In 1842 The Gayoso House was built as the first luxury hotel in Memphis. It had indoor plumbing, electricity, and all the newest luxuries. During the Civil War, 1860-1864, the Gayoso Hotel was first a Confederate recruiting center until Union armies took the city and turned it into a hospital. 1863, in August, General Nathaniel Bedford Forrest and his cavalry rode their horses in the hotel's lobby in an attempt to recapture the city. In 1899 the Gayoso Hotel burned on the 4th of July due to the fireworks. 1904 saw the Gayoso Hotel redesigned with its modern U-shape and reopened for business. It was renovated in 1994 as the Gayoso House Apartments.

In 1890 Pembroke Square was formally Goldsmith's. Goldsmith's original store on Beale Street was relocated in 1895 to a larger facility at Main and Gayoso, which it occupied through most of the 20th century. In 1952 Goldsmiths expanded its downtown location, expanding into the adjoining former Gayoso Hotel. It was renovated in 1994.