Caroline Valenta
July 4, Shamrock Hotel

July 4, Shamrock Hotel
July 4, Shamrock Hotel
July 4, Shamrock Hotel
CultureAmerican
Titles
  • July 4, Shamrock Hotel
DateJuly 4, 1949
MediumGelatin silver print
DimensionsImage: 10 9/16 × 11 15/16 in. (26.8 × 30.4 cm)
Sheet: 11 3/16 × 13 7/8 in. (28.4 × 35.3 cm)
Credit LineGift of Caroline Valenta's children
Object number2022.477.16
Non exposé

Explore Further

Department
Photography
Object Type
Description


Built southwest of downtown Houston, on the site of the present-day Texas Medical Center, the Shamrock Hotel was the largest hotel constructed during the 1940s in the United States. Its grand opening, held on St. Patrick’s Day in 1949, was one of the city’s largest and best-attended parties, attracting celebrity attendees and extensive media coverage. The hotel continued to host large-scale events to exuberant crowds of attendees, including this Independence Day celebration the same year. Parties at the Shamrock were “must-shoot” events for Valenta and other Houston photojournalists. The Shamrock was demolished in 1987.



ProvenanceThe artist, d. 2013; by descent to the children of the artist; given to MFAH, 2022.
Inscriptions, Signatures and Marks
Inscribed in pencil, verso, center: July 4 // Shamrock Hotel

Cataloguing data may change with further research.

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