The Coast's Crown Jewel

"The whole place is pervaded with an atmosphere that is at once informal and homelike, and yet the very fine service marks it as a hotel of unusual taste." - from a 1927 report in Biloxi's Daily Herald

By the booming tourism era of the 1920’s, Cora White’s charming Victorian boarding houses had collectively evolved into the crown jewel of Gulf Coast hotels. As fresh-cut flowers from the Hotel’s own hothouse graced the dining room tables, the White House chef could rely on "home raised vegetables and home raised, milk fed chickens," supplied by a farm and poultry yard located on the back of the Hotel grounds. Mrs. White’s promotional brochure also proudly noted, "all the milk furnished is from the White House herd of Jersey cows, whose maintenance is carefully supervised by the management."

Sons Walter and John joined their mother in running the family business, and together they oversaw two significant expansions that would transform the White House Hotel from an eclectic row of Gulf-front residences into the grand white stucco structure that still endures today.

Under the supervision of prominent architect George B. Rogers, who also designed Alabama’s famous Bellingrath Gardens house, two large Spanish Colonial annexes were built in 1927 and 1929. These additions, which featured a private tiled bath for every guest room, now form the Center and East Wings of today’s imposing White House Hotel.