with interior elevator and horizontal bricked steam boiler / 

CD lists #116-#118 N Cayuga St as The Clinton House / Sanborn 1910 has #116 N Cayuga, #118 N Cayuga, #120 N Cayuga for the Full Structure;

116-120 North Cayuga St. Historic name: Clinton House (NR listed August 12, 1971)

"Three-story, thirteen-bay, Greek Revival brick and stucco building with low hipped roof and full-height, projecting two-story gabled center porch with an Ionic colonnade of six massive columns spanning the center five bays of the facade and supporting a pediment with an inset Palladian window; second- and third-story balconies with balustrades set into the colonnade; upper stories retain square-headed windows with molded window hoods and historic one-over-one sash replacing earlier multi-light sash (c.1901); scrolled brackets with acanthus leaves line the cornice and pediment; parapet composed of balustrade and piers at roofline; raised basement with street access via stairways at comers of building. The central grand entrance has a wide crown entablature supported by Ionic columns; second- and third-story balcony doors have denticulated crown pediments, transoms, sidelights, and fluted Ionic columns; secondary street-level entrances have arched transom windows and hood moldings. Built 1828. 

Architect: Ira Tillotson 

Historical note: Proclaimed “the finest hotel west of the Hudson” when it opened, the Clinton House was a grand, luxury hotel at a time when Ithaca had a population of less than 4,000. Named for DeWitt Clinton, governor of New York, the hotel was the hub of Ithaca’s social and intellectual life. Simeon Dewitt lived and died in its rooms. Frances Perkins breakfasted here every Sunday. Guests have included presidents of the United States, notable westward expansionists, and movie stars from the pre-Hollywood film industry. The Ithaca Gas and Light Company, now part of New York State Electric and Gas Company, signed its articles of incorporation in a room in the Clinton House. The Clinton House was Ithaca’s first professional building, housing medical and law offices from its earliest days. It was remodeled with a mansard roof designed by architect William H. Miller in 1872. Fire in 1901 destroyed the roof and the upper story, and architect Clinton L. Vivian designed the “remodel” to resemble the original appearance of the Clinton House. By the 1960s, the Clinton House was scheduled to be razed, but grassroots efforts saved the building, and it was restored in 1972. A new stair and elevator additions were constructed on the West Seneca Street side of the building."

National Register of Historic Places Registration Form for Ithaca Downtown Historic District, December 18, 2004

"The Clinton House (1829) is downtown Ithaca’s most important landmark. Built in partnership by Henry Ackley, Jeremiah Beebe, and Henry Hibbard, the Clinton House was an ambitious project for its time, heralded in 1832 by one regional newspaper, The Casket, as “a hotel of superior order and of the first class… equaled by few and surpassed by none in the State.” The Clinton House, with hits 151 rooms and 96-foot long dining room, was designed in the Greek Revival style, possibly by local architect Ira Tillotson. Six massive columns, whose cores are mammoth oak trees covered by brick and stucco, support a projecting full pediment on a 52-foot portico. After a fire in 1901, the Clinton House was rebuilt in a design by Clinton L. Vivian, using many Colonial Revival details such as the Palladian window in the pediment. When the hotel closed in 1972, it was purchased and renovated by Historic Ithaca and Tompkins County." 

Historic Ithaca, DeWitt Park Historic District and Downtown Ithaca: An Architectural Walking Tour, 18. http://www.historicithaca.org