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707-786-4000
The Gingerbread Mansion is one of the most photographed buildings in northern California. Built in 1898 as a doctor's residence, it later became a hospital. Exquisitely decorated with "gingerbread" trim, the beautiful Queen Anne/Eastlake Victorian property has been lovingly restored by owner Ken Torbert to create one of the most exquisite bed and breakfasts in America.
There are 11 guest bedrooms in this state historic landmark. They are all beautifully furnished, all have private bathrooms and showers, and they come filled with extras like toweling robes. Included is a delicious afternoon tea in one of the parlors, as well as a full breakfast featuring homemade dishes. No children under 10 years of age, no pets, and no smoking indoors are the house rules.
For adults, Ferndale is a constant delight: a Victorian treasure house of historic homes, churches and other buildings. Even the shops seem stuck in another age, fun to explore. Voyages of exploration on foot, or on the bicycles that Torbert keeps for guests, are the principal pastime. History is all around you. At the Gingerbread Mansion, you'll be staying in the best-looking bit of it.
The ghosts at the Gingerbread Mansion are presumed to be a couple of mischievous Victorian children, although no one is quite sure of exactly who they were, when they lived there, or what they are doing.
Odd things happen. A picture which Torbert hung in the front parlor mysteriously moved itself into the lounge. Guests walking up the main staircase have slipped on the slightly short 13th stair and claimed they were pushed. And one guest, Christopher Earls, spending the night of his 20th birthday in a suite, awoke "too frightened to turn over" because he "thought there was something there".
Torbert's wife, Sandie, tells of two women guests who arrived from San Francisco saying they had come to the Gingerbread Mansion because their friends had talked about the children. "We have touched-up photos of Victorian children with somber faces", Torbert recalls. "Sometimes, guests would stay up late and write long entries in the guest books which we have in each room. They wrote about the children who came alive at night".
| RATES | ||
| Double | $140 | |
| Suites | $350 | |
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