The Inn Then…
The Deerfield Inn opened in July 1884 and gained great reviews from the very start. In the Gazette and Courier, July 14, 1884, a reporter noted that “Mr. J.M. Bradley has a good business at the new hotel.” Later that summer, on September 1, 1884, a Deerfield reporter wrote that “the summer boarders are folding their tents and stealing away, browner and better for their stay.”
During the first 15 years of its operation, guests arrived by stagecoach, carriages, and on horseback. The carriage house and stables on the property were built in 1883 prior to the inn’s inception. Later, a trolley line ran through the village – stopping right in front of the inn as an old photograph hanging in the inn shows, and by the turn of the century, automobiles began to rumble in to our historic hotel near Greenfield, MA.
Within a year the inn was enlarged by George Arms, a local builder, and a brochure from 1885 describes the Deerfield Inn as “in all appointments far ahead of the average country hotel.”
A brochure from the 1920s carries a slogan that rings true to this day – “the atmosphere and charm of early days, with modern comfort and convenience.” Breakfast started at 30¢, dinner could be had for $1.00, and a double room with running water was priced at $3.00.
We found a postcard from July 1923 signed by ‘Carl’ to his friends the Fabriques, declaring the Deerfield Inn “a very, very nice place indeed.” One stay with us and we’re sure you will agree.
The Inn Now…
The more things change, the more they stay the same. This adage is true of the evolution of the Inn over time. Deerfield Massachusetts bed and breakfast remains on its original site on Old Main Street in a village now listed as a National Historic Landmark. It is still surrounded by period houses, working farms, and beautiful open countryside. This little part of Franklin County is now known as The Happy Valley — a fitting name for this friendly, welcoming area.
Today, the Inn has 24 guestrooms between the main house and the carriage house. The original hayloft door is still here and the horse weathercock still turns. The front porch ceilings are still robin’s egg blue and native plantings are still in the gardens. The floors in the main inn run up and downhill and around unexpected turns, and we understand from many, many guests that the same old nosy and sometimes cheeky ghosts still wander!
Your room is ready at our bed and breakfast in Massachusetts, with or without ghosts, and we look forward to welcoming you here. Directions here.
Getting to the Deerfield Inn
To easily find our hotel near Greenfield, MA, put “81 Old Main Street” into your GPS, and select Deerfield.
Take Route 2W to Greenfield. Go left over the bridge through Turners Falls, and take a left onto Routes 5 & 10 under the trestle railway bridge. There are signs to Historic Deerfield, the Deerfield Inn, and Champney’s. Take the first right into Deerfield, and follow Old Main Street left to the Deerfield Inn, a half a mile down on the right – a large white-columned clapboard building with a porch in front.
OR
Take I-90 W and take exit 4 in West Springfield to I-91N. Take exit 35 off I-91, bear right off the ramp, and continue on Routes 5 & 10 N. Drive five miles. On the right are signs for Historic Deerfield, the Deerfield Inn, and Champney’s. Coming up on the right will be Richardson’s Candy Kitchen. Take your first left immediately after this by the directional sign, and then bear right where the street forks. The Inn is half a mile down on the left, a large white-columned clapboard building with a porch in front.
Take I-91 N. In Mass take exit 35. At the end of the ramp bear right and you will be on Routes 5 & 10. Drive five miles. On the right are signs for Historic Deerfield, the Deerfield Inn, and Champney’s. Coming up on the right will be Richardson’s Candy Kitchen. Take your first left after this, by the directional sign, and bear right where the street forks. The inn is half a mile down on the left, a large white-columned clapboard building with a porch in front.
Take I-91 S In Mass take exit 35. At the end of the ramp bear left and left again at the lights, and you will be on Routes 5 & 10. Drive five miles north. On the right are signs for Historic Deerfield, the Deerfield Inn, and Champney’s. Coming up on the right will be Richardson’s Candy Kitchen. Take your first left after this, by the directional sign, and bear right where the street forks. The inn is half a mile on the left, a large white-columned clapboard building with a porch in front.
Take Route 9 to 116 N. At Routes 5 & 10 go right (North) for five miles. On the right are signs for Historic Deerfield, the Deerfield Inn, and Champney’s. Coming up on the right will be Richardson’s Candy Kitchen. Take your first left immediately after this by the directional sign, and bear right where the street forks. The Inn is half a mile down on the left, a large white-columned clapboard building with a porch in front.
