The Drake, a Hilton Hotel, 140 East Walton Place,[2] Chicago, Illinois, is a luxury, full-service hotel, located downtown on the lake side of Michigan Avenue two blocks north of the John Hancock Center and a block south of Oak Street Beach at the top of the Magnificent Mile. Overlooking Lake Michigan, it was founded in 1920, and soon became one of Chicago's landmark hotels and a longtime rival of the Palmer House.
It has 535 bedrooms (including 74 suites), a six-room Presidential Suite, several restaurants, two large ballrooms, the "Palm Court" (a club-like, secluded lobby, where afternoon tea is served), and Club International (a members-only club introduced in the 1940s). Designed in the Italian Renaissance style by the firm of Marshall and Fox, the hotel's silhouette and sign contribute to the Gold Coast skyline.
History
Second-generation hotel magnates Tracy Drake and John Drake Jnr. acquired the property from the estate of Potter Palmer in 1916.[3] The building was financed by a syndicate of family friends including members of the