About

Hotel Manning is a steamboat gothic hotel located on the Des Moines River in downtown Keosauqua, Iowa. Hotel Manning has a rich history beginning in 1899, and is listed on the National Historic Registry.

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Hotel Manning is proud to be 100% community-owned! In 2018, the community came together to buy the hotel and reestablish it as the iconic landmark of Keosauqua. The Hotel Manning Preservation Group welcomes you with true Midwestern hospitality to stay awhile, relax, and enjoy.

Our Roots

The Hotel Manning was constructed in the late 1890s by Edwin Manning. He was one of the founding fathers of Keosauqua, first arriving there in 1837 and later helping plat the town. Manning established a mercantile store in 1839, then expanded his business enterprise by adding a bank to the location in 1854. However two devastating fires in the mid-1890s forced Manning to move his business elsewhere in town. Urged by one of his sons, Manning salvaged the remaining post-fire walls and foundation for the basis of his hotel,[4] adding a second and third story to the structure between 1897 and 1899.

A grand-opening celebration for the Hotel Manning was held on April 27, 1899 with over 300 guests in attendance, and an orchestra.

Over the years the hotel’s location next to the Des Moines River proved to be both a blessing and a curse, as the river flooded the Manning on at least four occasions; the most significant of these was in 1901 when the hotel was inundated by seven feet of water. The year 1901 proved a double tragedy with the death of Edwin Manning. The Manning family continued to operate the hotel for another two decades until hard times in the rural farm economy in the mid-1920s forced the Manning bank into receivership and Hotel Manning sold with its other assets.

In the 1940s local restaurateur Mable Miller purchased the hotel and operated it for the next forty-plus years. Under Miller’s ownership Hotel Manning was operated largely as a boarding house. During the 1960s she expanded the business by adding a single-level annex. When Van Buren County’s economy became more tourism-based beginning in the 1970s, Miller secured the Hotel Manning a place on the National Register of Historic Places and also received a Federal grant to undertake a major restoration.

Read more on our Wikipedia page.

Our Future

Bringing the Hotel Manning back to its glory days of, Sunday Brunch, Mystery Murder Weekends, Village of Van Buren Bus Tours and even more is the goal of all involved.

Major restoration of the historic Hotel Manning is in the works as HMPG works to design bathrooms in every room, replacing the shared baths that occupy half of the rooms now.

Central air will be added throughout the building providing consistent climate control which will only ensure the longevity of the building.

Renovations to the Riverview Motel have begun, with fresh paint, new furniture and updated bathrooms. A new courtyard to tie the property together as well as remodeling of the Sample Room Lounge have been completed already.

The future is bright for the Hotel Manning!

Hotel Manning Preservation Group

The community of Keosauqua banded together to save the Hotel Manning. “The Hotel” had been for sale for over 10 years.

Although rooms were still being rented occasionally, the “Hotel” was in need of some major TLC. After courting several potential buyers and failing to close the deal, a small group of Keosauqua residents devised a plan to reach out to other Keosauquan’s to raise the funds to purchase the Hotel themselves.

The Hotel Manning Preservation Group, LLC (HMPG) was formed, with 71 individuals investing $5000 each to purchase and save the iconic Hotel Manning. A Board of Managers was elected, and the bill of sale was signed on April 2, 2018.

Awards and Recognitions

$100,000

Community Catalyst Building Remediation Award