Several hundred well-wishers crowded into the Hotel Bethlehem Oct. 6 to help the landmark celebrate its 97th birthday and its recent selection as the third best historic hotel in the country by readers of USA Today.

The birthday bash included free food and hors d’oeuvres, cupcakes, tours, musical entertainment and presentations on the history of the hotel. Guests were greeted by hospitality girls in white knee-high boots, a flashback to 1968.

Noted for its distinguished guests, whose portraits hang in the Tap Room on the lobby level, the hotel made sure some celebrities, at least in spirit, from the past were there to mingle with the crowds. A sharp eye could spot aviatrix Amelia Earhart or British Prime Minister Winston Churchill chewing on a large cigar. Yes, they both stayed at the hotel along with at least four presidents, movie stars, famous athletes and the Dalai Lama.

Much of the day’s festivities took place in the grand ballroom, where guests were treated to complimentary Champagne, carved roast beef and macaroni and cheese covered in individually chosen sautéed toppings. A waiter wearing a tricorn hat from the Revolutionary War period circulated with sesame chicken and other tasty morsels. His costume was a little before the time of the current hotel, but there has been a hotel on that site since 1741.

Special guest speakers Bruce Haines, the current managing partner of the hotel, and Ned Book, the former general manager during the Bethlehem Steel era, provided interesting insights into the hotel’s past to standing-room-only audiences in the ballroom.

Haines, who co-wrote the book “Historic Hotel Bethlehem,” reminded his audience that when he and the other partners in Christmas City Hotel LLC bought the building, it was bankrupt and closed. Among investors who helped save the hotel were alumni of Lehigh University, including Haines, and Lafayette College.

It was announced the hotel made it to USA Today’s top 10 best list for the first time and is now named the third best historic hotel in the nation.

“Are we really the third best historic hotel in the country? Probably not, but we are in the eyes of our customers,” Haines said. “We are proud of our staff, who helped make this happen.”

Book began his presentation by praising Haines and his partners for taking over the hotel.

“They have done a phenomenal job of upgrading it,” he said.

Book was hired in 1960, as Bethlehem Steel was becoming the dominant shareholder of the Hotel Bethlehem. The company used the hotel to house its traveling executives, employees and customers visiting the nearby steel offices. During that time, the hotel was in need of some serious upgrades.

“(Bethlehem) Steel felt the place looked embarrassing for the community and for Bethlehem Steel,” Book said.

Three years after hiring Book, the company ended its business relationship with the American Hotel Corporation, the nation’s largest hotel management firm at the time. Book was asked to stay on, and he oversaw $300,000 in guest room restorations.

The 88-year-old Book was only 29 when he took over as general manager, after working for Howard Johnson to help pay his tuition while he went to Penn State. He told The Press that his officer position in Penn State’s ROTC helped give him the managerial experience he needed to manage the hotel staff.

That wouldn’t be his only challenge, though. Book recalled that after only a month on the new job, he had gotten a phone call from the advance man for presidential hopeful John F. Kennedy. He wanted to speak at a gathering in the evening, stay overnight at the hotel, then speak at a breakfast meeting in the ballroom. When Kennedy arrived at the airport, Book said, his plane couldn’t land because there were so many people on the runway.

“By the time they got here, it was wall to wall people on Main Street - down the hill, up the hill, everywhere,” Book remembered.

The future president of the United States stayed in room 802, which is now the Presidential Suite. Book called Kennedy “a brilliant, stunning man.”

Hotel Bethlehem hosts numerous banquet events including weddings, baby and bridal showers and more. There are two restaurants on the lobby level as well - the Tap Room with a relaxed bar atmosphere and 1741 on the Terrace for an upscale fine-dining experience.