The Claremont Inn was located on Riverside Drive on the line of West 126th Street, New York City, north of the present location of Grant's tomb. Originally built as a country estate around 1780, it became a roadside tavern by 1860, a favorite of horsemen, cyclists, and drivers and frequented by wealthy families and celebs of the day, such as President McKinley, Lillian Russell, Cole Porter, Admiral Dewey, President Taft, the Vanderbilts and the Astors. In the late 1940's, the popularity of the Inn plummeted and it became clear that the end was near. In 1951, as the demolition of the building by the city was beginning, a fire started when the coals of a watchman's hand-warming barrel ignited the old structure. All that is left to remind visitors of its glittering past is a commemorative plaque placed there by the Parks Department in 1952.