OMG — this “Gilbert Mansion” BnB (bed and breakfast) in Grand Rapids (Minnesota) might just be the best BnB we’ve ever stayed at! It’s a combination of Downton Abbey, It’s a Wonderful Life, and Wizard of Oz.
But first, how did we get here? Beth and I have read about and talked about the Mesabi Trail for years, and we are finally doing it. This is an off-road paved bike trail in northern Minnesota that winds about 160 miles from the Mississippi River (Grand Rapids) to the Boundary Waters Canoe Area (Ely).
We only had two days, so we decided to ride the 80 miles of the western half from Grand Rapids to Eveleth, since the eastern half won’t be complete until next summer.
So Wednesday we drove our van with bikes from Chippewa Falls to Eveleth, where we caught a shuttle to Grand Rapids (thanks to the advice of fellow Chippewa Falls biker John Panzer). Our driver, Craig, was quite knowledgeable about the trail and the iron range area, so there wasn’t a dull moment in the hour-long drive.
After putting our panniers back on our bikes and grabbing a quick bite to eat in Dottie’s Cafe, our first mission was to go to the childhood home of Judy Garland. There’s a nice museum for her and the Wizard of Oz, including the house where she spent the first years of her life. Her parents owned a theater in town, so she was singing on stage with her sisters at a very young age. Later that night we ate at Rapids Brewery, which is the same building as that theater!
But back to the BnB. The opulence and elegance reminded us very much of Downton Abbey. In fact, the owner, Christie Graupman, described how the Gilbert children would get all dressed up in their rooms for every evening meal in the early 1900s, before floating down the staircase to sit at the big table while their servants waited on them, just like the show.
This was but one of many stories told by our hostess Christie, who is a huge history buff in addition to having a degree in interior design.
True confession — we stumbled on this place almost by accident while looking at Google Maps just two days prior. We were planning on getting a hotel, but spotted the Gilbert Mansion and started reading about it. Christie and her husband Tim raised their six kids in this house! So I knew we’d like them right away. (For those who don’t know us, Beth and I raised and launched five kids.)
But it gets even better. Christie and Tim grew up in Grand Rapids, but were living in Chattanooga, Tennessee, for several years while Tim was playing minor league baseball for the Minnesota Twins (along with one Kirby Pucket). Christie had always dreamed about some day living in the broken down old Gilbert Mansion, and told Tim that she’d move back to their home town if they could ever buy that. Yes, just like Mary Hatch Bailey in “It’s a Wonderful Life.”
To make a long story short, that opportunity came up when their kids were aged 6 to 16 — the exact ages that the Gilbert Family’s four kids were when they moved into the house almost a century earlier!
There was a LOT of work to do restoring the house. But Christie’s love of history and attention to detail really paid off, and when the last of their six kids left home, she opened up the mansion as a BnB.
Before we even went to bed, we were thinking that we already had gotten our money’s worth for the tour and the stories. But the great night of sleep (94% sleep score on my Apple Watch) and the stunning breakfast made it even better.
So even though our total biking distance that day was only seven miles, it was still a fascinating visit to the history of Grand Rapids.