Nancy Swartzel, owner of Willis Graves Bed and Breakfast Inn in Burlington, recently addressed the Florence Rotary Club. The club meets almost every Monday at noon at the Hilton in Florence.
The Willis Graves Bed and Breakfast Inn was listed as one of the Top Ten Bed and Breakfasts in 2013 by bedandbreakfast.com (http://www.bedandbreakfast.com/travelers/awards/2013/2013-top-10-us). Here a video of the accommodations shows why it was so highly rated.
The Willis Graves house was built sometime in the 1830s in the federal architectural style. In 1979, it was added to the National Registrar of Historic places. However, by 1991, when Nancy and Bob Swartzel bought it, the house had fallen into disrepair. The beautiful brick facade had siding over it and the interior had layers of wall paper. When they pulled the siding off, they discovered that the brick had been painted. With the help of Nancy’s father, Master Carpenter Bob Brames, the house was restored and opened for business as a bed and breakfast in 1995.
Ten years later, the Swartzels bought another historic home for $1. Known as the William Rouse log cabin and built in the 1850s, it sat four miles away from the Bed & Breakfast in the middle of a field destined to become a runway for CVG. The cabin was dismantled and moved to the Willis Graves Bed & Breakfast Inn property. It took two years to reassemble the 216 poplar logs and renovate the log cabin. In 2004, the cabin opened for guests.
Between the Willis Graves house and the William Rouse log cabin, the bed and breakfast offers five guest options—two suites with living rooms, steam showers and whirlpool baths; and three smaller rooms. Valentines weekend is always a popular time at the Inn. An average stay at the Bed & Breakfast is one and a half days with room rates ranging from $110-$235 per night.
“We got into the B&B business because we enjoy meeting people and sharing our love of antiques,” said Swartzel. “We hope local residents will visit us, too!”
