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The Old Rooming House, An Escape From the Ordinary New Harmony, Indiana We first visited The Old Rooming House a year ago, but when considering some favorite “Great Getaways” for this issue, it was an obvious choice to be featured again. The Old Rooming House, located in the fascinating town of New Harmony, is truly a great place to get away from the ordinary. It is just walking distance from the sites of the town, but within the walls of this 1896 home are treasures that will take you away to another era.
Jim likes visitors to know a little about what to expect before they come to The Old Rooming House. He lets them know up front that this rooming house is not your typical luxury hotel or bed and breakfast. There are no televisions or phones in the rooms. There is no smoking. But there are good books and magazines to read, comfortable couches, antiques, snacks, a refrigerator and a coffee machine in the room. You know, the things that make life most comfortable. He also shares the house’s history with those that are interested. The Old Rooming House was built in 1896, and has been taking in guests since 1948. Today there are three sleeping rooms; one large room downstairs, and two upstairs, each with a bathroom. There is also a sitting room downstairs. The first floor bedroom has a “sea theme”, with sailing memorabilia and other nostalgic knickknacks throughout. There is a big comfortable couch and chair, and good reading lights. Every room has a table - one where you can sit down and enjoy the view from your own View-Master! These are complete with stacks of photo wheels, mostly of travel destinations.
Even if you aren’t a reader, there is plenty else to do and look at. There are old board games like Jeopardy, Scrabble and checkers in every room, bikes to ride in the summer, and all sorts of 1940s and 50s memorabilia. Jim’s collection is mostly things he’s “picked up on the road”. Jim grew up in nearby Mount Vernon, and lived in South Carolina for 10 years. He spent five years traveling around the U.S. during the ‘80s, buying and selling discontinued china. He spent most of that time on the road with his dog, and his inventory in the back of his car. “I kept wandering around and seeing little towns like New Harmony.” One place in North Carolina stands out as “a little motel with sort of a western motif. There were big old beds, no TV, and magazines in the room. I thought, ‘If I ever get my own place this is what I want.’” So in 1988 Jim moved back to New Harmony, and bought a big old house. After he bought it people kept saying, “Oh, you bought The Old Rooming House!” He learned the previous proprietor, Minnie Rickets, bought the house in 1948 after her husband died, and she rented out rooms to travelers and “roustabouts” working in the nearby oil fields.
Our stay at The Old Rooming House was a most enjoyable escape from the ordinary. Jim admits “It’s not for everyone. If you’re addicted to TV this probably isn’t for you. And if you’re addicted to smoking this probably isn’t for you.” But to some guests, it is like discovering a rare treasure. Jim Stinson seems to have found a life that suits him well. “The guests really make the place. I can’t say enough about the people who stay here.” The Old Rooming House gives visitors to New Harmony a place to slow down, visit, and even get to know each other better. He tells of one guest who, after a weekend stay said, “Man, I hadn’t talked to my wife in ten years!” It seems the notion of “harmony” has taken root here at The Old Rooming House, and Jim has tended it well.
The Old Rooming House is at 916 Church Street, New Harmony, Indiana. Phone 812-682-4724 or 888-255-8256. http://www.oldroominghouse.com |
All Feature Articles, artwork and photographs ©2001 by Dervish Design. Some information on the 'County Info' pages is taken directly from brochures published by Visitors Bureaus and Chambers of Commerce.
When I spoke to owner Jim Stinson again this year he assured me that the $42 per night (tax included) rate hasn’t changed. “The rates haven’t changed in years!” he laughed. I also learned that after the first night they go down to $31.50 per night if guests take care of the room themselves. And these rates are not dependent on the number of people. 
I guess “browsing” through the house is an apt description because there is so much to see. Every room in the house invites guests to browse and look around, pick up a book or kick up their feet. Oh, have I mentioned books? Lots of books! I would dare say there are a thousand books throughout the house on any topic you could imagine. When I spoke to Jim this year he said, “Not much has changed since you were here. I think there are a few more books.” 
The Old Rooming House gets its character from Jim’s appreciation of the history of the house and New Harmony, and his fond memories of visits to his grandmother’s house. He also knew what he liked when he was on the road. He feels he’s somehow recreated the feel of old family vacations. “We took trips as a kid where we’d all pile in the car and go out West and see the Grand Canyon and the whole shooting match.” He says the View-Masters “let you take the same trip I took without leaving your room.”