The Woolverton Inn Stockton, New Jersey A grand estate by the Delaware River, five minutes from New Hope and Lambertville. Contact Info | Email this page to a Friend | Check Room Availability  | Visit our Web Site Additional Pages... Introduction Guest Rooms Cottage Accommodations The Area Reservation Request Form   Availability Search: See which rooms are available during your stay. Check in: Check out: Powered by Webervations Clear search results Rooms Available from  to  Learn more about these rooms These are our base rates - certain discounts and/or charges may apply

Three Friends..... and a Search For Greener Pastures It was a dismal day — cold, dreary, raining. We were exhausted from driving around Bucks County, searching for our "dream inn". Our various inn guides were dog-eared and marked with red "Xs" on page after page. "Too close to road. Not enough land. Too far from town." We knew we wanted to buy an inn in the Bucks County/Delaware River area, but we were also very particular and quickly running out of options. The sun was low in the sky when we decided to cross a little bridge into New Jersey. Funny the places bridges can take you.

After crossing that bridge, we found ourselves in the little town of Stockton, New Jersey. I had remembered reading about an inn in Stockton — an old estate on ten acres — The Woolverton Inn. We drove up the hill, and before we knew it, we were heading up a long driveway towards a beautiful stone manor. As silly as it sounds, it was love at first sight. A month later, we approached the owners and asked if they would consider selling the inn. To our surprise, they said yes! We raced back to Chicago, gave notice to our employers, put our houses up for sale, packed up all of our belongings and animals in a couple of U-Hauls and headed East. Now here we are, tending sheep!

We are Mark Smith, Carolyn McGavin and Matthew Lovette, all transplanted from Chicago, and very proud to be the owners of The Woolverton Inn. We three first met back in the windy city — Mark (originally from Delaware) and Carolyn (a native of Chicago) met in 1986 when they were working together at a local bank. One day in 1989, Matthew, a student from South Carolina studying at The Art Institute of Chicago, wandered into the bank to open his checking account and thus began a long friendship. Soon the three of us began to socialize and then travel together.

After a few years, countless idealistic conversations and far too many glasses of wine, we decided in 1997 that we wanted to go into business together. We were all disillusioned with the business world and were searching for "greener pastures". One day at a garage sale, Matthew picked up a book about buying a B&B and our plan was born. We attended a couple of seminars, learned that it's all work and no money and forged ahead. We then hired a consultant and began what was to be two years of searching for "our dream inn". After looking at many, many inns from New Hampshire to North Carolina, we have settled in an area we really love--rich in history and natural beauty, right beside the scenic Delaware River.

So, we have traded honking cars for honking geese and steel for fieldstone. We absolutely love our new life and we haven't looked back. It is really a marvelous and rewarding way to make a living — hosting people in a beautiful place and making them feel welcome and relaxed. We consider ourselves very fortunate to have been able to realize our dream and to find ourselves surrounded by greener pastures.

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