Independence House Bed & Breakfast: About the Inn

About the B & B

I bought this house a few years ago because of the wrap-around porch. For much of the year, it’s the best place to be. Good friends gather, parades go by, books get read on a lazy afternoon, and memories are made here. It’s not original, but I can show anyone who is interested the “shadow” on the front and side outside walls of the half-round columns that matched the long-gone porch columns.

The original 1895 home was not among the more ornate Victorians, but remains a solid reminder of a time of true craftsmanship. A kitchen and mud room, with a second-story bathroom were added sometime in the early 1900s. The windows are original, and this round of renovations reopened the stairway and space between the living room and dining room, exposing the original kitchen chimney.

The home was originally constructed in 1895 by Charles Mattison, who built two other residences at 460 and 488 Monmouth Street. The Mattisons owned two businesses in downtown Independence. This photo taken c. 19__, shows the original front porch.

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Except for the original wood floors, which have taken too much of a beating over the years, I have tried to be true to the home. Beyond the décor and renovations, my hope is that Independence House Bed & Breakfast evokes a slower pace when a cup of tea and a fresh-baked muffin could keep the world at bay.

The dining room features two antique English pub tables, lending both intimacy and flexibility to breakfast arrangements. Beer is not on the breakfast menu, but, if you listen carefully, you might hear the clink of beer mugs from days long gone.