Page House Hotel
181 Main Street, Hornell, New York | Unmarked Location
The New York State Woman Suffrage Association (NYSWSA) held its thirty-fifth annual convention in Hornellsville on Tuesday through Friday, October 20–23, 1903. Business meetings and executive committee meetings were held at the Page House, then one of Hornellsville's most elegant hotels.
Other venues utilized by the 1903 convention included Westminster Presbyterian Church, where all plenary sessions were conducted; and the Joseph B. Woodbury residence, where a gala reception was held.
The Building and Site. It is not known when the Page House was constructed, but by 1903 it was very well established as one of Hornellsville's foremost lodging places. The building was lost to fire on the morning of February 19, 1913, when workmen using torches ignited gas apparently leaking between floors of the hotel. The structure was almost immediately consumed by flames, but because all the guests had already left their sleeping rooms there was no loss of life. Later, the site was occupied by a Sears and Roebuck store. After its closing, the site was taken over by its current occupants, an independent furniture store and a furniture discount outlet.
Thanks to Collette Cornish, City of Hornell Historian, and Alice Taychert, Director, Hornell Public Library, for extraordinary research assistance.
Page House Hotel
Period photograph of the Page Hotel, then one of Hornellsville's most prestigious hostelries. Spoiler alert: There will be a fire. Photo courtesy of Collette Cornish, City of Hornell Historian.
View from the Page House
Presumably the nineteenth-century view looking east down Hornellsville's Main Street from the Page House. Image courtesy of Collette Cornish, City of Hornell Historian.
Page House Ad
Advertisement for Page's Hotel, as the Page House was once known, in a Hornellsville city directory. Image courtesy of Collette Cornish, City of Hornell Historian.
Page House Description
Promotional description of the Page House with lobby photo from a city directory of the time. Image courtesy of Collette Cornish, City of Hornell Historian.
1913 Fire
An apparent gas leak triggered a fast-spreading fire that destroyed the Page House in just a few hours on February 19, 1913. Photo courtesy of Collette Cornish, City of Hornell Historian.
1913 Fire Aftermath
Period newspaper photograph shows what remained after the fire that destroyed the Page House. Photo courtesy of Collette Cornish, City of Hornell Historian.
Page House Site Today
The Page House site was long occupied by a Sears and Roebuck store. Today it hosts two local furniture stores.
Associated Causes
Associated Historical Events
Thirty-Fifth NY State Suffrage Convention
October 20–23, 1903