1898 Waverly Inn
By: Dan Gibbs
The 1898 Waverly Inn at 783 North Main Street in Hendersonville is the oldest surviving Inn that is in existence “from the early 20th century tourism boom in Hendersonville.” As the name suggests it was built in 1898 and began as the Anderson Boarding House. It is built in the Queen Anne style with elements of the Eastlake style.
According to the document that list the 1898 Waverly Inn in the National Register of Historic Places, the property was bought by Maggie Anderson in 1898 and she constructed what was then known as the Anderson Boarding House. A fire damaged the building in 1910, severely damaging the roof. The roof was repaired and a third story was added and it became the Waverly Inn sometime before 1915.
The Waverly Inn’s website waverlyinn.com, proudly states the Inn has had electricity since 1903 and a telephone since 1904. Those were state of the art amenities at the turn of the 20th century. With Hendersonville’s Train Depot just down the way on Maple Street, the Waverly Inn became a popular destination for the tourists that were flooding into Hendersonville during this time. At its peak, six passenger trains a day stopped in Hendersonville from as far north as Cincinnati, Ohio and as far south as Charleston, South Carolina.
The 1898 Waverly Inn sits at the end of the Hendersonville Historic District on North Main Street and was entered into the National Register of Historic Places in 1988. The Inn sits beside the Charleston Inn and across the street from St. James Episcopal Church, two other important members of Hendersonville’s history. I have always been fascinated by the architecture of the 1898 Waverly with its wide front porches and southern rocking chairs sitting in place. It is an inviting looking home and it brings to mind a much simpler time when sitting on the front porch was considered entertainment. Each room at the Inn has its own unique flavor and there may not be a better way to spend time in Hendersonville.
