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WABASHA, Minn. n For sale: The longest continually operated hotel west of the Mississippi. Listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Cats and ghosts included.
The Historic Anderson House Bed and Breakfast is on the market. Owners Michael and Teresa Smith recently enlisted the help of a Minneapolis real estate firm in their efforts to sell a 150-year-old downtown Wabasha landmark. The Anderson House’s storied life prominently features its famed housecats, as well as occasional dashes of the paranormal. Wabasha residents hope that rich history continues when new owners take over.
The Anderson House first became part of Wabasha four years before Abraham Lincoln was elected president. It was built by B.F. Hurd in 1856 and duly dubbed the Hurd House through much of its early existence. His son-in-law expanded the then-hotel when he took over ownership in 1885, adding the west wing and third story. He also “modernized” the building by bringing in electricity and installing “modern bathrooms,” Theresa said.
“Whatever modern bathrooms were back then,” she added with a laugh.
The Anderson family took over in 1909, and the building assumed its now widely known name. A pair of their descendent, John Hall and his mother, Jeanne, started the House’s famous policy of keeping housecats on site to spend the night with guests.
Five cats still live at the bed and breakfast, and guests can request one spend a night in their room to serve as “bed warmers.” The cats stay in their special cat room until “ordered,” at which time staff delivers the feline — along with its litterbox, food, water and toys. Many people come to Anderson House simply for the cats, Theresa said.
“It’s a huge, huge thing,” she said.
Cats aren’t the only non-human residents of the Anderson House, she said. The building is featured in at least one book chronicling haunted Minnesota sites. The Smiths, who took ownership in 2004, have hosted three paranormal investigations. One didn’t show any abnormal activity, but the two others did.
“It depends on whether you believe or not,” she said. “I do believe there are spirits here. I think they’re all at peace.”
The business’s impact on the community is indisputable, city leaders said. The Anderson House draws many visitors to Wabasha each year and anchors the town’s downtown, said Chris Fancher, director of the Wabasha-Kellogg Chamber of Commerce.
“It’s been a long-standing landmark in Wabasha,” he said. “People come here just to eat and stay there.”
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