Montezuma Castle

Established in 1885, Montezuma Castle is a 90,000-square-foot, 400 room Queen Anne style hotel building erected just northwest of the city of Las Vegas, New Mexico. The current building is actually the third on the site, the first two were the first buildings in New Mexico to have electric lighting, and they both burned down. A hot springs pool is located on the property. Guests included Theodore Roosevelt, Ulysses S. Grant, William Tecumseh Sherman, Jesse James, and Emperor Hirohito of Japan. After closing in 1903, the property was owned by several institutions including the YMCA, the Southern Baptist Church, and the Catholic Church. In 1981, the complex (100 acres) was purchased by the United World College, and in 2001 the school invested over $10.5 million in upgrades. Now Montezuma Castle (or the Davis International Center as it’s know today) houses multiple college facilities including the school’s dinning hall, dorm rooms, offices and classrooms.