On a country road midway between Valley Forge and the Brandywine Battle-fields is the Duling-Kurtz House & Country Inn. The driveway is lined with converted gas street lamps, and there are formal gardens, a Victorian-style gazebo, and a footbridge that crosses a stone-lined brook. The 1830s farmhouse and the adjacent barn, both white plaster over fieldstone, were elegantly restored and opened in 1983. Raymond Carr and David Knauer, who did the restoration, named the property aftertheir mothers. The current owner, Michael Person—who hails from Vienna, Austria, and has a background in hotel management—has orchestrated a massive upgrading since taking over in 1992, and he is a decidedly
hands-on operator. He staunchly defends the concept offine dining and lodging at affordable prices, and he runs an intimate, service-oriented inn.
The guest rooms (in the barn) have been restored and furnished in Williamsburg period reproductions. You will find marble-top sinks; Orientalrugs; writing desks; and canopied, brass, and four-poster beds. One suite has its own court-yard. Rooms are named for historic figures: Honeymooners often request the George Washington Room, with its king-size, cherry-wood canopy bed and step-down bathroom with claw-foot tub. A Continental breakfast is served on china in the parlor.
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