What a Guy!
You will not believe this multi–thousand dollar bet.
By Megan McKinney
The extraordinary John Warne Gates was born in 1855 in Winfield, Illinois, now West Chicago. Although he matured to become a Gilded Age industrialist, he was possibly at least as widely celebrated as a gentleman gambler—hence the “Bet-a-Million” handle. Properly the president of Republic Steel and the Texas Company—later known as Texaco—he earned the gambling nickname when he wagered a multi-thousand dollar bet on which of two raindrops would first reach the bottom of a window in the Oak Room of New York’s original Waldorf-Astoria Hotel.
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John Warne “Bet-a-Million” Gates
2944 South Michigan Avenue
It was in this South Chicago mansion that Mr. Gates and his wife, the former Dellora Baker, were reported to have “entertained lavishly” for some years before moving to New York City.
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Dellora Baker Gates
New York’s old Waldorf-Astoria Hotel
In Manhattan, John, Dellora and their son, Charles, occupied seventeen rooms—with a private elevator—in the old Waldorf-Astoria Hotel, before it was replaced by the Empire State Building.
credit: Thaddeus Wilkerson
In 1909, they moved on to New York’s Plaza Hotel, built in 1905-07. Mr. Gates was essentially a part owner of the Plaza through stock holdings of the United States Realty Company, which built the hotel. Therefore, the Gates suite rooms were decorated by the hotel to John and Dellora’s taste. The following photographs and captions, courtesy of the March 20, 1909 issue of TOWN & COUNTRY magazine, show five of the 16 rooms that comprised the posh interior of John and Dellora Gates’ third floor Plaza home.
The Living Room
A Comfortable Sleeping Room finished in old rose and St. Jago Mahogony
A Bedroom in Circassian Walnut – Along the lines of the Louis XV period. The windows overlook The Plaza below.
The Dining Room – Modified Italian Renaissance in style finished in mahogony and golden brown.
Receptiion Room – Of the combined periods of Louis XIV and XV. The windows overlook Fifty-ninth Street and Central Park.
Sadly, Mr. Gates was unable to enjoy his Plaza Hotel home very long. He died in Paris on August 9, 1911 at age 56 from a throat tumor.
Author photo: Robert F. Carl
