This former tavern, built by Joseph Chinn in 1728 on the estate ofLord Fair-fax, became a popular frontier stopping point for westward-bound colonists and later helped Middleburg grow into its role as the center of Virginia fox-hunt country. It still holds the charm and much of the rustic appealthat attracted a young surveyor named George Wash-ington for a stay some 250 years ago. Too bad for the nation’s first president that he was unable to enjoy one of the many four-poster beds with lace canopy, air-conditioning, and other modern appointments available in every room. The original building, an impressive three-story fieldstone structure in the middle of town, has just six rooms; the rest of the inn’s 24 rooms are scattered in seven additional historic buildings over a two-block area.
During the Civil War, when the Red Fox Inn (formerly a frontier tavern, built in 1728 and known as the Ordinary) was known as the Beveridge House, it saw action as a Confederate headquarters and hospital. Confederate General Jeb Stuart held strategy sessions in the guest room named in his honor. In the main building, exposed wide-plank floors slope and creak a bit—lest guests forget the stories they could tell. Homemade chocolates and two bottles of complimentary wine—one red, one white, and both from local vineyards—greet guests in every room. Those in search of a romantic hideaway will enjoy the Belmont Suite (l½ blocks from the main building) with its two walls of pane-glass windows overlooking manicured shrubs and a garden area. There’s even a grand piano in the Belmont’s spacious living room.
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