Benham Schoolhouse Inn

Hallway of Inn showing original terrazzo flooring and lockers. shehangsbrightly (Atlas Obscura User)

For those looking for a unique experience, the Benham Schoolhouse Inn, a former school that has been converted into an inn is the perfect place. Much of the original architecture has been preserved inside the school, including the school lockers which line the hallways and the original terrazzo flooring.

Founded as a K-12 school in 1926, it was a school for many of the children whose parents worked for International Harvester’s Wisconsin Steel Company of Chicago, Illinois, a steel company with a lucrative coal mining arm, thanks to the coal-rich country in Harlan County. Once International Harvester left the area in 1961, the school became a K-8 school, finally shutting its doors in 1992. In 1994, it was renovated as an inn and has been owned by multiple owners ever since.

Hospitality is the name of the game at the inn, and it is a welcome respite from traditional hotels.

Know Before You Go

Driving to the Inn during daylight hours is highly recommended, as some of the roads are full of hairpin twists and turns. The especially difficult road to drive on at night is through the Black Mountains (Route 160), which all GPS will guide you to, try forcing your GPS to go around the mountains rather than through them.