Musings from You and Me

Charlottesville Tip # 2

Where is the best place to stay in Charlottesville? If you are looking for ambiance, proximity to the downtown mall, and a touch of history, it doesn't get better than South Street Inn their website features wonderful photographs and all the information on the Inn,(a sample is below).

Meticulous detail went into every aspect of the Inn from the rebuilding of the neo-classical veranda to the restoration of the solid walnut two-story serpentine hand rail in the main gallery. We offer the traveler convenience and luxury. Every room has a private bath; some suites offer whirlpool bathtubs, fireplaces, canopy beds and private living rooms. 17 rooms, 3 suites.

In 1856, James Woods, a local builder, completed the larger of our two houses. He then sold the property to Thomas Jefferson Wertenbaker, the son of Thomas Jefferson's close friend and the University of Virginia's first librarian William Wertenbaker. The house changed hands in 1882. Another distinguished family, the Valentines, moved in. Mr. Valentine was a prominent businessman with interests in a bank, the cable car company and the woolen mills here is Charlottesville. At this time the main building was the only building located on the block. The photograph in your room is the house as it was in 1903 when the Valentine family occupied it. Most of the original furnishings are in the Valentine Museum in Richmond, Virginia. Mrs. Irene Valentine, whose husband Vinton was born in room 9 (the portrait of the young boy in room 9 is Vinton, age 3, painted by his older sister in 1888), resided on Park Street here in Charlottesville until recently. The Wertenbaker house took an interesting turn later when it became a girls finishing school, then a boarding house, and at one stage, a brothel (known legally in Virginia as a 'Bawdy House').

Choose which gorgeous room you would like to stay in from the photos on their website. The South Street Inn is So Very Virginia, don't miss it!

posted by FineVirginiaLiving.com @ 8:30 AM