Photographing the abandoned American Hotel

February 25, 2025

Fort Macleod in southern Alberta is great place for photography. The town's main street is one of the most beautiful in Alberta with several historic stone buildings jammed together in two long rows.

For Macleod is so fantastic that one of the films in the Ghost Busters franchise was recently filmed here. There was a great car chase ghost scene that caused havoc all over town.

But one of the most interesting buildings to photograph is the old, abandoned American Hotel on the edge of Fort MacLeod's downtown.

History of the American Hotel

It has been a challenge to find historical information on the American Hotel. According to the Alberta Heritage Survey Program database, the American Hotel originally opened in the 1890s as the Klondyke Hotel.

In 1900, the name was changed to the American Hotel and sold to one HH Wash. In 1901, Tom Atkins Purchased the hotel from HH Wash.

Later in 1913, WH Atkins constructed addition to the hotel which included 45 new rooms, an office, and a dining room. The hotel now stood at a full three stories. Some sites I have read state that the 1913 construction was actually a full replacement of the existing hotel building rather than an addition.

Regardless, the hotel suffered greatly during the prohibition area and it was eventually purchased by the Calgary Brewery.

The hotel and bar operated into the 1990s before closing down for good. It had a hard reputation during the years and was a place frequented by locals, white and indigenous alike. There was frequent trouble, like many frontier drinking holes.

I recently found a website of a local Alberta architect firm that included numerous renders of a fully renovated building. It looks like a local church may be working with downtown business and the province of Alberta to redevelop the location. It looks like the project is intended to provide commercial opportunities, as well as transitional housing on the upper floors.

Hopefully, the project brings this historical beauty back to life.

Photographing the American Hotel

I enjoy taking pictures of this old building. Fortunately, it still retains some of the details including the large painted signage on the brick on the top floors of each side of the building, as well as an old sign on the front. I am not sure when the sign on the front was added, but is from the neon sign era and so isn't that old.

As well, there isn't too much around the building - just empty lots and grass. As a result, its fairly easy to get several different angles of the building.

Given that there may be renovations in the near future, if you want to photograph the location in its derelict state it would be best to do that sooner than later.