For folks looking for a place to stay while visiting Williamson, the Hatfield-McCoy House Inn is the place to be.
A Piece of History
Built in 1896, the house is one of the oldest buildings standing in Williamson. It was built by a young widow for herself and her daughter during the time that Williamson began to “boom”. “I figure she must have been a wise lady to use her money to build a boarding house,” Says Jessica Hackney, who currently owns and runs the inn alongside her husband Chris. Years later, her granddaughter, Mary Elizabeth Linkous, inherited the house and continued to rent boarding rooms until her death in the 2000s.
Following Mary Elizabeth’s death, the inn has changed names and owners multiple times before falling into the Hackney’s hands. The couple runs a concierge service in the area and would often help out at the inn. When the previous owner was ready to sell, they were her first choice.
The Hatfield-McCoy House inn is named for its proximity to the location of the famous historical feud. Previous owners designed the rooms to match “characters” from the famous historical event.
Friends From Around the World
For Jessica, the best part of running the inn is meeting people from all over the world. The inn receives travelers of all kinds, including trail riders, business travelers, and folks traveling for family events. They also see plenty of guests who visit just to explore the site of the Hatfield-McCoy feud in person.
Jessica also gets to meet all kinds of unique characters. “We had this little old lady from California once,” She says, telling the story of her favorite visitor ever. “She and her husband had been sitting on the porch drinking wine and decided to go to Starters for dinner…” A few hours after the couple left, Jessica received a call from Starters informing her that the elderly visitor, who was more than 80 years old, was getting rowdy and might need to get to bed. The couple helped her get back to the inn and to bed, and a few weeks later, she received a handmade bookmark as a gift. “I will never forget her,” Jessica says.