The garden club women did much of the work on the Excelsior House themselves, scraping paint, scrubbing floors, and refinishing furniture. According to a published club history, members and non-members were eligible to decorate each room which meant they would provide the "money, time, elbow grease, carpenters, painters, plumbers, and electricians" necessary to complete the project. The club also sponsored regular fundraisers such as luncheon buffets, garage sales, and game nights to supplement donations. They threw a linen shower to gather new bed and bath linens and sold coffee every day to finance the new kitchen equipment. The Excelsior of today is a rare jewel with lovely, antique-filled rooms and a bridal suite named for Bessie Moore, the victim of Jefferson's infamous honeymoon murder. Another beautifully restored lodging across the street from the Excelsior, the Jefferson Hotel, is reportedly home to the benevolent wandering spirits of several former visitors. Not exactly the X-Files, but interesting enough that guests who claim to have experienced ghostly visitations return to the same rooms year after year. Hotels, however, are far from the only choice. Jefferson is famous for the number and variety of its bed-and-breakfasts.

Historic preservation is a community-wide activity in Jefferson, for everybody from the garden club to the high-school-aged junior historians who bought and restored their own building with proceeds from their theatrical presentations. As a result, everything from authentic plantation houses to elegant Victorian mansions to Greek Revival cottages now welcome travelers. There are no less than 60 bed-and-breakfasts in town. The history of each of the houses has been carefully researched and they are decorated with charming period antiques. The many houses take turns appearing on the Candlelight Tour of Homes in December every year. Members of the garden club dress in period costumes and take turns acting as docents in the tour homes every year. "The club is very active in anything that has to do with preservation," Jimmie Ruth explained, while Llawanda Golden nodded in agreement. "It's not your ordinary garden club by any means. They assign you a certain number of volunteer hours every month and embarrass you in meetings if you don't do your share." More than five thousand guests view the homes on the Candelight Tour every year, promoting the businesses and raising money for Jefferson's ongoing historical preservation projects.

As a guest at the Governor's House, I experienced a definitive example of a Jefferson bed-and-breakfast. The classic Greek Revival cottage was built in 1868 for a trial lawyer named Charles A. Culberson who would serve as governor of Texas from 1895 until 1899. Innkeepers Bill and Llawanda Golden invite guests to stay in the bridal room, a large, comfortable room decorated with an antique wedding gown and silk top hat on the armoire. The house was originally built with two rooms across the front, two more on the left side and a semi-detached dining room and kitchen (so possible kitchen fires couldn't burn down the whole house.) A turn-of-the century owner attached the dining room and kitchen to the house, and now Llawanda prepares elegant breakfasts there on a restored Chambers stove. In keeping with the historic theme, this romantic getaway has no phones, fax machines, or televisions in the two elegant guest rooms.

JEFFERSON'S PAST : : WHERE TO STAY : : DINING/ENTERTAINMENT
OUTDOOR/CADDO LAKE : : NEARBY JEFFERSON : : LINKS/LISTINGS : : INTRODUCTION