David Wilson who was popularly called Dainty Davie, a confectionery shop owner in Cossitola (presently Bentinck Street), built this hotel in Old Court House Street. The Great Eastern Hotel was originally called "Auckland Hotel" after Lord Auckland (1784-1849), the Governor General during that period. However, among the local people, this hotel was popular as Wilson's Hotel.
In 1865, the owner of this hotel floated it as a company named the Great Eastern Hotel Wine and General Purveying Company. This name existed till 1915. Afterwards, it was renamed as Great Eastern Hotel Company Limited. This hotel has played host to many famous people like Ho Chi Minh (famous Vietnamese leader) in 1948, Nikolai Bulganin and Nikita Khrushchev (Russian leaders) in 1950 and the retinue of Queen Elizabeth II in 1961. The Great Eastern Hotel of Kolkata finds a mention in a short story "City of Dreadful Night" written by the famous author Rudyard Kipling.
At present, this hotel is undergoing renovations. It would be re-commissioned as the Grand Great Eastern by the later part of 2008.  |
