Beekman Arms and Delamater Inn

History

Discover Beekman Arms and Delamater Inn, as Franklin Delano Roosevelt began each of his four successful campaigns on the front porch.

In 1704, William Traphagen established a traveler's inn, the Traphagen Tavern, at the town crossroads. Rhinebeck was then just a small settlement carved out of the forests initially inhabited by the Sepasco Native Americans. The area had been colonized since the 1680s by the Dutch, where the King's Highway—now known as Route 9—intersected the Sepasco Trail, winding its way down to the Hudson River. The Beekman Arms was added to the original tavern in 1766 and has been operating ever since. The Beekman Arms was named after the Beekman family. At the time, Judge Henry Beekman numbered prominently among the original British landowners in the Hudson Valley. Colonel Henry Beekman Jr. expanded his father's land holdings and populated them with refugees from Europe's Palatine-Rhine region. Bogardus Tavern—as the building was known during the last third of the 18th century—helped host the American Revolution. The 4th Regiment of the Continental Army performed drills on the front lawn in preparation for the war. A sturdy timber and stone building originally built to withstand possible Native American attacks, the Bogardus Tavern served similar purposes during the war with the British Crown. The townsfolk took refuge here while the British burned the state capital, Kingston, across the river. George Washington, Philip Schuyler, Benedict Arnold, and Alexander Hamilton all slept, ate, drank, argued, and laughed here throughout the American Revolutionary War.

The year 1804 saw an intense race for the governorship of New York State, with both candidates hosting their headquarters in Rhinebeck. General Morgan Lewis was based inside the Beekman Arms, while Vice President Aaron Burr was located further down the street at the Kip Tavern. By July, Aaron Burr had killed Morgan Lewis's friend and Philip Schuyler's brother-in-law, Alexander Hamilton, in a duel over a quarrel that had begun in the tavern. Nevertheless, Rhinebeck continued to grow in the early 19th century in both size and popularity as a stop between New York City and Albany. It was also the center of the town's civic growth serving as the town hall, post office, theater, and newspaper publisher. The tavern hosted lodge meetings, tea parties, public auctions, and even religious services conducted by traveling preachers. The famous newspaper editor Horace Greeley was a frequent guest. Senator William Jennings Bryan grandly orated from a second-story window to an enthusiastic gathering on the front lawn. In 1888, Benjamin Harrison and his running mate, Levi P. Morton, assembled in the tavern with their supporters, where they learned the convention had picked them to run for the presidency. (By this point, the business as a whole had started operating as an “inn.”) Harrison would later win the election that year, becoming the 23rd President of the United States.

Amid the prosperous years between the Civil War and World War I, many prominent and wealthy New York families built country estates on the banks of the Hudson River. Luxurious private railroad cars terminated at the Rhinecliff Station, a handsome building erected under the influence of former Vice President Morton and Colonel John Jacob Astor IV, who perished on the Titanic shortly thereafter. A rail line connected Rhinecliff and Connecticut, greatly easing travel to the area. Travelers called it the Hucklebush Line, as the train's engineer was known to stop the train at one of the many berry-picking patches along the way. Rhinebeck became known as the Parlor of Dutchess County due to its shaded streets, village hospitality, gracious homes, and grand estates. The local farms' black angus and greenhouses' violets gave the small-town national attention. Horses and buggies gradually gave way to automobiles, and the Beekman Arms kept its doors open to the surrounding community and to the travelers moving through the Hudson Valley. In 1918, the inn underwent extensive renovation—including the addition of today's ballroom—under the ownership of Tracy Dows. His son, Olin Dows, was a well-known painter whose murals recreated the town's beginnings on the walls of the Rhinebeck post office. His Harvard classmate and close friend, Thomas Wolfe, frequently visited. Thomas' prolonged retreats at the Beekman Arms planted the seeds for what became his 1935 novel, Of Time and the River.

Throughout the 20th century, The Beekman Arms continued to be the center of social and civic life for Rhinebeck. It hosted thousands of town and service club meetings, weddings, all varieties of parties, and leisurely Sunday brunches. In the 1930s, young ladies training to be nurses relaxed at the inn after their hospital shifts. Firefighters and World War II soldiers paraded and posed for photographs on the surrounding lawn and streets. President Franklin Delano Roosevelt was a frequent guest at the Beekman Arms, too. He concluded each of his four political campaigns for governor and president talking from the front porch. As an avid stamp collector and an amateur historian, President Roosevelt was responsible for the construction of the Rhinebeck Post Office, which was built by the Works Progress Administration. The post office is a replica of a portion of the Hendrick Kip house, the earliest known structure in Rhinebeck. In 1958, Charles LaForge bought the inn, becoming the longest running owner of the Beekman Arms. Then in the 1980s, LaForge added the greenhouse to the front of the ballroom. He purchased the nearby Delamater Inn and renovated much of the grounds. He even began adding more guestrooms when he constructed the Courtyard Complex behind the Delamater Inn. In 2002, George Banta Sr. purchased the Beekman Arms and Delamater Inn from LaForge. The Banta family have continued the work of their predecessors, guaranteeing that both institutions remain for future generations to appreciate. A member of Historic Hotels of America since 2006, the Beekman Arms and Delamater Inn have continued to be among the best places to stay in New York’s Hudson Valley.

a large white building with a large tree

Hotel Timeline

William Traphagen established the “Traphagen Tavern at the town crossroads. Rhinebeck was then just a small settlement carved out of the forests initially inhabited by the Sepasco Native Americans. The area had been colonized since the 1680s by the Dutch, where the King's Highway—now known as Route 9—intersected the Sepasco Trail.

The current iteration of the Beekman Arms was added to the original business, which was then known as “Bogardus Tavern.” The later name—Beekman Arms—came from the area’s Beekman family. The Beekmans were among the original British landowners to settle the Hudson Valley when the building first debuted.

The 4th Regiment of the Continental Army performed drills on the front lawn in preparation for the American Revolutionary War. A sturdy timber and stone building originally built to withstand possible Native American attacks, the tavern served a similar purpose for the locals during the conflict.

Two candidates for the New York governorship—General Morgan Lewis and Aaron Burr—set up their headquarters in Rhinebeck. General Morgan Lewis was based inside the Beekman Arms, while Vice President Aaron Burr was located further down the street at the Kip Tavern. By July, Aaron Burr had killed Morgan Lewis's friend and Philip Schuyler's brother-in-law, Alexander Hamilton, in a duel over a quarrel that had begun in the tavern.

Benjamin Harrison and his running mate, Levi P. Morton, assembled in the tavern with their supporters, where they learned the convention had picked them to run for the presidency. Harrison would later win the election that year, becoming the 23rd President of the United States.

Senator William Jennings Bryan grandly orated from a second-story window to an enthusiastic gathering on the inn’s front lawn. Then a member of the U.S. House of Representatives, Bryan was in the midst of running for U.S. President—the first of his three unsuccessful bids.

Tracy Dows managed to obtain the Beekman Arms. He subsequently initiated his own series of renovations, which helped shepherd the building into one of its most prosperous eras. The work he conducted was extensive, seeing the addition of many outstanding facilities like the inn’s magnificent ballroom.

Franklin Delano Roosevelt concluded his successful bid for President of the United States from the porch of the inn. A resident of neighboring Hyde Park, Roosevelt had been a regular guest throughout his life. Indeed, he would hold a few more rallies at the Beekman Arms upon winning reelection over the next several years.

Noted author Thomas Wolfe stayed at the Beekman Arms. He had specifically come to visit his friend Olin Dows, who was the son of the inn’s owner. Thomas' prolonged retreats at the Beekman Arms planted the seeds for what became his novel, Of Time and the River.

Charles LaForge bought the inn, becoming the longest running owner of the Beekman Arms. Around the same time, the inn was the site for a massive dedication ceremony for the nearby Kingston-Rhinecliff Bridge. Many noteworthy guests attended the event, including New York Governor W. Averell Harriman.

LaForge conducted many renovations over the Beekman Arms, including his installation of the greenhouse to the front of the ballroom. He also purchased the nearby Delamater Inn and renovated much of the grounds. He even began adding more guestrooms when he constructed the Courtyard Complex not long thereafter.

George Banta Sr. purchased the Beekman Arms and Delamater Inn from LaForge. The Banta family have continued the work of their predecessors, guaranteeing that both institutions remain for future generations to appreciate. Thanks to their stewardship, the location has remained one of Hudson Valley’s best places to stay.

The Beekman Arms and Delamater Inn were inducted into Historic Hotels of America. The official program of the National Trust for Historic Preservation, the organization celebrates and recognizes the finest historic hotels, inns, and resorts across the United States.

In recognition of the Banta family for its work preserving both the Beekman Arms and Delamater Inn, Historic Hotels of America bestowed it with its Annual Award of Excellence for “Best Historic Hotel (76 – 200 Guestrooms).” Receiving an Annual Award of Excellence is the highest honor a member can receive from Historic Hotels of America.

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The Location

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The Architecture

Famous Historic Events

Famous Historic Guests

Guest Historian Series

Nobody Asked Me, But...
Hotel History: Beekman Arms and Delamater Inn (1766), Rhinebeck, New York*

Stanley Turkel, CMHS

In the early 1700s, William Traphagen established a traveler's inn in Ryn Beck, which was a small settlement carved out of a forested area initially inhabited by the Sepasco Indians and colonized since the 1630s by the Dutch. In 1766, William Traphagen's son, Arent, relocated Traphagen Tavern to the town crossroads, where the King's Highway intersected the Sepasco Trail, winding its way down to the river. The Beekman Arms has been at the center of Rhinebeck ever since.

Bogardus Tavern, as the inn was known during the last third of the 18th century, helped host the American Revolution. The 4th Regiment of the Continental Army drilled on its front lawn before the war, in 1775. It was on the main road through the Hudson Valley, and its neighbors played major roles in the creation of the United States. A sturdy stone building originally built to withstand possible Indian attacks, the Bogardus Tavern served similar purposes against the vicissitudes of waging war on the British Crown. George Washington, Philip Schuyler, Benedict Arnold and Alexander Hamilton slept here and probably ate, drank, argued, and laughed here during the Revolutionary War.