5 Historic Hotels with Ties to the Founding of America
by Briana Bonfiglio
Photo: The Red Lion Inn
See also: Meet Some of the Oldest, Most Historic Inns and Resorts in the American Northeast
With America 250 upon us, historic hotels in the United States are having a moment.
Some of the country’s oldest hotels were built in the 1700s as private homes and gathering spots and later turned into quaint inns to preserve the legacy of the significant people who once dwelled there. Travelers now often seek out these properties for their charm, personal service, and storytelling dating back centuries.
In honor of the milestone anniversary of America’s independence, here are five historic hotels that were built in the 18th century, before Independence Day, and have ties to the country’s founding.
Concord’s Colonial Inn – Concord, Massachusetts (1716)
Concord’s Colonial Inn has two major claims to fame: its original buildings stored weapons and provisions for militia during the Revolutionary War, and it was home to renowned philosopher and author Henry David Thoreau when he was studying at Harvard in the 1830s.
“Concord’s Colonial Inn has stood at the heart of this historic town since 1716, witnessing generations of Americans through revolution, reflection, and renewal,” General James Kluge told Travel Market Report.
The storied history all began with Captain James Minot, who constructed what would become the East House in 1716, and his descendants, also military men, who built the Central Building and West House in the 1770s. These buildings became warehouses for the local community and housed weapons for the Massachusetts militia leading up to the Revolutionary War. By 1775, Dr. Timothy Minot, Jr., was using the home as a makeshift hospital for wounded American militia during the Battles of Lexington and Concord.
The Thoreau family purchased the homes in 1799, and Henry David Thoreau lived in the East House while completing his Harvard degree in 1835. When the property first converted to a hotel in 1889, it was known as the Thoreau House.
When new owners took over the hotel in 1900, it became Concord’s Colonial Inn. Throughout the 20th century, many famous figures visited, including President Franklin Delano Roosevelt, J.P. Morgan, First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, and many more.
The property underwent many renovations and major additions over the years, notably with the new Preston House in the 1960s.
Now, Concord’s Colonial Inn has 56 unique rooms and suites, preserved historic spaces for events, a taproom bar, village tavern, and outdoor patio. It also gained a haunted reputation after being featured on the television show Ghost Hunters. In 2005, the hotel joined Historic Hotels of America and has been named on the organization’s Top 25 Most Haunted Hotels list.
“This summer especially, we are seeing visitors deeply engaged with that history — not just by touring the landmarks of Concord, but by seeking authentic experiences that allow them to feel connected to the people and stories that shaped our nation,” Kluge said. “Guests are drawn to the idea that they can dine, gather, and stay within walls that have been part of the American story for more than three centuries.”
Historic Inns of Annapolis – Annapolis, Maryland (1727)
Comprised of three separate hotels, the Historic Inns of Annapolis is brimming with history and stories from the early days of our nation. Most notably, two of the buildings face the state capitol, where the Treaty of Paris was ratified in 1784, ending the war for American Independence.
The Governor Calvert House dates to the 1720s; the Robert Johnson House was built in 1773, and the iconic Maryland Inn was built in 1772 – functioning as lodging for statesmen and dignitaries since its inception. It is where Congressional members stayed after ratifying the Treaty of Paris.
The three inns merged under one name, Historic Inns of Annapolis, in the 1970s, and officially joined Historic Hotels of America in 1996.
Michelle Vellon, the hotel’s director of sales & marketing, told TMR that this summer in particular, travelers are seeking authentic experiences, and staying at the Historic Inns allows them to be immersed in the city’s history.
“Visitors are surrounded by the same streets, architecture, and stories that helped shape our country’s founding,” she said. “They want to walk to the State House, explore downtown Annapolis and the waterfront, and connect with the history in a more personal way while still enjoying all the charm Annapolis has today.”
Historic Inns of Annapolis offers an array of room categories and is centrally located near museums, restaurants, and shopping. The three buildings surround the State Circle at the Maryland State House, in a picturesque setting near the river. It is also about 32 miles from Washington, D.C.
John Rutledge House Inn – Charleston, South Carolina (1763)
John Rutledge built his two-story town home in Charleston in 1763. Today, it is one of the last 15 homes of signers of the Constitution that is still standing.
Rutledge wrote iterations of the Constitution on the second-floor drafting room of the property, and George Washington visited the house in 1791. Rutledge was a prominent politician and South Carolina’s first governor before his death in 1800.
The home cycled through many lives over the years, including serving as a law office in the early 1900s. By the 1970s, it was added to the U.S. National Register of Historic Places and then named as a National Historic Landmark.
But the property was largely abandoned for some time before hotelier Rick Widman, owner of Charming Inns, purchased it and revived it as a hotel in 1987. His daughter, Michelle Woodhull, president of Charming Inns, spoke with TMR about his vision and the hotel’s significance today.
“He saw this beautiful home that was built in 1763 and owned by an original signer of the Constitution and said, ‘how amazing would it be if people could stay in this home?'” Woodhull said. “It needed a new life; it hadn’t been well preserved or taken care of, and he wanted to be a good steward of the building and have people experience it.”
Now the John Rutledge House Inn has been fully restored, featuring 18 rooms and a Signers Ballroom where Rutledge drafted parts of the Constitution. The hotel’s staff of under 10 people make the stay personal for guests, telling tales of how She Crab Soup was rumored to be invented at a party in the home in the ’20s, or encouraging guests to explore the property’s expansive courtyard that is still home to artifacts of its past.
Beekman Arms and Delamater Inn – Rhinebeck, New York (1766)
Like many New York landmarks, Beekman Arms hosted George Washington and other revolutionaries, such as Benedict Arnold and Alexander Hamilton. It is also known as the country’s oldest continuously running inn, so there’s a lot more history behind it.
The Fourth New York Regiment of the Continental Army ran drills on the front lawn of Beekman Arms. During that time, when the British Army burned nearby Kingston, many prominent people took refuge at the inn.
In more recent history, Franklin Delanor Roosevelt started and ended every presidential campaign on the property’s front porch. He lived down the road and frequented the tavern.
The hotel has since expanded beyond Beekman Arms to offer lodging in other buildings inspired by different time periods throughout American history, plus a ballroom, a library, and a greenhouse. Inside, much has been preserved such as old oak rafters and muskets on display. Even to this day renovations are made to preserve the building and its grounds, such as a recent resetting of the bricks on the front lawn’s sidewalk. People come back generation after generation for hospitality and history.
“We get a lot of locals who have been coming here for years and years, and a lot of people who got married here 50 to 60 years ago,” General Manager Nicole Coulon told TMR. “Everybody always wants to know about the history.”
“Other people have heard rumors of ghosts, so we get people who are ghost hunting,” she added. “The village is a quaint small, little village; it’s a great place to come on the weekends, especially in the fall.”
The Red Lion Inn – Stockbridge, Massachusetts (1773)
Before becoming the charming New England hotel that it is today, The Red Lion Inn was a prime gathering place for political organizers around the time of America’s founding and throughout the 18th century as the nation established itself in those first few decades.
“At The Red Lion Inn, our roots alongside the founding of America run deep, something still symbolized today by the green tail on our iconic Red Lion sign, which historically signified support for the Revolutionary cause and the fight for freedom,” Sarah Eustis, CEO and third-generation owner of The Red Lion Inn and Main Street Hospitality’s CEO, told TMR.
“For more than 250 years, the Inn has served as a gathering place for travelers, locals, artists, and thinkers, and this summer, guests are engaging with that history in especially immersive and personal ways.”
Now the property, a collection of former village homes and even a renovated firehouse, is immortalized in the 1976 Norman Rockwell painting, “Stockbridge Main Street at Christmas.”
The Red Lion Inn honors its history with exhibits and programming to educate guests and visitors, especially for America 250. The property has just debuted a new exhibit in The Fitz Gallery, “The Red Lion Inn: Three Years Older Than America,” featuring rarely displayed memorabilia, photography, and artifacts, such as old handwritten guestbook signatures.
“It has been incredibly rewarding to see guests not only take an interest in our history, but actively seek opportunities to experience it in meaningful and tangible ways,” Eustis said. “Whether exploring our archives, attending historical programming, engaging in conversations on our iconic Front Porch, or simply pausing to appreciate the generations of stories and memories that live within these walls, we are reminded now more than ever that history is not only something to be remembered, but something to be experienced, shared, and carried forward together.”
