The Old Valley Inn dates back to the 1850s, it was one of the oldest buildings in El Paso. The Old Valley Inn was bought by Gaspar Giron from the Catholic church which used it as a convent for nuns. He made it an inn to accommodate passengers on the Sante Fe stagecoach route. He sold it to Mr. Gibbs who use to go to the old Ysleta Depot and pick up the passengers and would take them to his inn. Eventually, it was bought by Lucy Brooks and her first husband, Alexander Peterman. They bought it because they found new teachers coming to Ysleta had no place to stay.
The inn became a center of social life in Ysleta. Dances were held there and it was a place where the wondering motorist could stop for Sunday dinners. Mrs. Brooks’ daughter, Ollie Landsen, was the society page editor at the El Paso Times.
It was eventually bought by Frank Howard, who lived at the inn when he first came to El Paso. He also founded Howard’s pharmacy. It was bought in 1932 by Frank Bailey, whose son was a sheriff. It was sold in 1972 after the death of Mr. and Mrs. Bailey to Edward Powell,who demolished it because he wanted to expand his P & N Big 8 Market. The inn was on Harris and Alameda streets.
Joseph Longo
El Paso County Historical Society Volunteer
