Seaside Inn

Seaside Inn
Map
General information
LocationKennebunk, Maine
Address80 Beach Avenue, Kennebunk Beach
Coordinates43°20′55″N 70°28′45″W / 43.34861°N 70.47917°W / 43.34861; -70.47917
Opening1667; 358 years ago (1667)
OwnerTrish and Ken Mason
Technical details
Floor count2
Design and construction
DeveloperJohn Gooch
Other information
Number of rooms22
Parkingnone
Website
www.kennebunkbeachmaine.com

The Seaside Inn (formerly the Seaside Inn & Cottages) is an Inn in Kennebunk, Maine which has been in continuous operation under the same family since 1667, making it one of the oldest companies in the United States.

History

John Gooch, the first settler in the Cape Neddick area, arrived in the area 1637.[1] At some point, he established the Inn, and, by 1667, he was commissioned by Ferdinando Gorges, an agent of King Charles II, to "reside on the ocean-front peninsula at the mouth of the Kennebunk River and ferry travellers across the River."[2][3][4] The inn has been in continuous operation by the Gooch family since its inception. In 2018, it remained owned by John Gooch's twelfth-generation descendants.[2][3][5]

Literature

The early Gooch family history was chronicled in the 1929 novel Arundel by American author Kenneth Roberts.[4][1][6] Additionally, current owner Trish Mason has written a work of non-fiction entitled The Seaside House: Maine Innkeepers which tells the complete history of the family and running of the inn.[1][6]

Awards

The inn was recognized by New England's Yankee Magazine as the Maine lodging with the "Best Family Ties" in 2009.[7]

References

  1. ^ a b c Wigglesworth, Shelley (October 1, 2009). "Inside the Seaside". The Portsmouth Herald. SeacoastOnline.com. Retrieved January 10, 2013.
  2. ^ a b "7 Companies Older Than America - number 4". Inc. July 3, 2012. Retrieved January 10, 2013.
  3. ^ a b Crotty, Liam (January 1, 2004). "FACES of the Kennebunks Online Exhibition". Brick Store Museum. Archived from the original on August 28, 2008. Retrieved January 10, 2013.
  4. ^ a b Amatulli, Jodi (July 11, 2004). "Kennebunkport is a logical halfway stop". New Haven Register. HighBeam Research. Archived from the original on April 9, 2016. Retrieved January 10, 2013.(subscription required)
  5. ^ Olson, Karen E. "At the Seaside: Where Gooch first began to greet on the coast of Maine". New Haven Register. Seaside Inn official. Archived from the original on April 16, 2018.
  6. ^ a b Bodwell, Joshua (January 19, 2012). "Innkeeper of local history, too". The Portsmouth Herald. SeacoastOnline.com. Retrieved January 10, 2013.
  7. ^ "Maine Lodging 2009". Yankee Magazine. May 28, 2009. Retrieved January 10, 2013.