Formerly: Commercial Hotel
New Orleans, Louisiana · Founded 1886 · Building: Commercial Hotel acquired 1886; present complex developed through later additions
A French Quarter hotel built from an 1886 Commercial Hotel purchase and still owned and operated by the Monteleone family.
Antonio Monteleone, a Sicilian immigrant and cobbler, purchased the 64-room Commercial Hotel at Royal and Iberville Streets in 1886. His family expanded the property into Hotel Monteleone, which remains family-owned and operated after five generations. The hotel is especially known for the Carousel Bar, its literary associations, and its Friends of Libraries U.S.A. Literary Landmark recognition.
Antonio Monteleone purchases the 64-room Commercial Hotel at the corner of Royal and Iberville Streets.
Source: Hotel Monteleone, "Our Story"; New Orleans Historical, "The Monteleone's Literary Legacy"
The Monteleone family begins expanding the former Commercial Hotel into the larger Hotel Monteleone complex.
Source: Hotel Monteleone, "Our Story"
The Carousel Bar opens at Hotel Monteleone and becomes a lasting part of the hotel's identity.
Source: Historic Hotels of America, Hotel Monteleone historical material
Friends of Libraries U.S.A. designates Hotel Monteleone a Literary Landmark in recognition of its place in American literary history.
Source: New Orleans Historical, "The Monteleone's Literary Legacy"; Ghost City Tours, Hotel Monteleone history
Hotel Monteleone continues operating as a family-owned hotel under the fifth generation of the Monteleone family.
Source: Hotel Monteleone, "Our Story"; Historic Hotels of America, Hotel Monteleone profile
Every claim gets rated. A business's own website can never earn "documented."
The hotel's official history states that it has remained family-owned since Antonio Monteleone bought the property in 1886. Historic Hotels of America describes the hotel as operated by five generations of the Monteleone family.
Capote frequently joked that he had been born at Hotel Monteleone, but credible accounts identify the statement as a story he told rather than established fact. This audit did not independently review his birth certificate or hospital records, so it does not add unsupported details about the actual delivery location.
New Orleans Historical identifies the hotel as a Friends of Libraries U.S.A. Literary Landmark, awarded in 1998. The recognition reflects the hotel's association with writers including William Faulkner, Tennessee Williams, Truman Capote, Ernest Hemingway, Eudora Welty, and others.
The hotel is strongly associated with all three writers, and secondary sources say it appears in American fiction. This audit did not verify the candidate's titles or locate authoritative text citations showing that each writer named the hotel in a specific work; those bibliographic claims should not be published as fact.
The Maurice Begere story is part of modern ghost-tour lore and is repeatedly associated with the hotel’s 14th floor. The reviewed sources do not establish that the child existed, died at the hotel, or is responsible for reported experiences; the claim remains unverified folklore.
Historic Hotels of America identifies the Carousel Bar as a revolving hotel bar operating since 1949. The reviewed source describes its rotation as occurring about every 15 minutes; this audit did not verify the candidate's 25-seat count, named designer, or motor history.
Everything below has been reported by two or more independent sources — this is an informational record of what's said about this place, not a verified account of paranormal activity. Still Open America doesn't certify hauntings as real.
The hotel's best-known legend concerns Maurice Begere, a young boy said to have died while his family was staying at the hotel in the late nineteenth century. Guests report seeing a child near the former room associated with the story, hearing childish laughter, or seeing him walk through the 14th-floor hallway, which is physically the building's 13th floor.
The reviewed sources did not establish Maurice Begere's existence, the claimed death, or the details of the family's stay through independent historical records.
Guests and staff describe elevators stopping on the 14th floor or traveling to the wrong floor without an apparent selection. Retellings often connect the activity to the child-ghost lore on the hotel floor numbered 14.
Hotel lore describes restaurant or lobby doors swinging open and shut even after staff have locked them. Accounts commonly place the recurring activity during the evening, after normal restaurant service.
Apart from the named Maurice legend, guests and staff report childlike shadows, sounds of children playing, and laughter in hotel corridors and rooms. Some versions describe children moving through guest rooms or appearing briefly at the end of a hallway.
A male spirit called William 'Red' Wildemere, generally described as a former hotel engineer or employee, is said to roam the halls and other hotel spaces. The story appears alongside reports of former workers making their presence known to current staff.
The reviewed sources did not independently confirm a Hotel Monteleone employee or engineer named William 'Red' Wildemere or establish that he died at the hotel.
Truman Capote was delivered in a Hotel Monteleone guest room.
Capote's hotel birth was a story he often told, but credible accounts do not establish it as fact. This audit did not verify primary birth or hospital records, so it does not substitute a precise delivery location without documentary review.
Source: Atlanta Magazine, "Hotel Spotlight: Hotel Monteleone in New Orleans," November 23, 2020; Historic Hotels of America, "History of Hotel Monteleone"
Hotel Monteleone's Literary Landmark designation came from the American Library Association.
The hotel was designated a Literary Landmark by Friends of Libraries U.S.A. in 1998.
Source: New Orleans Historical, "The Monteleone's Literary Legacy"
The Maurice Begere story proves a child died at Hotel Monteleone and haunts the 14th floor.
Maurice Begere is part of present-day ghost-tour lore. This audit found no reliable historical record establishing the alleged death or a paranormal cause for reported experiences.
Source: US Ghost Adventures, "Haunts at New Orleans' Hotel Monteleone"; Ghost City Tours, "The Ghosts of Haunted Hotel Monteleone"
Hotel Monteleone has endured by remaining a family-run hotel while adapting its physical plant and public identity to changing French Quarter tourism. The Monteleone family expanded the former Commercial Hotel over generations instead of replacing the business with a national chain. The Carousel Bar, literary heritage, and location on Royal Street give the hotel distinct reasons to remain commercially relevant, while family ownership has preserved its independent identity.
No reliable evidence establishes that Truman Capote was born inside Hotel Monteleone. Capote often joked that he was born there, and the claim became part of the hotel's literary lore, but credible accounts describe it as a story rather than a documented fact.
The Carousel Bar opened in 1949. Historic Hotels of America describes it as a revolving bar that turns about once every 15 minutes, though this audit did not independently verify its original motor, seat count, or every renovation in its history.
Hotel Monteleone remains family-owned and operated by the Monteleone family. The hotel and Historic Hotels of America describe its stewardship as extending across five generations since Antonio Monteleone purchased the former Commercial Hotel in 1886.
Yes. Friends of Libraries U.S.A. designated Hotel Monteleone a Literary Landmark in 1998. The recognition reflects the hotel’s association with generations of writers, including William Faulkner, Tennessee Williams, Truman Capote, Ernest Hemingway, and Eudora Welty.
214 Royal Street, New Orleans, LA 70130
(504) 523-3341
Check the hotel directly for current Carousel Bar seating, lobby, dining, event, and guest-access policies.