Major William Oliver, invaluable as a scout in the War of 1812, served in nearby Perrysburg under General William Henry Harrison. In 1830, taking advantage of the opportunity afforded veterans to invest; he and his Cincinnati partners bought as much property as possible in the Port Lawrence Area. Oliver speculated that land in Toledo near the river would be the most valuable for development. After building Toledo’s first warehouse, Oliver next attempted to secure his land as the site for the Lucas County seat. That and other plans did not succeed, and for a few years he experienced some financial setbacks.

In 1853, Major Oliver commissioned well-known architect, Isaiah Rogers to design a “palace-like hotel on the highest elevation of the Oliver plat. Gas lights, running water, lovely woodwork and fireplaces (remnants of which can be seen in the walls of the main dining room) were among “new” conveniences of all the 171 rooms. A central courtyard provided not only air circulation and natural light to every room but a central collection point for drainage from each roof.
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