When you travel it can fun and different to stay at bed and breakfasts instead of commercial hotels. You get to see different architecture of homes in different part of countries. The old the homes the better. One outstanding bed and breakfast is the W.H. Stark House. The Stark was home to William Henry and Miriam Lutcher Stark. This couple spent most of their lifetime collecting rare and unique decorative objects.


In the 1890's Lutcher Stark couple who made their fortune in oil, banking, rice, insurance, and the timber industries occupied the home from 1894 until 1936. The couple were massive collectors and instilled in their son, HJ Lutcher Stark continuing a lifetime dedication to philanthropy pursuits and the arts. The house was vacant from 1936 to 1970. After 11 years of restoration the house was opened to the public for tours.


The 14,000 square-foot home was built in 1894 in Orange, Texas. The home was designed in the style of Queen Anne architectural motif, the house features a distinctive turret, several stained glass windows, and ornate woodwork that is made from both cypress and long leaf yellow pine.


Now the three-story structure stands much as it did at the turn of the 20th century, with fifteen rooms filled with the original family furnishings, decorative arts they collected and many of their personal effects. Some of the furnishing that are in the house includes original textiles, antique rugs, silver, cut glass, and lots of antique porcelain. The central antiques that are featured are the Stark family’s extra nice collections of American 18th and 19th century decorative accessories of brilliant period cut glass, pressed and pattern glass, and porcelains.

 
It is a shame the home is full of antiques, I could see a nice bed and breakfast in it.