With its signature red mansard roof, the historic Wentworth-by-the-Sea Hotel offers both old-fashioned elegance and the latest amenities.
Built in 1874 as a summer home by Sarah and Charles Campbell, it was acquired two years later by Portsmouth politician and brewer Frank Jones. Over the next two decades, he expanded and created the hotel that people know today.
“Obviously, the biggest thing we are known for is the 1905 Portsmouth Peace Treaty,” says General Manager Jason Bartlett. “Russian and Japanese delegates came to New Hampshire to get to know each other as people and that led to the end of Russo-Japanese war.
“All the parties stayed at the hotel and went to the shipyard to sign the treaty, and the armistice was signed at the hotel. It’s something we are very proud of to this day.”
Margaret and James Barker Smith bought the hotel in 1946. This well-known power couple ran the hotel for decades and changed hospitality in New England, according to Bartlett. “Mr. Smith was involved daily and wrote letters to every guest and to the staff each summer,” he says. “Mrs. Smith would get dressed to the nines and host cocktail parties on the veranda every Friday.”
The couple realized the potential to keep the hotel open after the summer season and focus on corporate events, which is a core part of the business today. “They were the first to do it in New Hampshire,” says Bartlett. “They were really industry leaders and others followed suit.”
With the Smiths’ retirement, the hotel was nearly lost. Owners changed hands, and the building was boarded up for 20 years. It was saved from demolition by the efforts of the Friends of the Wentworth and bought by family-owned Ocean Properties in 1999. They brought it back to its former glory as a “grand dame” hotel and worked with the state to move Route 1B, to run behind the hotel.
The hotel reopened in 2003 as a Marriott franchise. The owners felt the best way to reintroduce the once-defunct hotel was to be part of a globally recognized brand, according to Bartlett.
Today, it employs more than 350 people in the summer with 250 staff year-round. After two decades as a Marriott franchise, the owners made the decision last year to end that partnership and make the Wentworth part of its Opal luxury collection. The move, Bartlett says, better suits the unique property that now has its own name recognition.
Bartlett says he and the other employees are focused on using technology to improve the guest experience and streamline operations as well as implementing a customer loyalty program that meets or exceeds those of the big hotel bands. “That is our priority number one for growth,” he says.