Cozzens House Hotel

Cozzens House Hotel
Cozzens House Hotel
General information
Town or city	Omaha, Nebraska
Country	United States
Construction started	1867
Completed	1867
Demolished	1902
Cost	$60,000
Client	Credit Foncier

The Cozzens House Hotel, later known as the Canfield House, was a pioneer hotel located at 9th & Harney Streets in downtown Omaha, Nebraska. Constructed in by Union Pacific promoter George Francis Train, the 120-room hotel cost $60,000 to build in 1867. The hotel was widely regarded as the finest hotel between Chicago, Illinois and San Francisco, California when it was constructed.

In May 1867 Train was at the Herndon House in Omaha when a windstorm hit the building. Train requested an African American steward in the hotel to stand with his back to the window he was sitting by, fearing the wind would blow it in and expecting the steward to block the glass with his own body. The hotel steward objected, and Train became angry and declared he would build a better hotel within 60 days. The Cozzens House Hotel, which was called the "Aladdin's Castle of George Francis Train", was his response.

That same day Train bought the lot across the street from the Herndon House and secured a builder for the facility. Asking the builder how much it would cost to make a three-story, 120 room establishment, the builder replied $1,000 a day. Train said, "Show me you are worth it. I will be back to Omaha in 60 days and expect to sleep in the building." The building was finished upon his return. The building was a three-story frame structure in the shape of a T, the front part being 132 feet (40 m) long by 32 feet (9.8 m) wide, and the rear extension is 100 feet (30 m) long and 50 feet (15 m) wide.

Train, whose financing operation called Credit Foncier owned the building, leased it to the Cozzens Hotel of West Point, New York for $10,000 a year. They kept it for just a year, when they became involved in a lawsuit with the Omaha National Bank that eventually led to their departure.