The Beginnings...

The Wildwood Inn Bed & Breakfast was formerly a summer club house built approximately in 1940. Mr. Jensen and Stafford and Jane Flowers jointly owned the property. Mr. Jensen owned a heating and air conditioning company in Omaha, Nebraska and brought his employees, family and friends up to the house for summer vacations, fishing and hunting trips. At times they would arrive in a travel bus and would park the bus in the lower level garage, now the dining room. The living area was located upstairs. It had three bedrooms on the west side, a large great room in the center and a kitchen, office and two bathrooms on the east side.

Innkeepers, Darrel and Jeanie Ware purchased the property in July of 1990. Initially they were looking for a small cabin so they could be near his elderly mother in the care home in town. They were shown this property and Jeanie saw the space available and with her interior design background, she saw great potential. Their home in California was for sale and took longer than anticipated to sell so the remodeling (rebuilding) did not start until about three years later which began with releveling the building, putting in steal I beams between the first and second floors and installing 8 inch walls and insulation and all new windows. The kitchen was located in the current Angel’s Garden room upstairs and was being used while the new kitchen was being worked on downstairs. After the kitchen was complete, the two east bedrooms, the Angel's Garden and the Victorian Rose, were completed. The downstairs was finished and the middle bedroom upstairs on the west side was then removed to make room for two private bathrooms for the current Regal Chamber and Wilderness rooms.

With the exception of the oak double doors and hand railing, the woodworking and trim throughout the building is made from ash taken from the property. The built-in cabinets in the great room are also made of ash and house Jeanie‘s porcelain dolls that she has enjoyed making and are available for gift purchases. The glass painting above the dining room double doors was made by Jeanie’s daughter, Marcia Vincent who is also the General Manager of the B&B.

The Inn had its grand opening in July of 2000. The final remodel project ended with a total of 9 bedrooms and 9 full bathrooms. There are 5 guest suites, each with its own private bath. There is a fireplace in the dining room parlor and one upstairs in the great room. Two guest rooms also have a fireplace. An addition brought a new enclosed front porch. Still to be completed is the large deck above it and an exercise room with sauna and spa will be added to the back of the house. A billiard and card table will also be added to the great room. As a result of concentrating on completing the inside of the inn for the opening, the grounds and landscaping have not been completely finished yet. Plans include a gazebo in the front circle drive area and one also located at “Ski Point” on the lake, a short drive or walk to a lovely grassy area with large oak trees and a panoramic view of the Rainy River and Lake of the Woods (perfect for picnics and weddings).

UPDATE: A new addition has been added during the 2001/2002 winter with a breezeway attached to the kitchen leading to a 32' x 60' two car garage and a two bedroom apartment/managers quarters.

December of 2000, the Wildwood Inn Bed & Breakfast was one of the homes on tour for the "Christmas Tour of Homes" and in February, during the first annual 'February Frolics' in Baudette, Wildwood Inn Bed & Breakfast took part by hosting the 'sleigh rides' from the B&B out to "Ski Point", also the property of the B&B.

Sleigh Bells ringing in a winter wonderland.

In our yard,, June 24th, 2005...

In our Neighbor's Yard...

Bald Eagle
© Michael H. Francis

We saw a Bald Eagle while driving down Hwy 11, he was about 70 feet off the road just sitting on a large bail of hay. We stopped, turned around, went back, stopped and just watched him for awhile before we left. He didn't budge, he just kept looking back, checking us out.