Feature Stories
Historic Lodging in Southeast Washington
Southeastern Washington is full of history, and it is home to many wonderful historic homes and commercial buildings. The region is also full of people who care deeply about that history and who have lovingly restored many of those homes and buildings back to their former glory, and opened them up for guests to share.
We share with you five historic hotels and bed & breakfast establishments in Dayton, Waitsburg and Starbuck. We briefly tell their stories and the stories of those who have brought them back to life.
Jump to: The Weinhard Hotel, Dayton | The Purple House Bed & Breakfast, Dayton | McCann Manor, Dayton | Nothing New Lodging, Waitsburg | Aunt Jennie's Bed & Breakfast, Starbuck
Victorian Lodging at its Finest: The Weinhard Hotel
In 1889, Jacob Weinhard built a two-story building on Dayton's Main Street to house the Weinhard Saloon and the Weinhard Lodge. Today, Weinhard's saloon building is home to one of the finest small lodging establishments in the Pacific Northwest – The Weinhard Hotel.
Each of the hotel's fifteen guest rooms is furnished with a beautiful antique bedroom set and other furniture. The Signature Suite contains a large sitting area and adjoins a separate room with two twin beds – ideal accommodations for a family.
The Weinhard Hotel's rooftop garden provides guests with an enchanting place to spend a quiet evening by themselves, or with fellow guests. The garden is available to rent for small functions as well.
Shellie and Gary McLeod have owned the hotel just over a year. They purchased it from Ginny and Dan Butler in April, 2008. "We're both living our dream jobs," says Gary. Shellie started working at the Weinhard in 1998, and has been the hotel's manager since 2001. Gary is in charge of maintenance and repair at the hotel.
Before the Butlers purchased Jacob Weinhard's old saloon building in 1992, it had housed the Dayton Drug store for many years. "Dayton was in need of upscale lodging," says Ginny, whose father, Dorsey Martin, operated Dorsey's Hotel and Restaurant in Dayton for many years. "The courthouse restoration and Main Street project had recently been completed, so we wanted to help continue the improvement of Dayton's downtown."
On a trip to the Southern U.S. in 1992, shortly before starting the building renovation, the Butlers discovered that antique Victorian furniture was priced very reasonably in the south. "I told Dan that we could actually furnish our hotel completely with antiques," says Ginny. And so they traded their small rental car for a U-Haul truck and started buying antique bedroom sets.
A second trip south was made a year later to round out the furnishings needed for the hotel. "We stored all of the antiques in the front of the building where the café is now," says Ginny. Then construction began. The floor plan is nearly all new, but many of the original doors and woodwork pieces were restored and reused. The hotel opened in the spring of 1994.
The Weinhard Hotel is a favorite of both business and leisure travelers. Each guest enjoys a continental breakfast in the Internet Café. Computers are available there, and free WiFi is available throughout the hotel. The hotel also houses the Gallery at the Weinhard, featuring the artwork of watercolorist Jill Ingram and pastel artist Monica Stobie.
Another highlight for many at the Weinhard Hotel is music by Jack and Nadine Derringer on Friday and Saturday evenings in the hotel lobby. Gary and Shellie McLeod plan to maintain that, and the many other fine lodging traditions of the Weinhard Hotel, for a long time to come.
The Weinhard Hotel
Proprietors: Gary and Shellie McLeod
235 E. Main St., Dayton
(509) 382-4032
www.weinhard.com
Elegance & History: The Purple House B&B
Story & Photos by Ken Graham
C hristine Williscroft has been welcoming guests to The Purple House Bed and Breakfast since 1991. A beautifully appointed master suite, with king-size bed and Jacuzzi tub, opens onto the large terrace and pool. Two equally beautiful upstairs bedrooms share a bath. The terrace is a wonderful resting spot for the enjoyment of all of Christine's guests. Guests also enjoy use of the library and sitting room on the main floor of the house.
"Since I live here, I've made the home comfortable for me," says Christine, "and I hope my guests feel comfortable and at home as well." Christine cooks breakfast for all of her guests, and dinner is sometimes available by special request.
This historic home was built by local physician and benefactor Dr. Pietrzycki in 1882. Dr. Pietrzycki later left funds for construction of the building that is now Dayton High School, and bears his name. When Christine purchased the Pietrzycki home in 1988, it was in need of a total restoration. "The pool was in terrible shape," she says. "I had to spend a lot of money on it in the first six months." Over the next three years, the house was gutted and completely rebuilt.
Guests at The Purple House, located next to the Dayton Memorial Library, have only to walk one block to enjoy Main Street shopping and dining. Christine says she does almost no advertising, relying mostly on word of mouth to keep visitors coming. "About 80% of my guests are repeat visitors," she says. They must be satisfied.
The Purple House Bed and Breakfast
Proprietor: D. Christine Williscroft
415 E. Clay St., Dayton
(509) 382-3159
www.purplehousebnb.com
Opening Soon: McCann Manor
"I have wanted to run a Bed and Breakfast business since I was in the 8th grade; either that, or have my own television cooking show!" quips Ann McCann. Ann and her husband Jeff are the owners of McCann Manor in Dayton.
When Ann met Jeff she eagerly discussed her dream. According to Ann, he thought she was nuts. But he liked woodworking and gradually warmed to the idea. Their dream is becoming a reality.
Ann and Jeff chose to move to Dayton because they loved the people, atmosphere and historic nature of the town. They purchased the home that was originally built by Loren Day, the eldest son of Jesse Day, the founder of Dayton. Loren studied music in San Francisco as a young man and, while there, fell in love with the city's "Painted Lady" homes. Upon his return to Dayton, he built his new home, inspired by those in San Francisco.
The house is still under construction – the McCanns hope to open in the Fall of 2009. When it opens, their destination B&B will have many amenities to offer guests. They may relax in the lovely garden while being served lemonade and freshly baked cookies in summer, or snuggle up in a cozy chair in the library with a hot toddy in winter. Old fashioned Schwinn his-and-hers bicycles will be available for leisurely touring about town.
McCann Manor will offer a place where guests can find balance and renewal on the sunny side of the state.
McCann Manor
Proprietors: Jeff and Ann McCann
214 S. Second St., Dayton
Phone: (509) 382-8967
www.mccannmanor.com
Above the Shop: Nothing New Lodging
Story & Photo by Ken Graham
Sandy and Lupe Torres always wanted to own an antique store. So when they both retired from the Walla Walla Post Office in 2005, they bought an old building on Waitsburg's Main Street and moved their myriad antiques and collectibles into the storefront on the main level.
"There was no upscale lodging in Waitsburg at that time," says Lupe. "So Sandy and I saw a chance to fill a need here, and expand our business."
A long staircase to the left of the shop entrance leads to a large suite at the front of the building, above the shop. Two bedrooms with king beds adjoin a central bath – including whirlpool tub – and a kitchenette. The Torres's also offer two smaller guest rooms – one in the rear of the upstairs and one in the back, downstairs.
"We had to completely gut the upstairs," says Lupe. The rooms were framed in and all new wiring and plumbing were installed. The historic door frames and transom windows were stripped and refinished. The result is an elegant and spatial suite that is very comfortable for two couples or a family of four.
Nothing New Lodging
Proprietors: Lupe and Sandra Torres
214 Main St., Waitsburg
(509) 337-6393
www.nothingnewlodging.net
A Getaway in Starbuck: Aunt Jennie's B&B
Story & Photos by Tanya Patton
Aunt Jennie's Bed & Breakfast welcomed its first overnight guests in June 2007. Owners Floyd and Carol Wildman began renovating the house at 204 Tucannon Street in Starbuck about five years ago. "At first we intended to sell it once we fixed it up a bit," says Carol. "But the house sort of grew on us, so we decided to make it our home and open the upstairs as a B&B."
Aunt Jennie's is named after Eugenia (Jennie) Eaton Abraham who, along with her husband Ray, purchased the house in the 1930's and lived there until their deaths in 1972 and 1963 respectively. Carol's research on the house indicates that it was built around the turn of the century. "It's in all the earliest pictures of Starbuck that I've found," says Carol.
The Wildmans are grateful that most of the original woodwork and stained glass windows were intact. "I found the original hardwood pocket doors in the back pasture," says Carol. "Former owners had used them to make a covered turkey pen."
The Wildmans renovated the house from top to bottom, restoring the woodwork (including the pocket doors) and incorporating pieces of the original stained glass windows into the décor. The three original upstairs bedrooms became two guest rooms, a bathroom and a comfortable open TV/recreation area. The Wildmans live on the main floor which is also open to guests and includes well-stocked bookshelves and a five-foot grand piano. Memorabilia from the town of Starbuck is featured throughout the house.
Guests usually find Aunt Jennie's through word of mouth or references from other local B&Bs. "We don't have a website or even a brochure," says Carol. "We're retired, so we enjoy every guest who finds their way to Aunt Jennie's."
Aunt Jennie's Bed
& Breakfast
Proprietors: Floyd and Carol Wildman
204 Tucannon St., Starbuck
(509) 399-2373