History & Remembrance
Honoring the past while embracing the future
A walk down memory lane...
Did you know that the General Lewis was owned and operated by the same family until it was purchased by the Huffmans?
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The hotel has been in continuous operation since 1929 after the original property was purchased by the Hock family. The main section and the west wing of the inn were designed by Walter Martens, a well-known West Virginia architect who also designed the Governor's Mansion in Charleston. The Hocks spent years procuring antiques in the Greenbrier Valley and adjoining counties to furnish the Inn. In fact, they were greatly inspired by the aesthetics of the Colonial era, and mostly collected items from the 1800s. We aim to continue their legacy, from our careful restoration of furniture to our design choices. Like the Hocks, we look towards the past century, inspired by the grandeur and elegance of the Roaring 20s and Art Deco, to balance the old with the new.
an earlier history...
The eastern end of the Inn, including the Dining Room, kitchen, and a suite of rooms on the first floor plus two bedrooms and a suite on the second floor, comprised a brick residence built in the early 1800s by John H. Withrow. We know that the hand-hewn beam in the present-day Dining Room was added when the wall separating two front rooms in the house were removed to create a larger space. This beam, as well as the additional beams in the lounge and lobby, were reclaimed from two structures behind the residence that were thought to be livery stables.
In our recent renovation of the Dining Room, we exposed part of the brick exterior wall, and retained the original wallpaper of the home on the ceiling. We are awe-struck by the power these elements of the original structure hold--having stood through the Civil War. We think about the history of these original structures with a critical lens, avoiding glorification, and recognizing the painful legacy that slavery has left on our world. The foundation, and these original elements were most likely fashioned by the hands of enslaved people, whose quarters and lives are hidden from view, both literally and historically. The act of uncovering the wall is symbolic in that we wish to expose this erasure, and we wish to honor all life that was built and seen by those walls.