Historic Minnesota Hotel Closes

A more-than-150-year-old hotel famous for offering cat companions for feline-loving guests has closed its doors, a victim of the economic meltdown.

The Associated Press reports that the Anderson House in Wabasha, MN, put a sign on its door last week and a recorded message of the closing on its phone line.

Built in 1856, the Anderson House was billed as Minnesota’s oldest continuously operated inn. Most of the furniture in the 36 rooms dates back to the hotel’s opening. The antique-filled rooms featured high beds, marble-topped dressers, handmade quilts, Victorian pictures, paintings and framed marriage certificates. It was also known for its Dutch cooking and the selection of cats that overnight guests could borrow for companionship.

The closing is an economic blow to Wabasha, a Mississippi River town in southeastern Minnesota. Chris Fancher, director of the Wabasha-Kellogg Chamber of Commerce, told the AP that 15 to 20 people worked at the hotel.