The fate of Sontag Hotel

The main building of Sontag Hotel in 1909 ― Boher can be seen standing near the fence. Robert Neff Collection

By Robert Neff

When Marie Antoinette Sontag returned to Korea sometime in late 1906 or early 1907, she found Seoul had greatly changed. The foreign legations were now mere consulates and Japan dominated Korean politics and business opportunities ― most of the Westerners employed by the Korean government were replaced with Japanese. Yet, Sontag managed to return to her former position in the Imperial Household and apparently was still operating a hotel for distinguished guests.

There were only a couple of hotels operating in Seoul in early 1909 ― the most important and well-known were the Astor House Hotel (formerly Station Hotel) and the Palace Hotel. According to the English-language newspaper, The Korea Daily News, "both of [these hotels are] managed by hard working Frenchmen who have sunk their all in their respective businesses." The proprietors of these hotels were, respectively, Lucien Martin and J. Boher.

The newspaper's editor, Ernest Thomas Bethell, asserted the Astor House Hotel and Palace Hotel provided travelers with "unusually good accommodation" but their owners struggled to fill their hotels due to unfair competition with "an establishment which belongs ― or did belong ― to the retired emperor." He seems to have been referring to Sontag Hotel which "was intended to be a temporary residence for visitors of merit and importance [but] has degenerated into a boarding house."

This severe criticism by Bethell towards Sontag is somewhat surprising considering they were reported to have had a good relationship some four or five years earlier. As mentioned in the previous article, the British representative to Korea was convinced Emperor Gojong was financially supporting Bethell's paper ― transferring the money via Sontag.

Sontag Hotel in 1910. Boher can be seen greeting his guests as jinricksha operators wait for customs. Robert Neff Collection

Fortunately for the French hoteliers, Sontag announced she was retiring from the Imperial Household and would return to Europe ― she did not anticipate ever coming back. According to the Seoul Press, she would "receive 30,000 yen from the Government, which [was] equal, in the aggregate, to her salary for three years." A week later, the same newspaper informed its readers that Sontag planned on leasing her house "to Mr. J. Boher, proprietor of the Palace Hotel, who will turn it into a hotel."

On Augusts 27, 1909, Sontag gave a large farewell dinner at her residence ― inviting all of her close friends. According to Mr. I Yamagata, the editor of the Seoul Press (who attended the party), they enjoyed "an excellent dinner for which Miss Sontag's table has always been famous." Speeches and toasts were given and Sontag expressed her desire to give her house and property back to the Korean Imperial Court after her death.

The following day, Sontag had an audience with Gojong ― now the ex-emperor of Korea ― at Deoksu Palace. It is a shame we do not know what they talked about but it we can assume it was a sad but warm farewell.

Although it is not clear what date she departed Seoul (Dr. Sylvia Braesel's notes and mine conflict as to the date), according to the family history provided to Braesel, Sontag left just before the official annexation of Korea by Japan. "She returned to Europe a wealthy lady in the company of her gardener Yi Eui Woon (born 1884 in Seoul), her servant Moda Takahochi (born in 1867) and her nine favorite dogs." Sontag died on July 7, 1922. Her gardener, Yi, married a French woman (twenty years younger than him and from Sontag's Alsatian homeland) and remained in France.

An advertisement for Sontag Hotel, circa 1910. Robert Neff Collection

But what became of the hotel?

Shortly after Sontag's departure from Seoul, the hotel was the victim of a burglary. On October 18, a thief crept into the building and stole a carpet valued at 50 yen. Perhaps in the large scheme of things it was not a very serious incident but it is hard to imagine this would have happened if Sontag were in charge ― her ever-watchful eye and her influential patrons were powerful incentives for thieves to look elsewhere.

We know very little about J. Boher save that from 1898 he worked at the "Nagasaki Hotel" in that Japanese port city until he was laid off in late 1903 or early 1904 ― apparently the hotel was suffering financial difficulties. Boher left Japan and traveled to Korea where he was the proprietor of the Palace Hotel.

An advertisement that appeared in the Seoul Press in May 1908 declared the Palace Hotel ― "located opposite the Main Gate of the Imperial [Deoksu] Palace" ― as "the only European First Class Hotel inside the city walls." It was centrally located and within a short distance of the train station, Post and Telegraph Office and the various Consulates. The building was described as being new and handsome with "fine airy rooms." Of course, the "cuisine [was] under [an] experience French Chef." A later advertisement would declare the cooking was supervised by Boher ― perhaps prior to becoming an hotelier he had been a chef.

With his acquisition of Sontag's residence, Boher wasted no time in advertising his new hotel. His advertisements, to a degree, read almost identical to those he had placed advertising the Palace Hotel. He described the Sontag Hotel as the former "private hotel of the Imperial Korean Household … [and] … the leading hotel in Korea [it being] the only first class foreign style hotel inside the city walls." It had twenty-five bedrooms with private bathrooms, electric lights, excellent French cuisine, "fresh milk from the hotel dairy (fresh milk was generally hard to obtain), a large beautiful garden and a bar and large billiard room. Members of the staff could speak English, French, German, Spanish and, undoubtedly, Japanese and Korean.

A single room in the main building cost 8 yen a night, while double rooms ran from four to six yen. Single rooms in the annex were 7-8 yen and doubles were two yen. Business became so good that a later advertisement encouraged guests to register in advance as "the hotel is apt to be crowded in the spring and autumn seasons."

The hotel's verandah and some of the staff, circa 1910. Robert Neff Collection

The hotel also benefitted from the large number of American gold miners who made it their home while in Seoul. When Roy Chapman Andrews ― often referred to as the real Indiana Jones ― visited Seoul in 1912, he wrote:

"Seoul resembled nothing so much as an American mining town amid Oriental surroundings. [Sontag's] Hotel was the gathering place for dozens of men in from the gold mines. Most of these were operated by Americans. The [Seoul] Club occupied a building of the former king's palace where there was a fascinating air of ruined splendor."

There was a wild atmosphere to the hotel. A travel guide in 1914 described what guests in the hotel could expect:

"In spring and summer one is awakened early by the strident chattering and wrangling of magpies; the melodious call of the cuckoo; the incessant twittering and chirping of small birds and insects; the hoarse calling of geese; the [sound] of a myriad cockerels; and not unfrequently by the grunting or squealing of the young bears of which the manager of the Sontag Hotel is fond and which he captures and chains up in the hotel yard."

Like his predecessor, Boher would become a victim of politics. In early August 1914, Western residents in Korea ― despite being separated from Europe by a vast distance ― became participants of World War One.

An envelope addressed to a guest at the hotel in 1913. Robert Neff Collection

The Japan Weekly Chronicle reported:

Mr. J. Boher, Proprietor of the Sontag Hotel, Seoul, and 19 French resident in Korea, have been called to serve with the colours. It is expected that they will leave Seoul on the 10th or 11th instant for Korea, to embark on a steamer bound for home.

It isn't clear what became of Boher ― did he survive the war untouched or was he one of the 6,000,000 French army casualties? If he did survive the war, he apparently never returned to Korea and his name has faded from the pages of history.

In late October 1915, Frederica A. Walcott, an American tourist stayed at the new Chosen Hotel in Seoul and declared that "it more than replaces for foreigners Miss Sontag's famous boarding house of old." Without Boher, the hotel was closed.

Frey Hall, circa mid-1920s or 1930s. Robert Neff Collection

In 1917, Sontag Hotel was sold to Ewha Girls School and used as a dormitory until it was demolished in 1923 and a new dorm (Frey Hall) was built in its place ― bricks and material from the former Sontag Hotel were probably used in the new dorm's construction.

Sontag Hotel is gone ― only the snippets of anecdotal history and postcard images remain of what once was the center of French culinary and political intrigue in Seoul.

I would like to thank Diane Nars for her invaluable assistance as well as Dr. Sylvia Braesel for her article as well as providing additional information through our email correspondence.
"Marie Antoinette Sontag (1838-1922) 'Uncrowned Empress of Korea,'" Transactions, Royal Asiatic Society, Korea Branch, Vol. 89, 2014.
Dr. Braesel's book, "Photos of a diplomatic life between Europe and East Asia: Carl von Waeber (1841-1910)" is now being translated and should be published in Seoul within a couple of months.

Robert Neff has authored and co-authored several books, including Letters from Joseon, Korea Through Western Eyes and Brief Encounters.