Butler House Bed and Breakfast
The Butler Mansion, now known as The Butler House Bed and Breakfast, was built by Roderick Random Butler and was completed about 1870. The bricks used in the contruction and many other buildings in Mountain City were produced by Judge Butler's brick factory. I've been told the location was where the Johnson County High School is now located. Even the inside walls are made of brick about three courses wide and covered in plaster. The staircase is hard to describe, but something to behold. Its in the form of a curved Y and makes a magnificent 2nd impression - the 1st being the outside. Since Judge and Mrs. Butler entertained many visitors and their wives, there are two sitting rooms separated by folding doors to make one very large room or two smaller rooms and each has a fireplace.
Several years ago the house was bought by a couple from Boone, NC and they spent several years restoring the house to its magnificent original condition. All the windows are original to the house. The kitchen was very unusual for its time, in that it was built as part of the house itself. Because of fire hazards and heat, most cooking was done in a separate building. But since all the walls of this house were of brick, the danger of the whole house going up in flames was lessened dramatically.
There are 4 guest rooms upstairs, each with a private bath and access to the large outside porches complete with very comfortable rocking chairs. All the rooms are furnished with furniture original to the house, antiques or reproductions of that time. Each guest room has a fireplace, but no TV or phone.
Photo taken and used with permission of Dale Wilson