Up a winding road along the base of a mountain ridge in northern Lancaster County is a beautifully restored three-storylimestone farmhouse built in 1814. It sits on 200 acres ofpeaceful Pennsylvania farmland, and there’s a huge bank barn nearby. There’s also a pond out front that’s the domain of two swans. The setting of Clearview Farm is elegantly pastoral; it’s the kind ofplace you want to keep secret. Mildred and Glenn Wissler bought the house when they married nearly 40 years ago. Glenn is a farmer who also has a good eye for color, and Mildred is a talented decorator who grew up learning about her father’s an-tiques business. After working together to choose the right furnishings and decorations, they opened the bed-and-breakfast in 1989.
Country antiques and collectibles are mixed with exquisite Victorian furnish-ings throughout. You’llflnd a fireplace in the den, and there are hooked rugs on the original random-width floors. Exposed beams and limestone walls give the kitchen a homey feel. Guest rooms are lushly textured with lots of colors and patterns. The Royal Room has an or-nately carved walnut Victorian bed, a Victorian mirrored étagère displaying turn-of-the-century knickknacks, Victorian chairs, and marble-top tables. The Princess Room is lavished with lace and fitted with a canopy bed, a Victorian marble-top dresser, and a washstand. The French Room has a highly carved antique bed in a curtained alcove, a matching armoire, and French upholstered chairs. In the rooms on the third floor, hand-pegged rafters and limestone walls are exposed. Here you’ll find homemade quilts, country antiques, and a doll collection.
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