A Brief History of
The Shenandoah Valley
Farm and Inn
The farm was first named Bonnie Dell Farm. The next farm downstream was named Bonnie Brook Farm and was owned by Tobias McGahey, the first postmaster of McGaheysville. The land was part of the original Harmon Grant. Tobias McGahey bought this farm for his daughter Isophena and her husband Joseph J. Littell. The house and outbuildings, constructed of logs, were built in 1825. The main house has had many additions and renovations over the years, and the log walls have been covered with wood siding. During the Civil War, on the orders of Gen. Philip Sheridan, the Union Army burned down the original barn, along with most of the other barns and granaries in the Valley. The 1825 bank barn stood where the tennis court is now; you can still see the bank.
The topography of the land is especially well-suited to growing apples, and previous generations grew them abundantly. "Applejack," a kind of brandy made from apple cider, was made on the property and well-received in the area. You can see the foundation of the building that housed the distillery, or "still," beneath the summer house near the pond.
There have been five owners since the house was built in 1825. During the 1900's, the farm was owned by John Bader and his wife Calivares, the first female physician in the state of Virginia. Poet Sidney Lanier visited here often, spending time on the farm and at nearby Rockingham Springs.
The second bank barn was built in the 1870's and stood just north of our #2 cottage. It burned in 1974, and we have replaced it with several contemporary barns. The #2 cottage was originally a wagon shed, and the #1 cottage is also one of the original farm buildings.
We purchased the farm in February, 1967, and converted one of the outbuildings into a "personal" guest house. Soon after, we received an inquiry from a family we didn't know who wanted a "farm vacation." That is how our business began. Some of our guests have been coming to the farm for more than 28 years; some hold their family reunions here.
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