The Great Northern Hotel was a prominent part of Delano’s early history, serving generations of travelers and salesmen arriving by rail. Its story began in 1868, when Miner Ball moved a small building from the former townsite of Greenwood to Delano and opened it as a hotel. Under James D. Young, it grew into the much larger Young’s Hotel, a three-story landmark capable of accommodating scores of guests and offering a livery stable for travelers continuing to neighboring communities. After operating for a time as the Meister House, John and Magdalena Pfeifer purchased the property in 1901, and in 1902 it became the Great Northern Hotel. Lena Pfeifer continued operating it for decades after her husband’s death. A later fire damaged the third floor, which was subsequently removed, and the building eventually became the Pfeifer Hotel and then an apartment building before being demolished in 1971—ending more than a century of service at this historic Delano site.