Sourwood Inn
• 1998-2019 •
Sourwood Inn was my mother’s idea. It evolved from the desire to create a meaningful, interesting and productive lifestyle as my father approached retirement from 35 years of practicing medicine. I, for one am glad they asked Jeff and me to join in the journey. After a year of planning and a few of building the inn opened in June of 1998.
Some of the aspirations for taking on this project are readily understandable, to share the beauty of these awesome Blue Ridge Mountains, to afford a genuine place of relaxation and solitude, to offer good food to start your day and a culinary experience in the evening are just a few. Some of the more intrinsic ideas for this project are not so readily seen. Nat and Anne had a desire to create a space that balances public with private, simple with complex, aesthetically pleasing with interesting. I am happy to say that we have succeeded.
We have been fortunate in so many ways; most importantly to you our guests, the first timers and to those many who return again and again.
— Susan Curtis, Owner
The Sourwood Tree
The Sourwood’s abundance on the property and the exuberant whimsy they present were the main impetus for the naming of the inn.
The Sourwood tree, Oxydendrum Arboretum, is native to eastern North America and most abundant in the chain of Appalachian mountains of which Sourwood Inn is a part. Their trunks, with natural bends, were used as sleigh runners. The sprays of white blooms appearing late in the summer, afford the honey bees the opportunity to create the much desired Sourwood honey.
The Sourwood is aesthetically pleasing and interesting as its branches are notorious for whimsically twisting and curving. The leaves turn a bright crimson in August and stay colorful through out the fall.
