FORT SMITH, Ark. — A historic hotel in Fort Smith has just sold for over $750,000 after going up for auction earlier this year.
The old Ward Hotel building, on the corner of 6th and Garrison in Fort Smith, was built by the Ward family in the 1920s. Now, it houses a few offices and apartments.
The 72,000+ square foot hotel building went up for auction with a starting bid of $150,000.
The building is currently listed on the United States National Register of Historic Buildings.
Cameron Maxey with Bracket Real Estate, a Dallas-based brokerage firm, said that the final sale price was $775,000. A total of 12 buyers from all over the country competed for the property.
According to the Arkansas Department of Heritage, the Ward Hotel cost $600,000 to build and furnish in 1929. It originally had 165 rooms, a coffee shop, a barber shop, and a ballroom. It was designed by Marcel Boulicault of St. Louis and Haralson and Nelson of Fort Smith.
The hotel later expanded to 200 rooms with connecting bathrooms.
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