Destinations
The 1842 Inn
White columns line the wrap-around veranda of the 1842 Inn, a Greek Revival antebellum mansion in Macon, Georgia. Shaded by magnificent Magnolia trees, the veranda offers the perfect spot to relax in a wicker rocking chair and watch the world pass by in this historic Macon neighborhood. The public rooms and 12 guest rooms in the main inn are furnished with a pleasing mix of English antiques, fine reproductions and objects d ‘art but it’s the warm welcome you receive as you enter the wide center hall of the 1842 Inn that makes it a place to return to again and again. The detail-oriented staff greet you by name, remember your favorite room and respond promptly to requests. Have a question about the area? Ask E. J. Nobles, front desk manager, who seems to have an encyclopedic knowledge of the history of the inn as well as the city of Macon. Longtime staffer and Macon resident, JoAnne Dillard, offers the perfect mint julep during the late afternoon social hour when guests congregate around the fireplace and complimentary hors d'oeuvres are passed around. (Read More)
Buhl Mansion Guesthouse and Spa
The history of Buhl Mansion is a rich and colorful one. Frank H. Buhl built this castle-like mansion of native ashlar sandstone in the Sharon Hills for his wife, Julia, in 1890. A grand home in the Richardson Romanesque style, with arches, columns, finials, and turrets, the Buhl Mansion was a showplace in the Shenango Valley. Like many houses from the Victorian era, when it was no longer a private family residence the mansion was used at various times as a French restaurant, a beauty school, and apartments. Ultimately, the property was condemned and became one of those VOV properties—vacant, open, and vandalized. A vagrant moved in, causing irreversible damage to the main floor. That’s when Jim and Donna Winner stepped in to bring this fine old home back to its original glory. (Read More)
Charm Countryview Inn
It was one of those perfect Indian-summer evenings. We sat in gliders on the wide porch of the Charm Countryview Inn, taking in the pungent smells of autumn lingering in the air and enjoying the quiet of the country setting. The inn was totally booked, and guests spilled out to the porch to chat awhile after stopping in the dining room for the homemade snacks and popcorn. Talk centered on the best routes for “leaf peeping,” the activity that brought most of us to Holmes County this time of year. There was a general consensus from this randomly assembled group that we wanted to find the back roads and leave anything that smacked of tourists behind. One gentleman, extolling his particular route that day through hillsides covered with rich rusts and golds, said, “It doesn’t get any better than this, does it?” Nods of agreement were his answer. (Read More)
Georgian Manor Inn
Gracious living. That’s how I describe my stay at the Georgian Manor Inn in Norwalk’s West Main Street Historic District. While this Georgian Revival-style mansion, built in 1906, gives a first impression of elegance, it is also a warm and welcoming home. Entering the foyer, you’ll grasp the sense of space as your glance moves from the crystal chandelier upwards to the dentil moldings highlighted with gold. Straight ahead is a burl-walnut cylinder desk—one of many antiques you’ll discover here. (Read More)
Little Inn of Bayfield
Traveling along the Blue Water Highway (Route 21), you can easily miss the little village of Bayfield tucked away along the shores of Lake Huron. Our first visit was a short one, a stop to browse the specialty shops that line Bayfield’s wide Main Street. But it was long enough to gain an appreciation of the village’s nineteenth-century architecture and magnificent maple and locust trees, and to discover the Little Inn of Bayfield. Originally a stagecoach stop on the London to Goderich route, the inn has welcomed guests since 1832. We sat on the veranda, shaded by a huge old willow tree, and watched the parade of visitors march from the park-like Clan Gregor Square at one end of Main Street past the chic shops and then past our post at the Little Inn. This historic village center has been designated a Heritage Conservation District. It doesn’t take long to get the sense of tradition and pride in this enclave along the Huron. (Read More)
Mansion on Delaware Avenue
If walls could talk, those at the Mansion on Delaware Avenue would have many stories to tell from its colorful past. Designed by George Allison as a private residence in 1869, it became a luxurious Buffalo hotel at the turn of the 20th century. Next the old hotel served as a rooming house and later is rumored to have been a bordello. From 1947 until the mid-1970s, it housed one of Buffalo’s finer restaurants, Victor Hugo’s Wine Cellar, and its final use was as an apartment building for a few years. The building stood vacant for 25 years until purchased in 1998 by Geno and Diana Principe along with principal owner Dennis Murphy. This intrepid trio of preservationists spent 18 months planning and 14 months restoring the property, which had suffered heavy vandalism. The Mansion on Delaware Avenue owners received the Buffalo Preservation Award in 2002 for their efforts in saving the structure. (Read More)
Priory—A City Inn
When Ed and Mary Ann Graf first visited what was then St. Mary’s German Catholic Church and Priory, the buildings stood empty and forlorn. The priory had been home to the Benedictine priests and brothers serving at St. Mary’s, as well as a former temporary haven for monks stopping on their way to St. Vincent’s Abbey in Latrobe. The buildings escaped the wrecking ball by a re-routing of the nearby expressway but were still owned by the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation. The Grafs, ardent preservationists, purchased the church and priory without a definite plan for their use. They just couldn’t bear to see another historic building demolished. A friend suggested rehabbing the parish house into a European-style hotel; thus the Priory—a City Inn was born. (Read More)
Spread Eagle Tavern & Inn
The first time I visited the Spread Eagle Tavern the setting took my breath away. This canal-era hostelry stands on Hanoverton’s tree-lined Historic Plymouth Street along with 21 other houses that appear to be frozen in time. The Johnsons’ son, David, shared the history of the inn with me on a recent visit.
Built in 1837, the Spread Eagle Tavern is recognized today as one of the area’s finest examples of Federal-period architecture. Plans for the inn were taken from the pattern books of the preeminent Boston architect Asher Benjamin. Evidence of his designs can be seen in the finish work—raised-wood window and door frames, fluted column casings, and intricately carved mantels. The stairway, with continuing handrail, extends 72 feet to the fourth floor. (Read More)
The 1842 Inn
White columns line the wrap-around veranda of the 1842 Inn, a Greek Revival antebellum mansion in Macon, Georgia. Shaded by magnificent Magnolia trees, the veranda offers the perfect spot to relax in a wicker rocking chair and watch the world pass by in this historic Macon neighborhood. The public rooms and 12 guest rooms in the main inn are furnished with a pleasing mix of English antiques, fine reproductions and objects d ‘art but it’s the warm welcome you receive as you enter the wide center hall of the 1842 Inn that makes it a place to return to again and again. The detail-oriented staff greet you by name, remember your favorite room and respond promptly to requests. Have a question about the area? Ask E. J. Nobles, front desk manager, who seems to have an encyclopedic knowledge of the history of the inn as well as the city of Macon. Longtime staffer and Macon resident, JoAnne Dillard, offers the perfect mint julep during the late afternoon social hour when guests congregate around the fireplace and complimentary hors d'oeuvres are passed around. (Read More)
Buhl Mansion Guesthouse and Spa
The history of Buhl Mansion is a rich and colorful one. Frank H. Buhl built this castle-like mansion of native ashlar sandstone in the Sharon Hills for his wife, Julia, in 1890. A grand home in the Richardson Romanesque style, with arches, columns, finials, and turrets, the Buhl Mansion was a showplace in the Shenango Valley. Like many houses from the Victorian era, when it was no longer a private family residence the mansion was used at various times as a French restaurant, a beauty school, and apartments. Ultimately, the property was condemned and became one of those VOV properties—vacant, open, and vandalized. A vagrant moved in, causing irreversible damage to the main floor. That’s when Jim and Donna Winner stepped in to bring this fine old home back to its original glory. (Read More)
Charm Countryview Inn
It was one of those perfect Indian-summer evenings. We sat in gliders on the wide porch of the Charm Countryview Inn, taking in the pungent smells of autumn lingering in the air and enjoying the quiet of the country setting. The inn was totally booked, and guests spilled out to the porch to chat awhile after stopping in the dining room for the homemade snacks and popcorn. Talk centered on the best routes for “leaf peeping,” the activity that brought most of us to Holmes County this time of year. There was a general consensus from this randomly assembled group that we wanted to find the back roads and leave anything that smacked of tourists behind. One gentleman, extolling his particular route that day through hillsides covered with rich rusts and golds, said, “It doesn’t get any better than this, does it?” Nods of agreement were his answer. (Read More)
Georgian Manor Inn
Gracious living. That’s how I describe my stay at the Georgian Manor Inn in Norwalk’s West Main Street Historic District. While this Georgian Revival-style mansion, built in 1906, gives a first impression of elegance, it is also a warm and welcoming home. Entering the foyer, you’ll grasp the sense of space as your glance moves from the crystal chandelier upwards to the dentil moldings highlighted with gold. Straight ahead is a burl-walnut cylinder desk—one of many antiques you’ll discover here. (Read More)
Little Inn of Bayfield
Traveling along the Blue Water Highway (Route 21), you can easily miss the little village of Bayfield tucked away along the shores of Lake Huron. Our first visit was a short one, a stop to browse the specialty shops that line Bayfield’s wide Main Street. But it was long enough to gain an appreciation of the village’s nineteenth-century architecture and magnificent maple and locust trees, and to discover the Little Inn of Bayfield. Originally a stagecoach stop on the London to Goderich route, the inn has welcomed guests since 1832. We sat on the veranda, shaded by a huge old willow tree, and watched the parade of visitors march from the park-like Clan Gregor Square at one end of Main Street past the chic shops and then past our post at the Little Inn. This historic village center has been designated a Heritage Conservation District. It doesn’t take long to get the sense of tradition and pride in this enclave along the Huron. (Read More)
Mansion on Delaware Avenue
If walls could talk, those at the Mansion on Delaware Avenue would have many stories to tell from its colorful past. Designed by George Allison as a private residence in 1869, it became a luxurious Buffalo hotel at the turn of the 20th century. Next the old hotel served as a rooming house and later is rumored to have been a bordello. From 1947 until the mid-1970s, it housed one of Buffalo’s finer restaurants, Victor Hugo’s Wine Cellar, and its final use was as an apartment building for a few years. The building stood vacant for 25 years until purchased in 1998 by Geno and Diana Principe along with principal owner Dennis Murphy. This intrepid trio of preservationists spent 18 months planning and 14 months restoring the property, which had suffered heavy vandalism. The Mansion on Delaware Avenue owners received the Buffalo Preservation Award in 2002 for their efforts in saving the structure. (Read More)
Priory—A City Inn
When Ed and Mary Ann Graf first visited what was then St. Mary’s German Catholic Church and Priory, the buildings stood empty and forlorn. The priory had been home to the Benedictine priests and brothers serving at St. Mary’s, as well as a former temporary haven for monks stopping on their way to St. Vincent’s Abbey in Latrobe. The buildings escaped the wrecking ball by a re-routing of the nearby expressway but were still owned by the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation. The Grafs, ardent preservationists, purchased the church and priory without a definite plan for their use. They just couldn’t bear to see another historic building demolished. A friend suggested rehabbing the parish house into a European-style hotel; thus the Priory—a City Inn was born. (Read More)
Spread Eagle Tavern & Inn
The first time I visited the Spread Eagle Tavern the setting took my breath away. This canal-era hostelry stands on Hanoverton’s tree-lined Historic Plymouth Street along with 21 other houses that appear to be frozen in time. The Johnsons’ son, David, shared the history of the inn with me on a recent visit.
Built in 1837, the Spread Eagle Tavern is recognized today as one of the area’s finest examples of Federal-period architecture. Plans for the inn were taken from the pattern books of the preeminent Boston architect Asher Benjamin. Evidence of his designs can be seen in the finish work—raised-wood window and door frames, fluted column casings, and intricately carved mantels. The stairway, with continuing handrail, extends 72 feet to the fourth floor. (Read More)