Article Advise

submitted: Jun 6th 2008 | by: JaneLeisteiner | Total views: 10 | Word Count: 530 | |

Lovers of nature and each other, Clark Gable and his wife, Carole Lombard, chose the Gold Mountain Manor for their romantic Honeymoon. Just a few hours drive from Hollywood, this Big Bear bed and breakfast has been an idyllic getaway for the rich and famous for years.

For those of us who frequent bed and breakfasts or country inns, the myriad of statesmen, writers, actors and other adorned personalities who once visited these places is one of many characteristics that makes the experience so unique.

For instance, guests staying at the opulent John Rutledge House Inn in Charleston, S.C., may proclaim not only that George Washington once dined there, but that first drafts of the U.S. Constitution were drawn up in the mansion's ballroom. The home's builder, John Rutledge, was no slouch himself in the context of American history. Rutledge, was not only a writer and signer of the Constitution, he also served as South Carolina's first governor and a Supreme Court justice. A stay at Rutledge's home is to experience a little piece of American history.

Presidents Ulysses S. Grant and Theodore Roosevelt both enjoyed a stayed at the Vichy Hot Springs Resort & Inn in Ukiah, Calif. The guest list also boasts famed writers such a Robert Lewis Stevenson, Mark Twain and Jack London. Today's guests stay in newer lodging, but can still soak in the same soothing mineral waters as presidents, writers and other famous folk have enjoy for more than 150 years.

From famous writers to famous actors to young socialites, Hacienda del Sol has seen them all. The 1810 adobe home, guest casitas and surrounding acres have seen many uses throughout the years. In the 1920s, a college preparatory school catered to the young women from prestigious families, such as the Vanderbilts. A few years later, it would be host to writer D.H. Lawrence and artist Georgia O'Keefe. And in the late 1940s and 50s, actors such as Spencer Tracy and Katherine Hepburn were frequent guests. In fact, today's guests can still stay in Tracy's favorite casita.

The Colonel Taylor Inn B&B and Gift Shop is named after Colonel Joseph D. Taylor, a four-term U.S. Congressman and Civil War veteran who built the house in 1878. Although he fought in the Battle of Fredericksburg against General Lee and his troops, he advised his superior, General Ambrose Burnside, against the attack, telling the General, "The carrying out of your plan will be murder, not warfare." He became friends with President William McKinley, whose hometown of Niles, Ohio was in the 17th district that Colonel Taylor represented. McKinley has been verifed as a guest here; President Garfield and Hayes are said to have visted as well.

Patrick Henry and Thomas Jefferson were among the guests at The General Lewis, an early 19th-century bed and breakfast in Lewisburg, W.V. An actual 19th-century stagecoach rests on the property, once used to transport guests along the Kanawha Turnpike and to the local hot springs.

Any of these historic bed and breakfasts stand alone on their hospitality, amenities and beauty, but it's hard to deny the added ambiance of staying in a place where some of the most illustrious names of the past worked, relaxed, dined and slept.

About the Author

Jane Leisteiner has traveled to scores of B&Bs and enjoys discussing inns. To find more information on South Carolina bed and breakfast inns or Ohio bed and breakfasts, check out the American Historic Inns website.

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