B & B Review: The Mansion at Elfindale, Springfield, Missouri – Part Two

………        .<PART ONE ……. PART TWO…….PART THREE >

In Part One of The Mansion at Elfindale series, I showed you the beautiful staircase and Chapel Suite where we stayed. To continue my review of this absolutely charming Victorian Bed and Breakfast in Springfield, this picture shows the size of this B & B, The Mansion at Elfindale. Shown here on one side of the Mansion is a covered drive for the carriage entrance.


The history of The Mansion at Elfindale is interesting! John O’Day and his wife, Alice, lived in the Mansion which was completed in 1893 and contained 27,000 square feet. Several years later when John and Alice divorced, Alice was awarded the Mansion. Eventually, Alice could not afford the upkeep and sold it to a group of nuns for use as a school.

The nuns built a beautiful chapel next to the Mansion (which is used as a wedding chapel today and will be featured in Part Three of this series). Next to the chapel they built a three-story classroom building which you see pictured below.

The property was sold once again in 1977, to a small group of Iranian businessmen with intentions to use the Mansion as a safe house for the Shah of Iran, but that didn’t work out. So the property was sold again, this time to Cornerstone Church in 1979. They built a sanctuary on the property, made the chapel available for weddings, and made the historical Mansion available to the public in 1990 as a Bed and Breakfast after fully restoring and renovating it to make 13 suites with private baths.

Each suite in The Mansion has its own distinct charm and personality, and I have chosen three more suites to illustrate that uniqueness and charm. In Part One, the Chapel Suite was featured.

The Veranda Suite as seen in the picture below has beautiful stained glass surrounding the doors out to the veranda.


When you go through the doors pictured above, you find yourself on this beautiful veranda pictured below. This is the only suite with a veranda and such a serene outdoor setting. Wouldn’t this be a lovely place to sit and have a cup of coffee or tea in the morning? So peaceful!

The Flora Jane Suite, pictured below, contains this beautiful canopy bed and reminds me of something out of a movie. Isn’t it gorgeous?  This is such a pretty room!

This suite, even though it contains the large canopy bed, is very spacious and also has a lovely sitting area where you can sit and relax, read a book or visit in nice peaceful surroundings.


The Rose Suite in the picture below is very spacious and keeps with the theme of roses. It looks like a comfy and cozy place to sit and talk, watch TV, or just relax from the busy life so many of us have!


Before closing, I must share one thing we really enjoyed. During the middle of the afternoon in the large hallway outside the dining room, you can help yourself to coffee or a selection of teas along with gourmet cookies. Or maybe you would prefer to have a cookie and some coffee in the evening.

We had delicious chocolate chip cookies both days. I could definitely get spoiled to afternoon tea of my choice and fresh baked cookies every day.  Very nice!

Next, I want to share with you about the beautiful wedding chapel and which suite I think would be wonderful for a honeymoon, so watch for Part Three!

………..<PART ONE ……. PART TWO…….PART THREE >

B & B Review: The Mansion at Elfindale, Springfield, Missouri – Part One

………… <PART ONE ……. PART TWO……    .PART THREE >

 

We were blessed to be able to stay two nights and review this beautiful European style B and B, The Mansion at Elfindale which at one time was the largest bed and breakfast in Missouri.  It exceeded my expectations, and I must say that the pictures on their website do not do it justice. The pictures do not completely capture the spaciousness and elegance of this Victorian era mansion. We felt as though we had stepped back in time, only with the modern conveniences of air conditioning (which worked really great), cable television, and wireless Internet. Since the mansion was completed in 1892, I expected a little bit of a musty smell but there was absolutely none…not at all. My husband can testify to the freshness of the air as he has a very good sense of smell.

The Mansion is a wonderful place for a couple or a family with older children to stay.  This beautiful bed and breakfast in Springfield has hosted ladies’ retreats, even a youth group retreat, family reunions, wedding parties, and “girls’ night out” events.  If you’re headed to Branson, it’s less than 40 miles away which makes it a perfect bed and breakfast near Branson, yet out of the busy tourist area.

We stayed on the second floor which you can see on the far left side of the picture. A beautifully decorated, extra-large bay window provided us with a wonderful view.

Let me give you a tour inside.  Pictured below is the magnificent grand staircase made with imported teakwood, adorned with stained glass windows.


Once we got to the second floor landing, our room was straight ahead.  You can see my husband and our son unlocking the door to our suite.  By the way, there are thirteen suites in the Mansion, each suite complete with its own distinctive charm and personality.  And this is very important, each suite has its own private bath unlike some B & B’s.

I was impressed with the sliding, wooden doors, the original doors from 1892.  Once inside, this was the first view of our spacious room, authentically decorated in Victorian style and elegance:

The Chapel Suite where we stayed had two very comfortable queen sized beds with luxurious sheets which made for a wonderful night’s sleep. There were plenty of pillows which were great for propping up to read in bed at night.


 As I mentioned, we had all the modern conveniences of cable television, DVD player, telephone, and wireless Internet which was greatly appreciated while using the laptop.  Here’s another view of our room with the entertainment center:

The furniture throughout the mansion was styled according to the era in which the mansion was built.  This chair in our suite was so cool!  It’s the early version of a recliner which my husband took to instantly!


I could have slept longer, only I woke up hungry and thinking about the breakfast which was going to be cooked for us.  The first morning, we had eggs, bacon, sausage, cantaloupe, homemade biscuits and gravy with strawberry preserves on the side.  Coffee, a selection of teas, and orange juice were our beverages.  The second morning, we had eggs, sausage, homemade gourmet muffins, and sliced bananas topped with yogurt sprinkled with granola.  Our son took the picture below which is my favorite breakfast picture:



MORE TO COME!  In Part Two, I will share some interesting history of the mansion.  It was once a convent/school and later was considered as a possible safe house for the Shah of Iran before it became a bed and breakfast.


………. <PART ONE .    …… PART TWO…    ….PART THREE >