The town of Clewiston is located on the southwest bank of Lake Okeechobee, the largest freshwater lake in Florida. It was named for Tampa banker A.C. Clewis, who financed the extension of the Atlantic Coast Line Railroad through the area in 1922. In 1932 Clewiston was incorporated and laid out according to the plans of the Southern Sugar Corp who wanted a showcase city to serve as its headquarters. The town has the nickname "America's Sweetest Town" because of the U.S. Sugar Corporation headquarters here.

The Clewiston Inn is the oldest hotel near Lake Okeechobee. The Inn was first built in 1926 by architects L. Phillips and Edgar S. Wortman in a two story Classical Revival style along the waterfront of Lake Okeechobee. The hotel was constructed by the Clewiston Company, the community and real estate development arm of Bror Dahlberg's Southern Sugar Company. Southern Sugar went into bankruptcy during the Great Depression and sold their assets to United States Sugar Corporation which was founded by three former General Motors executives. The hotel survived the 1926 Hurricane and the 1928 hurricane that killed over 4,000 people when Lake Okeechobee flooded causing many people to drown. The hotel was destroyed by a fire in 1937 but rebuilt in 1938 by U.S. Sugar Corp. with thick concrete walls braced with extra thick steel reinforcing rods the could withstand any future hurricanes. U.S. Sugar Corp used the inn to house company executives, customers. and visiting dignitaries. President Herbert Hoover stayed at the inn when he dedicated the Hoover Dike built around the lake, to provide flood control after the devastation of the Hurricane of 1928.

One of the most stunning features of the hotel is the the Everglades Lounge and Bar which has a 360-degree wildlife mural covering all four walls of bar. The mural was made in 1945 by artist J. Clinton Shepherd who recreated the animals and plants of the Everglades. He stayed at the Inn for many months and made daily trips into the Everglades to sketch the flora and fauna. The historic mural alone makes this a 5 star visit.

I love a good ghost story and the Clewiston Inn has it's share. There have been a number of paranormal investigations here and it's believed there are four spirits who never checked out. They include Anita Conklin who lived at the Clewiston Inn in room 225 and died in 1994. People have reported having their hair pulled outside the room. Other guests mention room 118 where there have been reports of a woman in the window.

In 2007 the U.S. Sugar Corporation sold the Inn to Big Lake Hotels. In 2011 the Big Lake Hotels Corporation sold the Inn to Clewiston Hospitality LLC. It is an Americas Best Value Inn. On February 21, 1991, the hotel was added to the U.S. National Register of Historic Places.

The five stars is for the historic value of the hotel as I have never stayed or eaten here. The manager caught me peeking in the window and even though the inn was closed he graciously allowed me inside to look around. I got a brief glimpse of the famed Everglades room and even though the light wasn't on I was suitably awed. Returning for a drink at the bar is now high on my list of post corona activities.

This hotel deserves a zero, but I can’t do that. This is the worst hotel I have ever stayed at. I think they never clean the carpet or the floors. Water from the shower got on the floor. I used some hand towels to dry it and oh boy, it came up black. It was nasty and disgusting. There was mold on the doors and in the closet, the curtains in the room are torn, there was stain on the towels, broken parts in the toilet, rust everywhere. It looks like an abandon room. Look at the pictures I took. They speak by themselves. They charge $100.00 and it is a hotel worth about $25.00. It’s much worst than a cheap motel. I was going to just leave, but it was late, and I was really tired. Also, breakfast is a joke. There was a bad smell (like an open sewer) in the bathroom that gets into the room. The hot water handle came apart and off, hot water problems, trash on breakfast room, not replenish the breakfast, lady came, took a look and left, did not bring anything else, parking on the street, parking of a park, noisy street. This place needs to be shut down.

Friendly, helpful staff.
Beautiful building. No elevators and quite a few steps.
Rooms are smaller but completely adequate.
We kept waiting to see the twins at the end of the hallway... But never did.