Sitting prominently on Beaucatcher Mountain is a large building known today as Ardmion that was originally constructed as the Oliver Cromwell Hamilton Estate in the 1890s. But the Depression apparently took a toll on his real estate business, as the estate was auctioned on the courthouse steps in 1935.

The property was purchased by Gus and Emma Adler, who had an East Asheville restaurant named the Old Heidelberg after Gus’s hometown in Germany. They closed their original restaurant and opened a new Old Heidelberg in the former Hamilton mansion. Emma was “the hostess with the mostess” and Gus was the “genius in the kitchen” according to his stepson John Hunter. Old Heidelberg’s reputation grew as a location for fine dining, dancing, spectacular views, and great atmosphere.

When World War II broke out, the restaurant’s sign became a target for anti-Nazi graffiti and, not to be deterred, Gus and Emma renamed their business The Sky Club in 1942. The Sky Club remained popular as ever.

The Alders lived in Beau Castle which is thought to be the former estate stables converted to a residence near the former mansion. Gus died there in a fire in 1952. Though devastated, Emma kept The Sky Club going. Buncombe County did not allow sales of liquor in those days so patrons of The Sky Club would bring their own bottles and pay a storage fee to keep their liquor at the club. They were also charged a dollar for a bucket of ice to mix with their drinks.

In the late 1940s and 1950s, the movies came to Asheville: Tap Roots, The Swan, The Great Locomotive Chase, and Thunder Road all had scenes filmed around the city. Emma catered the on-location meals, and the casts and crews often made The Sky Club their nighttime hangout. Fess Parker, Grace Kelly, Louis Jordan, Ward Bond, and Robert Mitchum were among the luminaries who could be found there. Susan Hayward and Grace Kelly would dine early on the first floor terrace dining room to avoid the crowd. Ward Bond never drank alcohol, just iced coffee. And Emma accepted Robert Mitchum’s invitation to visit him in Hollywood.

In 1975, Emma sold the property and it later was renovated into condominiums. The glamour of The Sky Club was lost, but the property still makes a grand impression overlooking downtown Asheville. If its walls could talk, there would be many stories of the rich and famous who frequented The Sky Club.

Sharon Fahrer is a local historian and resident of the Montford neighborhood. She leads historic walking tours downtown and in Montford.