Prospect Hill in Tennessee

 

Prospect Hill B&B Inn in Mountain City is convenient to an array of natural activities in Tennessee: the Southwest Virginia Highlands and North Carolina's High Country. Built in 1889 of hand made brick, this house is a Victorian shingle style home which looks very northern. It's builder, Joseph Wagner, served as a major in the Union Army during the Civil war. He had mercantile and mining interests in the post-war era. The Rambo family bought the house in 1910 and updated it with electricity, plumbing and central heat on the first floor. The third generation of Rambo's sold it to the Cornett's in the early 1990s who in turn sold it to Robert and Judy Hotchkiss of Atlanta. The Hotchkiss's bought the house because its commanding presence on a hill makes it look like it should be a B&B. After another massive updating and renovation it was ready to become Prospect Hill B&B Inn, named for Major Wagner's mining interests in the area.
Everyone has their story of how they became innkeepers…ours is this: “After trying to get a friend to rent the vacant house next door so she could start a B&B, I had a dream one night: “Buy the house next door yourself and make it a B&B,” said the dream. It was such an absurd dream I didn’t tell my husband about it for at least two days. When I did, he thought it was a really good idea. So we started negotiations to buy the house and open an inn. One year later we were open for business. And you never know where you’ll find a really good recipe. As a child, my Brownie troop visited the electric company’s demonstration kitchen and received a packet of recipes. And with one of those child-size baking outfits I also received some simple recipes. My mother saved them all. About the time we opened our first inn I came into possession of these “made-for-children-to-bake” recipes. We are hardcore house restorers. Like an experienced team recruiter we can look an old house in the boiler and pick a winner. With each house we start with the basic recipe for renovation which is taking a rundown place and making it look great and work perfectly while maintaining its age-old spirit. I cook the same way.”

Recipes included in this cookbook and used by permission of Judy Hotchkiss: Dutch Chocolate Almond Muffins, Extra Chocolate Muffins, Dutch Apple Pancake

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This BnB (along with delicious recipes and wonderful stories) is featured in Sunrise Sunset Across America, Bed & Breakfast cookbook. Purchase it by clicking on the link in the upper sidebar. Click on the review to read more about it.