Donna Montran stayed at the Owyhee Hotel in Boise, Idaho December 4-8, 1919.

 Don Taylor

Sometimes I just come across cool things.  Recently I found an article on Chronicling America that spoke of “Hotel Arrivals” in Boise, ID, Dec 5, 1919. I have long known that Donna and the cast of “Chin Chin” were in Boise for four days, from the 4^th to the 7^th performing at the Pinney Theatre. This article might be the first time I’ve known exactly where Donna stayed during her many nights on the road – the Owyhee Hotel.  The Owyhee is still standing; no longer a hotel, it was completely renovated and made into luxury apartments with office space – Hwyhee Place.

The other thing the article does, which is really cool, is that it tells where many of the cast are from. Of course, I knew that Donna hailed from New York at that time, but not Ethel Lawrence. If I decide to follow some of Donna’s fellow performers, a listing of names and their hometowns, or 1919 residences could be invaluable.  Also, if I can find another such list I might be able to determine much of the cast’s names.  A great find; I will definitely look for Hotel Arrivals in other newspapers in the future.

Owyhee Hotel c. 1914.

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Sources

Library of Congress – Chronicling America: Historic American Newspapers, 1836-1922 – Evening Capital News – (Boise, ID) December 5, 1919, Page 6.