By Wendy Kilmer
Photography by Doug Hodel
1st Hilton Hotel. Or is it? Leased by Conrad Hilton in its early days, the now-Windsor was then named the Hilton, and some have claimed it was the first hotel to bear the iconic name. The Hilton Worldwide website, however, and Wikipedia entries about Hilton, list the Dallas Hilton Hotel, built in 1925, as the first to bear the name. At a minimum, however, the Abilene location was one of the first few properties as the Hilton legacy began. Hilton purchased his first hotel in Cisco, and then expanded to Dallas, Abilene and Waco. In the unfinished penthouse of the current building, a small portion of the name Hilton can still be seen on the exposed brick.
2nd Windsor Hotel. Two blocks south of the current Windsor, the first Abilene Windsor Hotel was built in 1890, named with a nod to the Grand Windsor Hotel in Dallas. In 1927, it was renamed the Palm Hotel.
3rd tallest building in Abilene. The Enterprise Building and the Wooten are the first and second, respectively.
7 commercial spaces. Some of the current tenants include Truly Blessed Barber, Cedar Break Gallery of Fine Arts, The Flour Shop, and World Financial Group.
8 weddings. In 2015, 8 couples said their “I do”s at the Windsor, likely attracted by the historic grand ballroom space.
10 stories high. The first floor includes a lobby and retail and commercial spaces; the second floor has offices, community space and the famous grand ballroom; floors 3-10 each contain 10 apartments.
24 years since renovation. In 1992, the abandoned Windsor building was purchased and renovated by the National Development Council, which still owns the property today.
50 percent senior tenants. Until last year, the Windsor was a senior-only retirement community. In January of 2015, however, it expanded to include all ages, and now about 50 percent of tenants are families, college students, in the military or other non-senior groups.
80 apartment units. The apartments include efficiencies, studios, one-bedroom and two-bedroom sizes, ranging from 413-868 square feet.
89 years old. The current Windsor building was built in 1927 by the Abilene Hotel Company.
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