George Gill Green (1842-1925) was a New Jersey-born snake oil salesman: in the late 19th century, he made a fortune running a mail order business that peddled cure-all elixirs like “August Flower” and “Boschee’s German Syrup”. These tinctures were essentially laudanum – a powerful opiate that was available without a prescription back then. Regardless of the sordid way in which Green attained his wealth, we can thank him for purchasing an unfinished Pasadena hotel and opening it as the Hotel Green in 1894, whereupon the former Kansas Street was renamed Green Street. The hotel is long gone, but its 1898 annex still stands as the spectacular Castle Green, a landmark apartment building and one of the jewels of Pasadena.
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