Today the road has brought me to McGregor, IA.
And welcome to Part II of this article. As McGregor was only a half hour south of Lansing, I decided to make a visit there in order to spend a night at Stauer House Bed & Breakfast, owned and operated by Donna & Robert Staples.
McGregor is a throwback to yesteryear. Like Lansing, everything is located on Main Street and a cornucopia of shops are available including antique shops, eateries, a rare book shop, a sweet shop, and even a local drugstore. Like a small town of yesteryear, a lot of places close up early or are not even open on the weekends.
Close to the town for a visit are the Effigy Mounds and the Spook Cave Boat Tours.
Stauer House is a Queen Anne style home which was built by architect E.W.H. Jacobs for local businessman, Peter Stauer in 1882. Stauer sold the home to another businessman, J. A. Ramage in 1904 where it remained in the Ramage family for most of the next 100 years. Though, after Ramage’s death in the 1940s, his children primarily used Stauer House as a part time summer home. In 2002, it was purchased by the Staples who lovingly restored it to its original beauty and saving it from the disrepair into which it had fallen.
I arrived in town around noon and entered through Stauer House’s back door. I was greeted by Robert and Donna and Donna led me to a unlisted fourth room known as the Captain’s Room. It is a very spacious room with a king sized bed at its center and containing from classic furniture and also containing an en suite bathroom.
After making a quick turn about the house, I took a walk around Main Street and did a rarity by stopping for lunch at Café McGregor. I continued reading Sherlock Holmes while munching on a small club sandwich with some kettle chips on the side.
After that it was back to the inn where I enjoyed doing a whole lot of nothing for the afternoon.
In the early evening, I took another walk and then spent the night writing, watching The A-Team, and enjoying a bath before retiring for the evening.
Shortly before 8am the next morning, Donna knocked on my door to let me know that breakfast was ready in the dining room. I made my way downstairs and found a series of dishes ready for selection. I took a little fruit, glasses of water and OJ, two pancakes, a piece of sausage, and a couple slices of an egg frittata.
It was definitely the quietest breakfast I’d ever had as not only was I the only guest but Donna and Robert had taken their grandchildren to school so I was completely on my own. But it was a most pleasant meal and I was especially impressed with the fresh frittata with its gooey cheese and the pancakes which were infused with cinnamon.
After that, it was a quick wrap up to this article before making the trip back to reality.
But when you feel ready to travel again, a visit to McGregor will be worth it for those who love nature, antiques, and classic Americana and a stay at Stauer House will be a comfortable one.
Until the next time, happy travels.
Chris' Corner 