Pair of Williamstown Inns Offers Distinctive StaysBy Phyllis Mcguire
Special to iBerkshires
04:15AM / Tuesday, July 07, 2009
 The 200-year-
old Stratton Inn offers antiques and plush amenities. Above, a four-poster in the Ashahel Foote Suite, named for a former owner.
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WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass. — Whether vacationing for a weekend or longer, people who like a homey atmosphere prefer bed and breakfasts and inns over hotels and motels.
The Stratton Inn is not only appealing as a home away from home, but also provides amenities large and small found at high-scale hotels: free access the Internet, iPod docking stations, air conditioning, plush robes, hair dryers, toiletries, complimentary chocolates, beverages and snacks.
"We serve breakfasts to the guests in their rooms, too," said Michelle Shulse, who, together with Jim Babineau, operates the inn.
When house-hunting in Williamstown after relocating from South Carolina in 2007, Shulse was favorably impressed with the Federal house numbered 62 Stratton Road, now known as the Stratton Inn. One of its attributes was especially important to Shulse. "It was handicapped-accessible and had wide doors," she said in an interview, explaining that her 13-year-old son uses a wheelchair.
A Realtor enlightened Shulse on the history of the house, which has been included in the Williamstown House of Local History's historical house tours.
The post-and-beam portion of the house was built by Elijiah Smedley in 1790. He married in 1828 and, in 1830, he and his wife, Lucy, expanded the home and added the brick facade. They sold the house to their daughter Mary and her husband, Deacon Ashahel Foote, for $2,000 in 1835.
Foote became famous as a nurseryman and set up fine orchards, which gave the name to the property where the Orchards Hotel presently stands on Main Street.
Over the years, the building has served as a boarding school for boys, a stagecoach stop, a speakeasy, a motel and a research office for the Getty Foundation.
 The building was larger than Shulse needed as a private residence. "We decided to convert it to a bed and breakfast," she said.
Now, the Stratton Inn offers guests a choice of two private suites: the Elijiah Smedly and the Ashahel Foote. Tastefully furnished with antiques, including a canopy bed, and adorned with fresh flowers, the suites consist of sitting room, dining area, large bedroom and accompanying private bathroom with bathtub and shower.
The friendly innkeepers are welcoming but say they never infringe on their guests' privacy.
"We try to anticipate our guests' needs and make them comfortable," said Shulse. "But we tell them if they want anything else, just knock on our door."
When guests explore the area, Shulse assures them that if they get lost, help is nearby. "Call us and we'll give you directions," she tells them.
After touring Williams College, museum hopping or enjoying other cultural attractions in the Berkshires, guests like to relax on the side porch, savoring wine and cheese the innkeepers supply.
When it is time to turn in, those who customarily invite sleep by watching television, especially appreciate the 42-inch flat screen in their suite. There also is a Blu-Ray player and a selection of current DVDs in each suite.
Shulse and Babineaus' experiences as innkeepers have been positive, Shulse said. "Our guests have been nice."
Farm Life
At Clover Hill Farm, Carolyn Henderson fuses her love of animals and desire to meet nice people. She and her husband, Dr. Robert Micley, own and operate the equine facility and boarding stable, and its pet-friendly country inn at 249 Adams Road.
"I inherited my love of animals from my grandfather," said Henderson as she sat in the living room of the spacious main house on the farm. "I grew up in Texas and was riding a pony when I was 3.”
As Henderson was talking, four beagles napped on dog beds or stretched out belly-up in front of a rock fireplace that reaches 20 feet to the ceiling. Guests who bring their dogs with them are glad that their pets have the company of the beagles, she said.
Charlie, one of Clover Hill Farm's beagles. The stable offers pet-friendly rooms and a guest house. Top, the residence sits atop a knoll that offers 360-degree views of the mountains. |
Guest rooms in the main house are furnished in Western motif, and sleep three. As many as five people can comfortably occupy the guest house - a large bedroom, living room, fully equipped kitchen and bathroom, and private deck.
One visitor that stands out in Henderson's memory is Madeline Albright, secretary of state under President Clinton from January 1997 to January 2001, and the first woman to serve in that post.
Albright and her sister stayed in the guest house when they came to Williamstown on the occasion of their nephew's graduation from Williams College.
"At the same time, a gentleman who was bringing his daughter up to be an intern at the summer theater (Williamstown Theatre Festival) was a guest [here]," said Henderson, referring to John Tunney, former senator from California. "As we sat around the kitchen table, they talked of times past."
Albright gave them a glimpse into what it had been like "trying to pull together" a meeting between late Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat and Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak at Camp David. "I envisioned her running here and there, and being diplomatic," said Henderson.
The day Williams' commencement ceremony was held, Albright had no time to sit at the kitchen table, chatting. Her nephew had made dinner reservations at a restaurant, which has since gone out of business, but after quite a while and several fruitless attempts to gain the attention of the waitstaff, they gave up hope of even ordering a meal. So they left and went to the Orchards, where they ate club sandwiches.
When Albright recounted what had happened, Henderson told her, "You could have gone into our refrigerator."
But the Bible tells us that "man doth not live on bread alone," and from any spot on Clover Hill Farm's 50-acre property and adjoining fields, guests feast their eyes on the beyond beautiful 360-degree view of the wooded mountains.
Whether blanketed in snow, a kaleidoscope of color in fall, or dressed in green to welcome summer, the mountains are the Berkshires crowning glory. And what better way to see them than from a Berkshire B&B? |
