Steeped In History Since 1833

Originally named Aurora House, the Aurora Inn was built in 1833 by Colonel E. B. Morgan, a native of Aurora and co-founder of The New York Times. By the mid-19th century, Aurora became a major stop on the Erie Canal for boats carrying agricultural products from area farmers to New York City. Henry Wells, of Wells Fargo stagecoach fame and the founder of American Express, established Wells College there in 1868.

During its colorful past, the Aurora Inn was a favored overnight destination for travelers borne by coach, canal boat and rail. It has long been a popular spot for students from Wells, Cornell University and other nearby colleges.

Soon after the inn's opening, an article appeared in the local newspaper remarking on the inn's "regularity, neatness and order everywhere exhibited - as well as the thousand little attentions which are paid to the comfort and convenience of travelers." The writer also raved about the inn's "uninterrupted view of the water scenery of the most enchanting kind" and its "elegance scarcely surpassed by the most extensive houses of our large towns."

In the early 1840s, William D. Eagles purchased the inn and engaged his uncle John Eagles to manage it for him. Oil portraits of William Eagles and his wife Nancy now hang above the fireplaces in the reception area and parlor. Portraits of John Eagles, a former sea captain and his wife hang above the restored fireplaces in the dining room and bar. These newly restored portraits were painted in the 19th century by noted artist Charles Loring Elliott.

When a fire destroyed the main building at Wells College in 1888, many students lived temporarily at the Aurora Inn, which they renamed the Wayside Inn. Fire struck again on February 18, 1919, destroying Aurora's tiny business district between the old post office and the Aurora Inn. When the south cornices of the inn caught fire, Wells College President Kerr Duncan McMillan climbed onto the roof and doused the fire with buckets of water handed to him by the village brigade. Today, charred beams remain under the roof as a reminder of the inn's narrow escape.

In 1943, the inn was deeded to Wells College. The inn again served as a makeshift residence hall during the 1960s when enrollment at the college increased dramatically and space was tight in the dormitories. One student who lived at the inn recalls that eight students lived in "four tiny rooms upstairs with one bathroom."

Despite a series of additions, renovations and new managers, the inn struggled financially starting in the 1970s. A drain on the college's resources, the inn had to be closed several times during the last three decades, most recently in October 2000.

The Aurora Foundation, a partnership between Wells College and the Pleasant T. Rowland Foundation, began a complete renovation of the inn in 2001 to restore its lost luster and make it appealing once again for lodging, dining and special events. The inn reopened in May 2003.