In 1958, the Madonna Inn was founded by Alex Madonna and his wife Phyliss Madonna. The first twelve rooms were completed on December 24, 1958 and the hotel soon increased it’s capacity to forty rooms.
During one’s first visit, a person can easily see that the Madonna Inn is a Victorian style Inn that is exquisitely built from the inside and out.
Madonna was friends with William Randolph Hearst, the owner of the San Francisco Chronicle and other newspapers, whom built a castle in Wales, England and the Hearst Castle, on a hill, within the coast of San Simon, California.
William Randolph Hearst remodeled his castle in California several times, and as a result of his friendship with Phyllis, he gifted a marble stairwell and a statute that was removed from his castle after remodeling. Currently, this piece of Hearst Castle is used as a staircase in the Madonna Inn.
I got to meet Phyliss Madonna, who is currently 98 years old, to have her sign a copy of her book. In return I gifted her a picture I took of a horse statue in Oklahoma during my cross country trip earlier this year.
Hamilton Historical Records 