Tobacco baron Lewis Ginter planned the development of the hotel as a premier property in the city of Richmond, capital of the state. It was designed in the Spanish Baroque Style by Carrère and Hastings, noted national architects based in New York, who later designed the New York Public Library. Construction began in 1892 and the hotel opened for business on October 31, 1895. After a fire gutted the interior of the hotel in 1901, it had a lengthy restoration. It reopened in 1907. It has received restorations and upgrades of systems through the years.