With all the excitement of the revitalization of downtown Louisville: new hotels, museums and cultural centers and downtown living, we are thrilled to be an and to be a part of this historical area's own renaissance. As we witness renovation after renovation and the vibrancy of this community, we see the neighborhood becoming a compelling destination for visitors to our town, who marvel at the collection of historic, Victorian era houses and their stunning architectural beauty. Our thanks to Ms Kate Clabough for this feature article, which appeared in the September 2005 issue of East Tennessee's Mountain Views. Austin's Inn Place in Old Louisville welcomes visitors to Kentucky. If you find yourself visiting Louisville, Kentucky and want a comfortable yet unique place to stay, make reservations at Austin's Inn Place in Old Louisville. This delightful bed and breakfast inn is housed in two beautiful vintage Victorian homes built in the late 1880s. Current owners, Mary and Tom Austin, bought the business just over a year ago. Tom brings to the business a background in big business, computers, marketing and sales. Mary was raised in the restaurant business and worked in various aspects of real estate over the years. By Tom's admission, Mary is a great cook and hostess. The Inn boasts an ambience of luxury and visiting with good friends. Originally, the property consisted of three homes. In recent history, our predecessor razed the third house, restored the remaining two, gated, landscaped with gardens and brick pavers and opened the then Antique Inn, said Tom. The project was begun by a young bachelor entrepreneur, who, by the time he finished became a husband and a father running several businesses.. The Austin's purchased the property in July 2004, with only drapes and stair runner carpet remaining of the furnishings. They added new furniture, redecorated and opened for business in May 2005. The houses together offer a unique Inn setting. The three story structures are connected by walkways on the first and second floors. Each has five bedrooms with private baths, including bidets. We live in one of the homes and use two of the bedrooms, said Tom, One house has the kitchen and laundry rooms and three dining rooms. The other has a bar, party room, game room and parlor/library. This is why we refer to our place as a Guest and Gathering Inn, Beyond BB.'. As with many older homes, the bedrooms were devoid of closets. The Austins were able to remedy this deficiency by having sixteen large pressed wood display cases finished out as armoires. They also needed to work on bathroom idiosyncrasies. While all the bathrooms have new fixtures, said Tom, they had no countertops or cupboards, or vanity lights over the sinks.. The Austins hired an electrician to install decorative lighting and used stand-alone wooden cupboards to address the shortage of storage space. Much of the artwork which adorns the walls was moved from our old home, said Mary, as was the furnishing for one dining room. Our guest rooms now offer queen or king beds, top-of-the-line memory-foam pillow-top mattresses, dressed in fine linens, blanket, pillows and comforter. Two of our king bed rooms have two-person Jacuzzi hot tubs.. Guest room amenities are TV/DVD, desk/chair workspace, foot-of-the-bed bench, easy chair/recliner, clock radio, wireless high speed Internet access, and the usual personal pampering toiletries. Austin 's Inn Place is just blocks from the center of downtown. A fountain and lush garden adorn their off-street gated parking. Early risers may help themselves to coffee, tea, milk, juice, pastries, fruit, and cereal. A full and hearty breakfast is also served every morning. We came to this business as real estate investors, explained Tom, We are licensed realtors with our own brokerage, Austin Team Realty. Mary is the broker and she discovered this opportunity. We decided that a BB was the best use of the property and the time was good to invest in downtown because of all the exciting developments here.. According to historian Steve Locke of www.oldlouisville.com, Old Louisville is a National Preservation District, the third largest in the nation, and the largest Victorian district in the United States. Residents, neighbors, friends, investors and developers have banded together in this unique neighborhood to revitalize an area that was, until somewhat recently, in decline. Their collective goal is to return it to its original grandeur. Since the 1970s, Old Louisville has undergone a spectacular renaissance, writes Locke, yet it is still one of the best kept secrets' around. Old Louisville is only a two-minute detour from the expressway, but it's really worth an entire trip.. An early notable tenant of one of the Austin's Inn Place homes was Augustus Everett Willson, governor of Kentucky from 1907 to 1911. It is probable that Willson, a lawyer by trade, built the house somewhere around 1888. He and his wife, Mary Elizabeth Ekin, occupied it from that year until approximately 1892. They had at least one son, Hiram. Willson was born in Maysville, Macon County, Kentucky on October 13, 1846. The Cave Hill Cemetery website says he was raised in his brother's Cambridge home, which frequently entertained the likes of Holmes, Lowell, Longfellow, and Emerson. Trained at Harvard, in whose affairs he would remain active, he returned to his native state to practice law in Louisville.. He was a delegate to the Republican National Convention from Kentucky in 1884, 1904, 1908 and 1916. He served as governor of Kentucky, 1907-11 and was a candidate for U.S. Senator from Kentucky in 1914. While governor, Willson declared martial law in Western Kentucky during the Black Patch War. This period of domestic terrorism began due to the low prices paid to tobacco farmers in the fields of western Kentucky and Tennessee in 1904. Violence erupted and vigilantes on horseback destroyed plant beds, machinery and barns in an effort to scare independent farmers into joining a planter's cooperative. Willson did what he could to address the situation. The governor also worked toward establishing temperance legislation pushing for Prohibition and the 18th amendment. It was ratified in 1919, eight years after he left office. Not without his share of controversy, as is often the case with politicians, in 1909 Willson pardoned the former governor of Kentucky, William Sylvester Taylor, the former Secretary of State, Caleb Powers, and four other members of the Republican Party who had been found guilty of being involved in the murder of William Goebel, the Democratic Party governor of Kentucky. Willson died in Louisville on August 24, 1931. He is buried at Cave Hill Cemetery in Louisville. is located at 915 South 1st Street in Louisville, Kentucky. For more information, call 502-585-8855.

Austin 's Inn Place is ideal as a wedding reception site or for family reunions, office or any occasion parties, business meetings, or seminar/training sessions. We can accommodate small gatherings of 8-12 in our dining/conference rooms or as many as thirty in our party room. Additional free parking is right next door. We will assist you in planning, manage your event and coordinate services, etc. With the convenience of a central downtown location, Austin's Inn Place in offers several additional amenities for the business or leisure traveler. We offer meeting rooms for your social gathering, business conference and other corporate events, a game room with pool darts, parlor/reading room, book DVD library, wireless hi-speed access, fax, and a gift shop featuring Kentucky crafted products and art. Relaxed and rested after a night in our luxurious. you will enjoy a delicious breakfast in one of our three exquisitely decorated dining rooms. Business travelers and other early risers may help themselves to coffee, tea, milk, juice, pastries, fruit, cereal, etc. A full hearty breakfast is also served every morning.

Delightful accommodations in Old Louisville, KY housed in two beautiful 1888 vintage Victorian homes. Beyond BB A Great Hotel Alternative! Austin's Inn Place is a guest and gathering Bed Breakfast Inn in Old Louisville, Kentucky. We are just blocks from the center of. in two beautiful 1888 vintage Victorian homes. Moderately priced, we strive to provide and the ambience of visiting with good friends. Elegant decor throughout marks our unique lodging establishment, featuring eight guest rooms, three dining rooms, parlor, game room, party room and bar. A fountain and lush garden adorn our off-street gated parking. Austin's Inn Place is an ideal location for your family reunion, office or any occasion party, wedding reception, business meeting, or seminar/training session. We can accommodate small gatherings of 8-12 in our dining/conference rooms or as many as thirty in our party room. Additional free parking is right next door. We will manage your event and coordinate services, etc. Bed Breakfast Association of Kentucky. Louisville Bed Breakfast Association. Austin's Inn Place Bed and Breakfast 915 South 1st Street Louisville, KY 40203 502-585-8855 | www.austinsinnplace.com. Design, Hosting and Promotion by. Acorn Internet Services

Austin s Inn Place is pleased to host your romantic weekend excursion or relaxing. We are also excited to host guests for the very special Louisville event: At the Inn, you will enjoy distinct, personal service and luxurious accommodations and a variety of unique. In order to ensure your stay with us is pleasant, a number of policies have been established. We request payment in advance, for the first night's lodging, and full payment upon check-in. Special events such as Kentucky Derby and Ryder Cup 2008, may vary. VISA, MasterCard, Discover and American Express are accepted. Cancellations up to 48 hours prior to check-in will be refunded their deposits, less credit card processing fee of 5%. Check-in time is 3 pm; check-out is 12 noon. Arrangements for special events may be coordinated, in advance of your arrival, with the innkeepers. We can be your wedding reception location, your honeymoon destination or just a great place for any occasion that deserves extra attention. Preview and planning visits welcome. Kentucky Derby 2009 - Now available for booking! Kentucky Derby weekend is a very special time in Louisville. Like most inns and hotels, we offer our in specially priced packaged promotions. Included are three nights lodging at Austins Inn Place. We compliment our luxurious guest rooms and sumptuous with a Thursday night welcome dinner party. You will be treated to mint juleps, gourmet hors doeuvres and dinner buffet. Choose a queen bed room ($1350), king bed room ($1425) or king bed hot tub ($1500). State and local taxes of 14.5% are applicable. Derby event package pricing is applicable April 30, May 1-3, 2009. We request a 50% deposit, at booking, with the balance due by January 31, 2009. Cancellations up to that date will be refunded less $100 to cover rebooking and credit card processing fees. Bookings beyond January 31 require full non-refundable payment, at time of reservation. We accept MasterCard, VISA, American Express, and Discover. RYDER CUP 2008 IS IN LOUISVILLE! We would love to work with one party for the entire week. Call for details 502/585-8855. Proposal letter follows: We are Mary and Tom Austin, proprietors, Austins Inn Place Bed Breakfast in Louisville, Kentucky. The purpose of this correspondence is to make golf fans aware of our inn for 2008 Ryder Cup accommodations. Our preference is to deal with one entity for the entire weeks lodging. We seek an active Ryder participant who may wish to have such a facility available throughout the tournament for employees, clients, friends, family, to come and go at their leisure. Austins Inn BB is housed in two 1888 vintage Victorian style homes boasting nine guest rooms, with in-suite baths. Three have queen-sized beds, six are furnished with king-sized beds. Two of those also have two-person hot tubs. Three dining rooms, bar, game room, parlor and TV room offer plenty of common area for social gathering. Our property is gated, offering off-street parking, in downtown Old Louisville. With excellent interstate highway access we are less than twenty miles from suburban Valhalla Country Club (15-20 minutes, mostly I-64). Our proposal is for September 15-21, Monday thru Sunday, final checkout Monday morning September 22. Your guests may occupy our rooms one or two per night, for one to seven nights, at your discretion. We need to know who is in the rooms what nights. Breakfast will be served each morning in a prescribed time frame. Towels and linens freshened daily for stay-overs, changed out for turnovers. DVD movies and snacks are complimentary. We look forward to hearing from you. Sincerely,Mary Tom AustinAustin's Inn Place. Austin's Inn Place Bed and Breakfast 915 South 1st Street Louisville, KY 40203 502-585-9955 |