Would Hillbrook, hidden along a country lane outside Charles Town, be such a special place without its innkeeper, Gretchen Carroll? One tends to think not, although the house itselfis spectacularly eccentric, splayed in six stages along a hill, never more than one room wide or one room deep. The house has 13 sharply peaked gables, half-timbered white-stucco walls, and mullioned win-dows—the one in the living room has 360 panes. Ann Hathaway would feel right at home. Gretchen calls the style “Norman Tudor” and explains that during World War I a civil engineer by the name of Bamford fell in love with an inn in Normandy and determined to recreate it in the wilds of West Virginia. Erratically, he chose to start with two ancient log cabins. The logs and mortises of one of these are still apparent in the dining porch.
Gretchen was a foreign-service brat who grew up in the far corners of the world, including Turkey, Thailand, and the Ivory Coast; and Hilibrook is full of exotic curios and objets d’art. The living room holds pottery and a Senegalese fertility statue; in bedrooms you’ll find Oriental rugs, an antique Vuitton steamer trunk, and a Thai spirit house. Richly patterned wallpaper, upholstery, and pillows; randomly angled ceilings; potted plants; and architectural cubbyholes complete the Hillbrook picture. The Cottage guest room, with its private entry overlooking an ancient springhouse (from which Hillbrook gets its water), has paisley-pattern wallpaper and a wood-burning stove backed with Italian tile. Locke’s Nest overlooks the living room from 20 feet up and has brass double and single beds and a lavender bathtub.
The inn’s seven-course dinners feature stuffed quail or grilled rosemary lamb chops; feta-cheese-and-pomegranate salad; and chocolate “decadence” cake. Breakfast specialties are sherried mush-room omelets, home-baked grilled fruit-breads, and a delightful “egg blossom” dish.
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