Number one on Trip advisor in Granbury, Texas!

We are honored to be the number one bed and breakfast in Granbury, Texas on trip Advisor.com
For the past number of months we have been consistently earning wonderful praise from our satisfied guests and have risen to be the number one bed and breakfast in Granbury, Texas on Trip Advisor.com. We would like to take this opportunity to thank all of our wonderful guests who have kindly put such thoughtful reviews on Trip Advisor.com. Their support is ensuring that our bed and breakfast is a success. We have enjoyed every one of the guests who have stayed with us at our bed and breakfast since we took over in December 2008. We have found that the folks who choose to come to a bed and breakfast are always friendly, kind, considerate, appreciative and choose a bed and breakfast for the personal touches we provide. Guests have been telling us that they are also coming to the Iron Horse Inn because of our lovely gardens, our rich history, and in particular our gorgeous craftsman style house, built over 100 years ago.
Again, thank you all of you who have stayed with us, and we look forward to meeting those of you who have not yet stayed here - we promise a very special experience from first to last!

Granbury Texas hike and bike Trail beside the Iron Horse inn Bed and Breakfast

Here at the Iron Horse Inn Historic Bed and Breakfast, in Granbury Texas, we are perfectly situated beside the city of Granbury's beautiful hike and bike trail.
There are over 2 miles of lovely walks, and it takes only 5 minutes to stroll into the historic square, from the Iron Horse Inn Historic Bed and Breakfast.


Guests feel safe walking in the evening, as the track is well lit and has security cameras.



There are over 2 miles of lovely walks, and it takes only 5 minutes to stroll into the historic square, from the Iron Horse Inn Historic Bed and Breakfast.















The impressive Volunteer Firefighters Memorial park is situated on the midway point of the hike and bike track, and there is also a fun fire truck/play ground for the kids to enjoy.












Any time of the day, you will find somebody walking their dog, jogging or just taking in a leisurely stroll, and it is always a pleasure to meet and greet folks on this lovely amenity.

Well done Granbury!

Veterans museum pow wow beside the Iron Horse Inn Historic Bed and Breakfast in Granbury

The Iron Horse Inn Historic Bed and Breakfast is conveniently located right next door to the new Granbury US Veteran's museum. We were honored today to have a Native American pow wow in the grounds of the museum



There was wonderful music, incredible costumes and delicious food. We also enjoyed a number of really nice art and craft stalls displaying some pretty pieces of jewelery and ornaments.

The food was wonderful - we particularly loved the Indian Nachos on fried bread - yum!
As the day progressed, it was a pleasure to hear the voices singing and the drum beating in the background as we sat in our lovely garden.
We are delighted that this pow wow will be an annual event and we look forward to next year's event!
Thank you to the dancers and singers from all of the indian nations represented here today - we really appreciate your sharing your ancient, fascinating and colorful culture with us.

Iron horse Inn Historic Bed and Breakfast Granbury, Beautiful Gardens

We continue to delight in our gardens here at the Iron Horse Inn Historic Bed and Breakfast, in Granbury Texas. We have been working hard to develop and maintain it and we are proud of how great it is looking at the moment.
We look forward to having our next wedding here in August - this is the perfect setting for a wedding, with over an acre of lush gardens, our lovely Koi pond and waterfall, our 400 year old live oak tree, and the many lovely shrubs and plants.

I particularly love to work in the garden in the morning when the birds are singing in the trees, sometimes it feels like being in the woods, there are so many wonderful bird songs surrounding me as I work.
Guests truly enjoy relaxing in our gardens, there are so many places to explore or to sit and take it easy. For a perfect getaway from it all, the Iron horse Inn Historic Bed and Breakfast offers it all - lovely gardens, historic home, delicious food and warm friendly personal service. Come and try it for yourself!

Austin Plein Air artists at the Iron Horse Inn Historic Bed and Breakfast, Granbury Texas

Here at the Iron horse Inn Historic Bed and Breakfast, we were delighted to welcome 12 very talented members of the Austin Plein Air Society, recently. We had a really fun time with the group, and it was a delight to watch them set up their easels in the gardens and to see their beautiful pictures take shape before our eyes!
















One of the lovely paintings by Vicki Brevel







The group had a small exhibition of their work in our art studio and the quality of their work was
really impressive.


Some members of the group included Beryl Kerwick, Vicki Brevell, Rae Andrews, Lynn Cohagan, Laura Daniel, Julie Davis, Ruth Heffron, Sue Wiley.







A scene in our gardens painted by Rae Andrews



We look forward to our next group of artists here at the Iron Horse Inn Historic Bed and Breakfast, when Soon Y Warren, the number one water colorist in the country leads a workshop in July.

spring in the garden of the Iron Horse Inn Historic Bed and Breakfast, Granbury, Texas

We have been enjoying the wonderful gardens here at the Iron Horse Inn Historic Bed and Breakfast in Granbury Texas. When we purchased the property last winter we had no idea of all the wonderful plants that were lying waiting for the spring to come! We are loving seeing a new plant or blossom every day.
We are also really enjoying creating a new garden at the front of the house, with its own arch and stone wall. This will be a really pretty addition to the already lovely 1 acre of gardens.
Last month we created a new rockery in the back garden, so now when you sit in the swing under the 400 year old live oak tree, you can enjoy the sound of the waterfall and the sight of the pretty rockery beside you. The perfect place to enjoy an afternoon snack. In fact many of our guests have been enjoying their welcoming complimentary glass of wine and fresh baked dessert, sitting in this lovely secluded garden.
These gardens are the perfect setting for a wedding, and it seems that this is the time for wedding planning - we are loving the opportunity to take prospective brides and grooms around the property while they imagine the perfect spot in the garden for their special day. We are proud to be associated with a wonderful cake baker Rebekah's Bakery, here in Granbury. We are fortunate to have the services of two highly professional wedding planners, at The Perfect Affair, and Dream Come True weddings

canvas by canvas at the iron horse inn artistic retreat center

We have had the best fun with 6 of the members of the collaborative artists from "Canvas by Canvas"! Karen Foster, Cindy Yandell, Barbara Hackney, Connie Michael, Nancy Standlee, and Maryann Stephens stayed with us here at the Historic Iron Horse Inn Bed and Breakfast, in Granbury and spent three days painting wonderful pictures at our new Art Studio.





My dream to see artists working in the studio has become a reality and I loved spending time with these lovely women. they know how to have fun and they are incredibly talented artists too!
Every time I popped into the art studio to visit with them (it was hard to stay away - their sense of fun was infectious!) there was more of their work to delight in! I particularly enjoyed watching Nancy's flock of roosters grow as the weekend progressed - see the photo to the right of her "brood".






Saying goodbye to these ladies was hard
- I feel like we had old friends over to stay. Thanks girls for making this such a fund adventure for all of us!

Nancy Standlee is a fellow blogger and she has a really entertaining blog space. Great fun to read!







Check out their paintings at canvas by canvas and
see their unique way of working collaboratively.
Each woman paints a section of a picture and then all of the 9 sections are hung together to form one picture which will have a story attached from their many adventures together.

I can't wait to see which adventure in Granbury they decide to paint together!

A perfect getaway for artists to enjoy.

I think it is important that I make it clear that our artistic retreat center at the Iron Horse Inn Historic Bed and Breakfast, Granbury Texas is not just a place to take workshops with nationally renowned artists. It is also a perfect place for artists to get away together for their own retreats, in a lovely relaxing and historic setting. Our gardens are inspirational, with our 400 year old oak trees,



our Koi pond, and the hike and bike track right beside the old mansion.

The sunsets are spectacular here as are the sunrises. The bright red cardinals flitting among the trees are georgous, our kitties basking in the sun in the garden are real models for paintings, the old mansion is a wonderful subject to paint from its many different angles, and pretty soon the red bud trees will be in blossom. Our studio is a great space to work in, with lots of light and space and two storys to spread yourselves out in!
It is possible to stay as a small group of 5 in our Garden Gate Cottage for as little as $65 including use of the studio, or you could opt for some luxury in a private room in the house, each room has a private bathroom.
During the cold weather we have the fire lighting in the fireplace for guests coming down to breakfast, or sitting reading in the evenings - very inviting.

All in all the perfect getaway for an artist - luxury, relaxation, privacy, inspiration and a great space to work too.

wedding venue in granbury texas

The Iron Horse Inn, Granbury Texas is the perfect place to have your dream wedding. The old mansion is such a romantic setting, with its beautiful hand carved wooden staircase, perfect for the bride to make her entrance, and the wide open bright rooms for small receptions of up to 75 people.
How about having your honeymoon night in the Cogdell Suite, with its gorgeous sun room and 100 year old clawfoot tub, original to the house. The bed and dresser in this room were once in the previous house, built in 1885 and burned down in 1900. Many of the original pieces of furniture were saved and are now in this wonderful old home.

The gardens are large and pretty with 400 year old live oak trees, and 100 year old pecan trees. At night the lights in the trees look like dappled moonlight. A lovely setting for your wedding party. There is lots of room to set up tables and a dance floor in the garden. Maybe you would like to have your ceremony in our arbor beside our koi pond! Or sit and pose for photos with your beloved in the garden swing in the old oak tree.

The possibilities for this historic home are endless, and we are more than happy to work with you to make this the wedding of your dreams.

V.....Vaughan coming to teach at the Iron Horse Inn, Granbury, Texas

We are very excited to have the extremely talented V....Vaughan coming to teach at our Artistic Retreat Center, here at the Iron Horse Inn Bed and Breakfast, Granbury, Texas. She will be here April 6 - 9. What a great opportunity to stay at this wonderful old mansion and study with V....Vaughan for 4 whole days!

V... for Virginia, has completed a fascinating series of 365 paintings, one every day for one year depicting her last year on their family farm. The paintings are on exhibition in various galleries around the country and we are delighted that some of this series will be on exhibition in Granbury Texas, at "Your Private Collection" art Gallery.

Virginia says of her workshop in Granbury "Special lessons on sunrise and the waxing moon en plein air" She will be teaching many of her techniques at the four day retreat. A rare opportunity not to be missed!

Ancient trees at Granbury Texas Bed and Breakfast

We are in awe of our wonderful old trees here at the Iron Horse Inn bed and breakfast, in Granbury, Texas. The view from the kitchen door is of our 400 year old live oak. It is magnificent and proud, and it is a delight to sit in the swing beneath it and rock gently. We have two 400 year old live oaks on the property. The other is a beauty, growing just beside our new art studio.
All of the pecan trees in the garden were planted by the original owner, Lucy Cogdell when the house was built in 1905. They still produce huge crops of nuts every year!
At night it is a delight to stroll around the garden and see the trees lit up by our mercury vapor lights in each one. Or sitting in the sun room of our Cogdell Suite you feel as if you are in the trees, with the lights all around you. A very special room!.

How much history these old trees have seen.

Rich history in our Granbury Texas Bed and Breakfast

One of the things our guests are always delighted about when they come to stay with us is doing the historic tour of our old home and hearing the interesting stories of some of the family members through the generations.

This house is the largest historic bed and breakfast in Granbury Texas and it is rich in history and the most wonderful thing for me is that it has not changed much since it was built over 100 years ago. We even have many of the original pieces of furniture from the house which was built on this foundation in the 1880's! The solid oak mission dining room set is always admired by guests, as is the old four poster bed and huge 7' claw foot tub.


It was made specially for the original owner Daniel Cogdell who was 6' 4"!






This is a truly unique bed and breakfast and we would love to have you come and stay with us to experience all of the charms it has to offer! Come to Granbury Texas, enjoy the delights of a great small town and stay at a unique historic bed and breakfast. what could be more fun!

Granbury Texas a center for the arts

Granbury Texas, is definitely the place to come if you are interested in the arts. The new artistic retreat center at the Iron Horse Inn makes Granbury even more of a destination for art lovers! Amazingly, Granbury has 4 excellent art galleries, and on the last Friday of every month all of these galleries stay open for "Gallery Night" from 5 - 9pm. What a treat! The galleries include
"Your Private Collection" on the historic town square, "Studio 216" on West Pearl Street, "Lake Granbury Art Association's Shanley House" on North Travis Street, and "The Langdon Center" on East Pearl Street.

Romantic Valentine's Weekend Getaway Special

Paul and I just spent a wonderful half hour sitting on our lovely old porch in our amazing Iron Horse Inn and watching the sun setting. The sunsets here at the inn are spectacular, and watching the wonder of it all, we realized that this is the perfect place for a romantic getaway! You can watch the sunset together from our beautiful Baron's Balcony suite, from either of our two living rooms, from the large porch, from the brand new art studio, or from the 1 acre garden. What a special place we have here!!

We have a romantic getaway special for St. Valentine's Day, in February, with flowers, chocolates, sparkling wine and yummy deserts. The perfect way to get away from it all with your sweetheart.

painting and quilting retreats in Granbury Texas

Some exciting news from the Iron Horse Inn Artistic Retreat Center- we have just reduced our prices to very reasonable rates. It is now possible to do a 5 day quilting or painting retreat, with 24 hours of instruction with some of the best artists in the country, stay in a luxury bed and breakfast, enjoy tasty light lunches and spend as many hours as you like in the studio working on your project, all for as little as $500! Or take part in a 3 day artistic retreat for as little as $350.
What a perfect gift to yourself for the New Year or for someone special in your life who loves to immerse themselves in creativity.

Other exciting news is that we have just signed up the incredibly talented Sante Fe artist, Mike Mahon. Mike will be teaching at a 5 day painting retreat from June 22 to June 25.

quilting retreat in Granbury Texas

We are getting very excited about our upcoming quilting retreat here at the Iron horse Inn, Granbury, Texas. The very talented quilt artist Lenore Crawford will be teaching her unique method of art quilting at our brand new facility. Lenore's work has been featured on the cover of the American Quilters' Magazine in the 2007 Spring issue and the 2008 January issue. She is the recipient of many prestigious awards including the Best tof Show at the Midland MI Artist Guild All Media Show, and the Judges' Choice Award at the Pacific International Quilt Festival.
The texture and warmth which she achieves from the fabric itself along with fabric painting, gives this art an impressionistic feeling that only this medium can produce.

The workshop runs from Monday January 12 to Thursday January 15. Price for the workshop includes your room, breakfast, lunch, a total of 24 hours of class with Lenore and use of our purpose built art studio for 24 hours per day.

There are still a few spaces left at this workshop, whether you are interested in staying at our beautiful old inn in one of our beautiful rooms, or would prefer to come during the day to attend Lenore's workshop. Either way, you will be guaranteed a fantastic time, with a small group of other folks interested in art quilting.

Construction has been completed on our new art studio and we are delighted with the results. We are just putting the finishing touches on the paintwork and waiting for the new carpet to be installed in the next couple of days.

Don't miss this great opportunity to study with one of the finest quilt artists in the country, save yourself having to travel a distance to take part in her workshops, come while she is here in Granbury Texas!

new year's eve in historic Granbury Texas

We are looking forward to the New Year here at our historic Granbury bed and breakfast - we have lots to look forward to with the opening of our new artistic retreat center on January 12 and all of the talented artists who will be offering workshops in our new studio.

We have discovered that Granbury knows how to celebrate New Year's Eve! There are at least 5 celebrations taking place around the town on December 31st.

The Opera House, on the historic square will be holding a New Year's Eve Gospel Concert.

The Granbury Riverboat will be celebrating with a Filet Mignon dinner, a Murder Mystery and dancing.

The City of Granbury will be holding a New Year's Eve dinner and dance at the Resort Conference center

Harbor Lakes Golf Club will be hosting a New Year's Eve dinner and dance

The H6 Ranch, south of Granbury will be hosting it's 7th Waltz across the Pasture with Signature Kidz to celebrate New Year's Eve.

What better place to come and stay after you have enjoyed the many celebrations Granbury has to offer, than our own Granbury Texas bed and breakfast, the Iron Horse Inn. We will be welcoming our guests with complimentary glass of sparkling wine and hand made chocolate strawberries. Then on New Year's day we will be celebrating with a special brunch of black- eyed peas, corn bread, mimosas and all the trimmings.

What a great little town we are living in!

Architect of our B-and-B in Granbury, Texas

This wonderful old house, known as The Iron Horse Inn, here in Granbury Texas is the perfect spot for our artistic retreats. The house was built by master craftsmen who took two years to complete the beautiful intricate woodwork in all of the rooms. In fact the original owner, Daniel Cogdell prided himself on having chosen all of the wood himself in East Texas, without one single knot anywhere! The house is truly a work of art, designed by the architect Wyatt Hedrick, who also built one of the finest examples of Art Deco in fort Worth - The Texas and Pacific Railway Terminal.







While researching the work of Wyatt Hedrick I found that he also built the fabled Shamrock Hotel in Houston, which at the time was the largest hotel in America, with the largest swimming pool in the world!. Sadly the hotel was demolished in 1987. It was apparently built for a wealthy oil tycoon in 1949 for the sum of $21,000,000 (or the equivalent of $200,000,000 today)!



Being an Irish woman, I was fascinated to discover that the Shamrock Hotel was opened on St. Patrick's day, had a green roof and had it's rooms painted in 60 shades of green! The original owner was of Irish descent and was known as "Wildcatter McCarthy"

One more interesting tit-bit I found on my web surfing adventures - "Wildcatter McCarthy" was in fact the inspiration for the fictional character Jett Rink in the novel "Giant", who was played in the movie by James Dean.

You never know where internet searches will lead you!

Welcome to my new Granbury, Texas, artistic retreat center blog

Hi and Welcome to my new blog. I am so excited to be getting so close to realizing my dream of opening a Texas artistic retreat center!

Starting January 12th. we offer our first five day art retreat with a very gifted quilt artist, Lenore Crawford.
Lenore made this incredible quilt, which we are lucky enough to have on display at the Iron Horse Inn Bed and Breakfast in Granbury Texas


Our art studio is almost completed, our builders have been working hard and are doing a great job. It will be a beautiful, bright and airy, two story space, ideal for all sorts of art work.

I have loved arts and crafts since I was a small child, in fact my mother used to say about me when I was very little - "give her a piece of paper and a scissors and she will be happy all day!" That joy of creativity has never left me, so I am delighted to be able to surround myself with many talented artists over this coming year.

Many years ago my mother brought me with her on a weekend to an artistic retreat center in Ireland, where I am from, to do a quilting workshop, and I loved everything about the experience. The fun of getting together with other women who loved creativity, the community and the beautiful old historic house and gardens. This special center in Ireland is called "An Grianain" and is run by a very interesting womens' organization called the "Irish Country Womens' Association". This experience was without doubt where I got my inspiration to open our artistic retreat center here in Granbury, Texas.

Check out our website for information about our artistic retreat center, including teacher bios, and a calendar of events for 2009. Check back regularly as we plan on adding more classed soon.