WILLIAMSBURG, Va. — An entrepreneur at the dawn of America, Christiana Burdett Campbell was one of the few women during the 1700s to own and operate an inn.
Born around 1723, Campbell learned the trade by assisting her father, an innkeeper at a tavern on Duke of Gloucester Street in Williamsburg, Virginia. She went on to marry Ebenezer Campbell and moved to Petersburg, but after his death in 1752, she sold all of his belongings and moved back to Williamsburg.
After renting several locations over the next 22 years, she finally bought her own. Her tavern gained recognition for its genteel accommodations and entertainment. It often played host to important founding figures such as Thomas Jefferson, George Washington, and many members of Virginia’s Congress.
After 30 years in the business, Campbell retired from innkeeping and moved closer to her youngest daughter in Fredericksburg. She lived out the rest of her days here until her passing in 1792.
Campbell’s tavern burned down in 1859, but almost 100 years later a replica was built by the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation, reopening its doors in 1956. To this day, tourists and locals can take a step back in time and visit the historical charm Campbell once brought to her guests.