| A good friend that grew
up in this area suggested that we stay at The Weinhard
Hotel. What a surprise! We stepped into the lobby and we
suddenly went back a hundred years! The building was
built in 1889 by Jacob Weinhard to house the Weinhard
Saloon and Lodge Hall. Jacob was the nephew of the more
famous Weinhard, Henry. The hotel opened in 1994 after a total
rebuilt of the interior. While the look and feel are
Victorian you can be assured that you have all the
creature comforts of a moden hotel. The property is so
well kept that it looked as if it opened yesterday. Ginny
and Dan Butler, the proprietors, have done a marvelous
job.
We had two rooms, one on
the second floor and one on the main level. The rooms
were spaceous and decorated very correctly in detail to
the Victorian period. The twelve foot ceilings in the
guest rooms added to that distinctive feel. The second
floor is reached by a long stair case along the side of
the lobby.
There were many things to
like about the Weinhard Hotel. The wonderful evening
music in the lobby (Fridays & Saturdays 6-7 PM) on
this particular Friday evening was provided by a young
gentleman, Tedd Oakly, a local violin and fiddle
virtuoso, accompanied by his mom. Coffee, tea and muffins
were provided in the morning at the lobby.
We stopped in on our way
back through Dayton Sunday and had a great lunch at the
Weinhard Cafe. Afterwards, we visited the charming
Victorian roof garden towards the back of the hotel. We
will return soon to learn more about the rich history and
the fine wineries of the area.
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