Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1918-05-10
History of the Hotel.

History of the Hotel
The Townshcnd Inn was built fol
lowing the big fire of April 26, 1894,
by the Townshcnd Hotel Co., n stock
company. at cost of $500, including
| furnishings. 1t was sold to Mr.. and
| Mrs Levi j. Strong of Brattlcboro in
| 1910 for $4,000, by auction. In October,
1912, Guy w. Powers, then principal
of Leland & Gray seminary, bought the
property by auction for $4,625. Three
years later, on Oct 25, 1915, the chin
nev burned out in the forenoon and n
cinder set fire to the roof. Help was
summoned and the fire was cxtn-
guished, after several guests had carried
out their belongings. Mr.. Powers made
number of improvements in the prop
erty and sold it TO Sherman Willard in
January, 1916. Mr.. Willard was a for
mer Townshend man who was proprietor
of a hotel in Exeter, N. H. He had
been proprietor successfully of the
Kendrck House in Putney and hotels
in Milford, n. H., and Exeter.
Mr.. Willard put in an electric light
ing plant and made other improvements.
He died last year, and last November
Frank Mclean, who was in the hay and
grain business in Waterbury, Conn,
took possession having bought the prop.
erty of the Willard estate at low fig
urc. Mr.. Mclean was proprietor of
the Jamaica hotel % years ago and ran
several other hotels before going into
the grain business. At one time he ran
the hotel in Colrain, Mass He conduct
ed the Raponda hotel in Wilmington
last summer. The Townshcnd Inn was
considered to be the best hotel in the
West River valley. 1t was two.
story structure, we'll appointed and was
well patronized by travelling men and
summer guests.
The town hall building was erected
in 1911 and was dedicated Aug. Is,
1916, in connection with the Old Home
day festivities. The cost, including
seats, was about $1,000. The Dimensions
were 60 by 40 feet, with 20foot posts
On the first floor were the audience
room, stage and dressing rooms, the
main entrance and two anterooms
There was large gallery in the front
part, and this with the main hall fur
nished seating capacity for 300 persons
1t had plastercd walls, a steel ceiling
and maple floor. A cupola was added
year or two ago at cost of about
81, 900, in which was placed large
clock previously given by Col. H. +.
Dutton of Gainesville, Fla, now dc.
ceased.
Some Previous Fires.
This is the fourth serious fire loss
that has been sustained by the beauti.
full village of Townshend and the see
ond on the east side of the main street,
covering in large part the site of the
fire of 1894.
On the night of Nov. ~, 1856, a fire
on the west side started in the cold
corner store long occupied by L. j.
Knapp. 1t spread both ways and burned
six buildings, causing loss of about
$4,000. Knapp & Day sold the store
to w. r. Phillips only q few
days before the fire.
The next heavy loss was on the after
noon of April 90, 1894, on the east side.
Fire started from an unknown cause in
a barn owned by Mrs. Sarah Wilson in
the rear of the Baptist church and de-
stroyed the barn, the Baptist church,
Leland and Gray seminary, the build
ing owned by o. L. Coombs and oc
cupicd by him and his son-in-law, w. S.
Holland, now of Brattleboro, as a
dwelling and by Mr.. Holland as gen.
cral store, the West River House owned
by the Thomas Evans estate, the DR..
Clark place occupied by Mrs. Seneca
Howe and her son, Harlan, the Clark
drug store, a one-story dwelling owned
and occupied by Mrs. Swan, and n. w.
Powers IS house, brick building unoc-
cupied-nine buildings in all. The loss
on this occasion was $4,000.
Again on the west side 100000 fire
broke out Dec. %, 1896, destroying
four buildings. The fire started in the
store building owned by the late Sid
ncy Fl. Sherman of Brattlcboro and oc-
cupicd by B. NJ. Adams. This build
ing was burned together with the store
and dwelling of +. II. ODER, II. w.
Sanders S dwelling and the Gray build
ing occupied as tenement house.