Designed by the architectural firm of Dickey and Reed, for Frank Havens and Frank "Borax" Smith of the "Realty Syndicate" . The Hotel was a destination for point for Frank Smith's Key Route Line and attracted property development for the Realty Syndicate who owned adjacent land in the Claremont and Rockridge areas. 

The Claremont Hotel is actually located in Oakland, but has advertised for years as a Berkeley establishment. It opened in 1915, just in time for the Pan Pacific International Exposition in San Francisco. Built in the English Tudor Revival style, it has unfortunately been covered in white paint to make it more "Victorian". The post card above shows the Hotel as it was originally designed.