History of the Inn
The geography and rich history of this town are unique. So is the story of the Inn!
The Heritage House (179 High Street) was the residence at the "end of the town" when built in 1840 by the Robert Doran Family. How providential that the "Towns-end" family should acquire it some 170 years later! The great-grandparents of local resident Lynn Vaughn--the William Oliver Towns family--resided here in the early 20th century. Mr Towns published the Harper's Ferry Times newspaper (he was also the photographer) right across the street in the now "Secret Six Tavern". Back then, it was known as the Towns Studio and Publishing Establishment. Photographs of the family and their residence hang in the entry-way of the Inn, courtesy of great-granddaughter Lynn. Together, all the Townsend family past and present welcome you to the Town's Inn at Harpers Ferry!
The Heritage House (179 High Street) was the residence at the "end of the town" when built in 1840 by the Robert Doran Family. How providential that the "Towns-end" family should acquire it some 170 years later! The great-grandparents of local resident Lynn Vaughn--the William Oliver Towns family--resided here in the early 20th century. Mr Towns published the Harper's Ferry Times newspaper (he was also the photographer) right across the street in the now "Secret Six Tavern". Back then, it was known as the Towns Studio and Publishing Establishment. Photographs of the family and their residence hang in the entry-way of the Inn, courtesy of great-granddaughter Lynn. Together, all the Townsend family past and present welcome you to the Town's Inn at Harpers Ferry!
History of the Towns Family at 179 High Street
William Oliver Towns was born on May 24, 1850 in Wardensville, Hardy County, then Virginia, now West Virginia. As a young man he moved to Mount Jackson, Virginia and married Clara Walters. They moved to Winchester, Virginia for eight years before moving on to Lewistown, Pennsylvania, then to Toms Brook, Virginia, and finally to the High Street address in 1900. The Towns' had four children, Clara May, Lillie Irene, William Garnett and Earl Cleveland. Mr Towns owned a photography studio and print shop in what is now the Secret Six Tavern building across the street, where he edited and published the Harper's Ferry Times weekly during the early 1900s. Active in the Camp Hill Methodist Church and anti-liquor Prohibition Movement, Towns died on August 14, 1924 and is buried in Harper Cemetery.
