Qualla: Hotel Congress https://qualla.com/hotel-congress en-us © 2026 Bendyline Mon, 20 Jul 2026 10:21:03 GMT Qualla serial false Qualla support@bendyline.com yes https://qualla.com/_m/9/t/9/p/hotel-congress-wp/hero-small.webp Qualla: Hotel Congress https://qualla.com/hotel-congress Hotel Congress: Introduction https://qualla.com/hotel-congress/ Photo credit Jengod, CC BY-SA 4.0. The fire started in the basement on January 22, 1934, and climbed to the third floor where a group of men stayed under assumed names. When firemen rescued their heavy luggage, they recognized faces from wanted posters. Within days, John Dillinger and his gang were in custody, undone by a hotel fire and the weight of their own stolen cash. The Hotel Congress had been open barely fifteen years, designed by Los Angeles architects William and Alexander Curlett as part of a Congress Street expansion. A naming competition in the Arizona Daily Star had christened it. A gangster's bad luck would make it famous.

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Image: Jengod | CC BY-SA 4.0

]]> Wed, 04 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://qualla.com/_m/9/t/9/p/hotel-congress-wp/9t9p-hotel-congress-intro.mp3 0:06 1 full Hotel Congress: A Name Won by Contest https://qualla.com/hotel-congress/ Photo credit Paul Sableman, CC BY 2.0. The Arizona Daily Star announced the competition in 1918. Tucson needed a name for its new hotel, rising alongside the Rialto Theatre on Congress Street, its rear facing the Southern Pacific train station built in 1907. Dorit Dinkel won with the obvious choice: The Congress Hotel...

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Image: Paul Sableman | CC BY 2.0

]]> Wed, 04 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://qualla.com/_m/9/t/9/p/hotel-congress-wp/9t9p-hotel-congress-a-name-won-by-contest.mp3 0:06 2 full Hotel Congress: The Dillinger Capture https://qualla.com/hotel-congress/ Photo credit Gillfoto, CC BY-SA 4.0. After robbing banks across the Midwest, the Dillinger Gang arrived in Tucson seeking anonymity. They took rooms on the third floor under aliases. Then the basement caught fire. The desk clerk reached them through the switchboard. They escaped down aerial ladders. In their panic, ...

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Image: Gillfoto | CC BY-SA 4.0

]]> Wed, 04 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://qualla.com/_m/9/t/9/p/hotel-congress-wp/9t9p-hotel-congress-the-dillinger-capture.mp3 0:06 3 full Hotel Congress: The Music Never Stopped https://qualla.com/hotel-congress/ Photo credit Marine 69-71, CC BY-SA 4.0. In 1985, Richard and Shana Oseran bought the hotel and opened Club Congress. It became a touring stop for bands passing through Tucson. Local Latino artist Daniel Martin Diaz redesigned the stage in 2005, earning a Best Functional Art Installation award from Tucson Weekly. ZZ Top...

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Image: Marine 69-71 | CC BY-SA 4.0

]]> Wed, 04 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://qualla.com/_m/9/t/9/p/hotel-congress-wp/9t9p-hotel-congress-the-music-never-stopped.mp3 0:06 4 full Hotel Congress: Time Capsule Downtown https://qualla.com/hotel-congress/ Photo credit Michael Barera, CC BY-SA 4.0. The Hotel Congress interior maintains its 1930s decor, the same aesthetic that greeted Dillinger's gang ninety years ago. The Cup Cafe operates off the lobby. The National Register listing came in 2003. Fodor's awarded the hotel its Choice distinction in 2006 and 2008. The Oseran...

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Image: Michael Barera | CC BY-SA 4.0

]]> Wed, 04 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://qualla.com/_m/9/t/9/p/hotel-congress-wp/9t9p-hotel-congress-time-capsule-downtown.mp3 0:06 5 full