History
of the 1898 Waverly Inn
The 1898 Waverly Inn, our historic Western North Carolina inn,
was erected in 1898, during a tourism building
boom in Hendersonville, NC.
The Queen Anne style bed and breakfast was
built as a two-and-a-half-story guest house
with dormer windows on the third floor and a
wraparound porch at street level. We wonder
if the dormered third floor, where the owner
lived, trapped heat in the summer time. After
a fire around 1910 damaged the third floor,
the decision was made to rebuild with a full
third floor (no dormers) and a full convection
attic was added under a hip roof with hand pressed
metal shingles.
Originally known as the Anderson Boarding House,
the name was changed to The Waverly before 1915.
In 2010 the name was changed just slightly to
1898 Waverly Inn to reflect the historic significance
of the inn. The main entrance is the original double paneled and glazed doors and is different from any other building entrance in Hendersonville. At the back of the lobby is an Eastlake-style staircase. This style of staircase is rare in the south and it is one of the reasons that we were able to get a National Historic Register designation in 1988.
A second floor porch was added to the inn after the early 1900's fire and other additions were added in 1940 and 1960. Lots of renovations have happened over the years and some of the trends that have gone by the wayside are: wall stencils, wallpapered ceilings, shag carpeting, louvered doors for ventilation at the bedrooms, fuses instead of circuit breakers, double beds, shared bathrooms and metal showers . A lot of it will not be missed.
The most extraordinary facts about the inn are that there have been only eight owners during the more than one hundred years of existence of this building and that the inn has never been closed. It has definitely been loved and cared for over the years and we feel the pressure to be good stewards for the future of this landmark property.
The flavor and elegance of the late nineteenth century can still be felt in this majestic building. The high ceilings and beautiful woodwork along with the long wide porches whisper for you to "relax and experience southern hospitality as it was meant to be". |
