Completed in 1924, the hotel was built for and named after Mary Walker, the heir to the Joliet Sash and Door Co., a door, sash, and lumber company. When it opened, the Walker Hotel became one of the most fashionable addresses in the city. Politicians, such as State Senator Richard Barr, maintained a city apartment here. At the same time, Joliet’s elite sold their larger single-family residences in the city and relocated to the hotel as apartments became more popular during the 1920s. It also housed many of the artists who came to Joliet to perform at the Rialto Theatre. The hotel offered many in-house amenities, including a full banquet hall on the lower level, a coffee shop and barbershop on the main level, and a penthouse club room. It was also the first major building in Joliet to be completely wired for radio. Mary sold the hotel during the Great Depression, at which time it became the West Pines Hotel, as evidenced by city directories and Sanborn Fire Insurance Maps, which continued through at least 1968. Locally, the hotel is also known as the Joliet Motor Hotel; however, the dates of this establishment's operation could not be verified. Today, the former hotel serves as rental apartments in Joliet's historic St. John's Neighborhood.

 

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