Blue Ridge Country - May/June 2015 - 48

autographed photo, saying, "Thanks
for a memorable stay!"
Restaurant for Recess: Savor the biscuits with chocolate gravy - or a vegetable omelet with tomatoes and
mushrooms - at the West End Cafe
(931-879-6611) in nearby Jamestown.

Terrell House Bed and
BreakfasT

109 RoBeRtson stReet, BuRnsville,
noRth CaRolina
888-682-4505 | teRRellhouseBandB.Com

Benham school house inn (top) has 30 rooms for rent in
kentucky. a desk (bottom) stands at the side of the tub at
the Bunting suite inside the schoolhouse of the whitestone
Country inn on watts Bar lake in tennessee.

Take a Virtual Tour!
view video tours of Joe tennis'
visits to the Benham school house
inn and Country River inn at
BlueRidgeCountry.com/SleepSchools

48 BlueRidgeCountry.com

Mike and Laura Hoskins put a lot
of class into making guests feel welcome at their plush and comfy bedand-breakfast. Mike Hoskins is also
never tardy in sharing history: The
Terrell House was a dormitory in the
early 1900s for the Stanley
McCormick School, a place where
young ladies came to live in the
small, mountain town of Burnsville,
North Carolina.
"There were probably 12 or 13
girls - and one bathroom," Mike
Hoskins says, grinning. "That must
have been a real challenge. But,
there was probably an outhouse,
too, I suspect."
In 1927, the Stanley McCormick
School became the Carolina New
College. Soon after that switch, the
college closed during the Great
Depression in 1931.
Later, what one school bulletin
had advertised as a "Cottage for
Young Women" became a private
home. Ultimately, this 4,500-squarefoot structure was converted by
1991 into a six-room bed-andbreakfast by former owners John
and Pat Terrell.
The Hoskins couple took over the
B&B operations in 2006. And today,
says Mike Hoskins, "Every room has
its own bathroom."
Restaurant for Recess: Terrell House
breakfasts boast such fare as pancakes
with blueberries plus plenty of coffee.

You can also sample salads, sandwiches, soups - and specials like crab
cakes or "Bourbon Sirloin" - at the
Garden Deli (828-682-3946) on
Burnsville's town square.

WHiTesTone CounTry inn

1200 Paint RoCk Rd, kingston, tennessee
888-247-2464 | whitestoneinn.Com

Paul Cowell tells it like it is: The
school at Tennessee's Whitestone
Country Inn was never really a
school. It was actually only inspired
by a painting of a Vermont schoolhouse in the snow. "And I took that
to the architect and said, 'This is
what the schoolhouse should look
like,'" says Cowell, a minister, businessman and the founder of
Whitestone Country Inn.
No matter its origin, this jewel of
a school may be the most pictureperfect you'll ever see: It's red and
white, like the color of a candy cane,
and topped with a bell in its tower.
Inside the schoolhouse, you can
rest easy in the Falcon Suite, featuring a king-size bed and kitchenette.
Or you can check out the charm of
the smaller Indigo Bunting Suite,
where you'll find a school desk
standing outside the tub.
Whitestone borders a scenic span
of Watts Bar Lake on the outskirts of
Kingston - with 23 guest rooms, a
wedding chapel, dining hall, walking trails, boat dock, tennis courts,
recreation room and a disc golf
course. It's all made to look like a
New England village. And everyone
must stop at the schoolhouse: It's
where you check in and check out.
Restaurant for Recess: The breakfast
buffet at the Whitestone Country Inn
features eggs, meat and fruit. Dinner
selections include Parmesan Herb
Tilapia and Marinated Flat Iron Steak,
served with red skin mashed potatoes,
steamed green beans, assorted desserts
and fresh-baked bread. 

http://www.whitestoneinn.Com http://www.teRRellhouseBandB.Com http://www.BlueRidgeCountry.com/SleepSchools http://www.BlueRidgeCountry.com

Blue Ridge Country - May/June 2015

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