A piece of Memphis history will come alive when the legendary Hotel Pontotoc opens to the public in mid-August.
The circa 1906 building at 69 East Pontotoc Avenue began life as a small hotel before becoming a bordello, then turning back into a hotel, before it eventually became a residence/recording studio.
It’s now back to its roots as a boutique hotel. Owners Joseph Lewis and Tony Kuhn spent the past three years renovating the building, which many Memphians probably remember as a mysterious heavily vine-covered building with the old neon sign reading “Hotel Pontotoc” on the front.
Owning the old hotel (they reversed the wording of the hotel’s name) was a shared dream for Lewis and Kuhn. Now, after extensive renovation, they’re ready to open the place. They’re also ready to open the bar, The Dame, which is on the hotel’s lower level.
Each of the 10 hotel rooms has a different theme.
The Pontotoc also features a patio with stately trees, as well as a lawn, both perfect for live entertainment.
Memorabilia from the old building include an iron bed, which now hangs above a stair landing; a beautifully-dilapidated old pump organ that resides in one of the bedrooms; and a vintage pinball machine mounted on a wall.
Legend has it that Elvis Presley supposedly lost his virginity at the Pontotoc, Lewis says. And the hotel is porportedly the bordello featured in the William Faulkner novel, The Reivers, and in the 1969 movie of the same name, which starred Steve McQueen.
