Howe Tavern

Originally known as “How (or Howe) Tavern,” then “The Red Horse Tavern”    

Built in the old Colonial day, when men lived in a grander way with ampler hospitality (quoting from Longfellow), this architectural and historical legend has been around for 308 years. Owned by four generations of the Howe Family (original settlers of Sudbury), it was expanded over the years many times. It was engulfed by a major fire in 1955 but fortunately much of the original structure remains. Unlike the other taverns mentioned on this site, this tavern is an actual working inn. On a peaceful winter night when the snow is falling gently, a fire is burning, and the sounds of fifes & drums are in the air…it’s like stepping back in time.  Longfellow made this inn famous with his “Tales of a Wayside Inn” published in 1863. 

“One Autumn night, in Sudbury town,
Across the meadows bare and brown,
The windows of the wayside inn
Gleamed red with fire-light…”

 

ERAs OF THE WAYSIDE INN

The inn’s history is described in more detail in the “PEOPLE” tab and many more photos are under the Wayside Inn menu (historical pics, most all of the subcategories). For now, a brief summary might be helpful -

 The Howe Family era

Howe Tavern was established in 1716 by David How and followed by three generations of his decendents – David to Ezekiel (who named it the Red Horse Tavern), to Adam, to Lyman. Lyman was the “Landlord” in Henry W. Longfellow’s Tales of a Wayside Inn. The original inn was two stories and included the door and the two windows to the right (the current bar room). It had a pitched roof and small windows with shutters to protect against indian attacks.  The original date has been disputed and misrepresented over the years (the old sign causing some if this confusion with 1683 on it). Samuel How(e) gave the property to his son David in 1702 and the original house was soon built. The first document actually showing a building on the Wayside Inn site was 1707. The license to operate an Inn was given in 1716. It is true that David’s father (Samuel) and grandfather (John) were innkeepers, but documentation shows it wasn’t at the Wayside Inn site. Samuel’s home/inn was a few miles to the south. Interestingly, Samuel’s first house (where David was born) was burned down by King Philip in 1676 as the indians were leaving the “Sudbury Fight.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The “No Longer an Inn” Era

When Lyman passed away in 1861, it was inherited by Lyman’s aunt, Rebecca Balcom Puffer. She was very old when she took possession and it soon passed to her sons. It remained for 34 years in the Puffer family until 1893. Orin Dadman and his wife rented the property from the Puffers until 1878 and appeared to have taken on a number of boarders over the years.  The Seymours took over as caretakers after they left.

Henry W. Longfellow wrote in his diary in 1862:  Drive with Fields [James Fields, his publisher] to the old Red Horse Tavern in Sudbury — alas ! no longer an inn ! A lovely valley, the winding road shaded by grand old oaks before the house. A rambling, tumble-down old building, two hundred years old.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Rebirth (or “Canvas Awning”) Era

Lucy (Puffer) Newton sold the Inn to (ex-Mayor) Herbert Howe of Marlborough and (ex-Alderman) Homer Rogers of Boston in 1893. By this time, the inn was becoming famous due to the success of Longfellow’s “Tales of a Wayside Inn.”

 

Edward R Lemon Era

ER Lemon, a wealthy wool merchant and antique collector heard of the inn and acquired it in 1897. ER owned it until 1919 (1919 is when he died, his wife Cora owned it until 1923 and sold it to Henry Ford). ER worked to turn the inn into a literary mecca for intellectuals and artists (the garden and the Longfellow bust are his). During this time, he moved the wood shed and made what is now called the Ford Room. He added the dormers as well as the front and (later) side porches and he built the gate house (which Ford later moved across the street).

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  

 

The Henry Ford Era

 Henry Ford, yes the automotive magnate, took an interest in early Americana and for various reasons cited on this site, purchased the inn and set about restoring it. He owned the inn from 1923 until 1944, when he turned it over to a trust (by then he had a stroke and was ill, he passed away in 1947). He brought back many of the original Howe family articles, added the large dining room and ballroom above (which later burned), bought thousands of acres surrounding the inn, moved antique houses to the various properties, built the gristmill, chapel, schoolhouse, and other structures, moved the highway away, and basically perserved this beautiful property for all later generations to enjoy. While he was owner, there was no alcohol allowed on site.  His best friends, the naturalist John Burroughs, and businessmen/inventors Harvey Firestone and Thomas Edison came often. When the Inn caught fire in 1955, the Ford Foundation paid to have it restored. In addition to the Wayside Inn, Ford built Greenfield Village in Michigan, another living Americana museum. (1924 picture below.)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The 1955 Fire

In Dec 1955, a major fire burned the back and western sides of the inn (the fire started in the downstairs boiler). The entire inn was carefully rebuilt to resemble the tavern Longfellow might have seen.

 

 

The Frank Koppeis Era

The restoration was finished in 1958 and the inn opened its doors again for business.  The inn was losing money ($20k/month reportedly), so the trustees decided to bring in a seasoned hotel operator/businessman – Frank Koppeis. Frank became the innkeeper and ran the inn for 30 years from 1959-1989. He did much to bring character and life to the inn. A gracious host beloved by all, he turned the inn from a museum into a living, breathing entity. He helped form the militia group as well as the fife and drum company. He turned the taproom into a real taproom and set into motion the Colonial Faire, hosted by the inn on the last Saturday in September and now in it’s 40th year.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Howetavern.com Era

Not too much has changed since Frank left. The middle part of the inn was renovated in 2000 (front desk, gift shop area, elevator).  A large white tent is installed on the property from Spring-Fall to accommodate the many weddings set at the inn. Some rooms were refreshed in 2009 with stencils, carpeting (ballroom, Ford room), and new decor.  The antique red horse sign was replaced in ~2005 (which I hope gets replaced with a better one soon).  A colonial dance group started up – The Wayside ‘Innsteppers.’ They practice and perform on Tuesday nights under the direction of Al and Lynn Petty.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

.