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25 East Main B&B is unlike any other place you’ve stayed, most notably for the history, but also due to the kind owners who are excited to make your stay in historic Fincastle memorable.
Julianne Rainone
Bobbie and Mitch Bowman didn’t plan to turn their family home into a popular B&B, but a year after starting the venture, they’re glad to share a piece of history with their guests.
The home, now known as 25 East Main B&B, is a Victorian home with New Orleans influence. Bobbie’s grandparents bought the home in 1940, living there for nearly 40 years. Bobbie’s father was only 10 years old when he moved into the home, the first house in Fincastle with a flushing toilet. At the time, it had cisterns because of its limestone base. Bobbie then grew up in the house and has all her Christmas memories there. She remembers when she and Mitch were dating, she showed him the house and explained her love for it. Now they have lived there for 40 years, with Bobbie’s parents living next door.
Mitch, a former principal of W.E. Cundiff and department chair at Hollins, is originally from Franklin County and is quite a history buff. Bobbie loved teaching kindergarten through seventh grade, as well as special education, eventually doing remediation for seven years after retirement. Now, however, their focus is on creating wonderful experiences for their visitors.
“We love Fincastle,” Bobbie says. “This has been a true labor of love trying to restore it. It’s constant, but we love it.”
The family home became a bed and breakfast in May 2016. Restoration happened a little bit at a time, as the couple raised their family in the home as well. They knew they would eventually need a downstairs bedroom with a handicapped-accessible bathroom. And they figured while they were building a downstairs bathroom, they might as well build one upstairs, too.
The porch needed to be reconstructed. That’s when Gene Simmons of Timberline Construction came in, spending three years restoring the porch to its full potential. He started in the corner, working his way around the entire house (at extreme heights, no less!) removing rotting wood and hammering in new pieces.
A massive fire took out everything on Main Street in 1870. While the home was not there at the time, it was bought in 1873, meaning the home was built shortly after the fire. Many women in that time wanted to get away from New Orleans and Yellow Fever, opting to come to Fincastle because of the good water. At the time the first couple moved into the new home, it was a one-story structure. The lady of the house added a floating staircase (a unique feature not often seen in that time period), added bay windows, wrought iron and 16-foot ceilings upstairs. When her husband died from tuberculosis only a few years later, she and her children had to move. A century later, the Bowmans met her relatives, who brought an original set of everyday china that had once been in the home.
“We’re not just a B&B,” Mitch says. “We’re a piece of Fincastle history.”
The couple feels so strongly about this that during their renovations, their choices kept with the historical aspect. While many of the rooms boast the same wallpaper chosen by Bobbie’s grandmother (or was there when her father moved in, dating it back even further), the dining room needed a new layer. Bobbie selected a wallpaper that fit with the theme, a potpourri style based on the appropriate time period and old china that was once housed inside. The fireplace in the dining room, meant to burn coal, has gas coals now, keeping with the authenticity.
Their furniture is a hodge-podge of items gifted to the couple from family members like a great-aunt and grandparents. Most are antiques and you’d be hard-pressed to figure out which ones are not original. The historical aspect of the home is fascinating; when homes this old are renovated, often times they’re updated with modern techniques. Other than a few small additions like air-conditioning and heating units, and microwaves and televisions (it is a B&B in 2017, after all), much of the house remains just as it was so many years ago.
One of the most interesting pieces, if you had to pick just one, is the clock in the front hallway. This piece was actually built on the property before the home, made by a cabinet maker and gunsmith. Kept in a store in town, it didn’t burn in the fire. The piece eventually made its way back to the Bowmans and still works to this day.
“It has a nice, loud bell, so we turned it off to prevent scaring the guests awake,” Bobbie says, laughing.
The front door immediately catches your attention, as it is larger than your average door. The old-fashioned bell is original with the house, too. As you step inside, local art adorns the walls, including artwork of their own family members or the house itself.
Off to the right is the first guest bedroom, still decorated with Bobbie’s grandmother’s wallpaper. There is even a picture of her in the room. The only major change made to the rooms was adding king beds. Because beds were smaller so many years ago, Bobbie and Mitch had to search for a simpler headboard that might not necessarily be historically accurate, but still fit within the theme. An enormous armoire sits in the corner, hiding the television and WiFi.
While the bathrooms are brand new, they also have a piece of the home’s history. Downstairs, the couple used part of the old porch to extend the bathroom, creating an almost spa-like experience with enormous walk-in shower. Guests look up to see original brick walls that were painted battleship gray long ago.
Upstairs, another large guest bedroom is filled with books. By the stairs stands a unique dinner bell, a family piece handed down over the generations. The last room off the right is actually a family suite, two smaller rooms with a shared bathroom that works well for those with children.
Outside, however, is where real treasure resides. Just off the back porch is a beautiful garden where guests can sit and enjoy a sunny spot. Mitch made the fountain himself and even has his own garden past the backyard. He grows flowers, vegetables and fruit, such as cherries, strawberries and blackberries.
“We get to tell guests our breakfasts are organic!” Bobbie says. “Mitch is wonderful with the garden; he goes out early every morning to tend to it.”
People will often walk down the street and bump into Bobbie or Mitch outside, and ask to see the inside. The B&B is always on the Christmas home tour list as well. They enjoy sharing the home with people, encouraging them to take a peek. They’ve had guests from all over the country, and even the world, including travelers as far away as Scotland.
Because Fincastle is such a historic spot, the courthouse vaults have great records, and the local library has its own genealogy room. The Botetourt Museum also boasts wonderful resource books that visitors frequently use for personal projects. There’s no question the Bowmans love history too. They’ve even worked with a few guests on their projects, providing their own resources or taking them to the nearby cemetery to look for family markers.
Many of their visitors are wedding guests (the Kyle House, a beautiful venue, is only half a block away). Bobbie often finds herself helping busy brides with favors and enjoys the flurry of excited activity as their guests prepare to celebrate special events. Talk about a full-service B&B!
“We’ve met super people of all kinds. There’s a sort of wonderful person who comes to a B&B,” Bobbie says. “They come here because they’re excited, and it’s really fun. There’s always more to do, but we just enjoy being here.”
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