Market St., Red Boiling Springs, Tennessee. County/parish: Macon.
Added to the National Register of Historic Places September 11, 1986. NRIS 86002857.
Part of Early Twentieth Century Resort Buildings of Red Boiling Springs TR (NRIS 64000801).
4 contributing buildings.
The Donoho Hotel was a historic hotel in Red Boiling Springs, Tennessee, United States. Built in 1916, the Donoho was one of three hotels remaining from the early-20th century resort boom at Red Boiling Springs, and the last of the great white frame hotels with full-length two-story verandas. Although it has changed ownership several times, the Donoho had remained in operation continuously since its opening. In 1986, the hotel and several outbuildings were added to the National Register of Historic Places as a historic district.
The mineral springs at Red Boiling Springs— which were thought to have curative powers— were attracting tourists as early as the 1840s. After the Civil War, the nationwide rise in the popularity of mountain spring resorts brought about the development of a large-scale tourist industry at Red Boiling Springs. As transportation to the remote mountain hamlet improved, more elaborate hotels were built, among them the Donoho, which was initially built in the early 1900s. After the first Donoho Hotel burned down, the most recent structure was built as a replacement in 1916. Although alterations were made to the Donoho in the 1950s to provide modern amenities, the hotel appeared much as it did when it was first constructed. In the early morning hours of November 11, 2025, an electrical fire started inside the Donoho. Fire crews from Lafayette, Red Boiling Springs, and Willette, with assistance from the Red Boiling Springs Police Department, Macon County Sheriff's Department, and the Tennessee Highway Patrol, responded to the fire around 7:00 am and began working the scene. The Donoho Hotel which was well known and loved was fully engulfed by flames and was ultimately consumed by the fire.
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