The Meredith Hotel (or Meredith House) at 122 E. Main Street in Washington, Indiana, occupied the northwest corner of Main and East 2nd Street.  The majestic, Italianate-style, three-story brick structure was built circa 1880 by William S. Meredith (1818-1895) and was considered one of the finest hotels in southwest Indiana.

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          In the early 20th century, the Meredith Hotel’s restaurant offered a varied cuisine.  A 1906 menu listed main courses of Boiled Ox Tongue, Baked Young Chicken, Scrambled Calves Brains or Roast Prime Beef, au Jus.

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          When William S. Meredith died, the hotel was inherited by his only child, William R. “Billy” Meredith (1843-1926).  Billy Meredith never married and had no children.  He was an astute real estate investor and was reportedly, at one time, the largest single landowner in Daviess County.  In his later years, Billy Meredith moved into the Meredith Hotel, where he had his office and resided.  His 1926 funeral was held in the hotel’s lobby.

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          Billy Meredith left an estate of $1.25 million—equivalent of $22 million in 2024—including the Meredith Hotel, other real estate holdings, and government bonds.  In his 1912 will, he left the bulk of his wealth to “my first cousins and my second cousins living at the time of my death” with the first cousins to receive “twice the amount” as the second cousins.  Billy Meredith failed to name his cousins and years of litigation followed to determine who was entitled to his estate.  The estate was finally closed in 1937.

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          After 1937 the hotel was owned by different individuals or business entities.  The hotel continued to rent guest rooms on the upper floors into the early 1980s, but its status gradually declined. In the mid-1980s it ceased operating as a hotel and just the ground floor lobby was occasionally leased to businesses.  One of the last organizations to do so was the Daviess County Republican Party that used the lobby as its headquarters before the 2004 election.

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          After 2004 the former hotel was abandoned and fell into disrepair.  Squatters and teenagers frequently broke into the vacant building that was littered with debris.  In the early morning of July 10, 2007 a fire was started on one of the upper floors and quickly spread.  It took the Washington Fire Department several hours to bring the blaze under control.  The city demolished the building shortly thereafter.

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          The Meredith Plaza Park now occupies the former site of the Meredith Hotel.  It is a beautiful open area with a gazebo, water fountain, picnic tables and is landscaped with small trees and flowers.