Mid-Coast Maine
The Hawthorn Inn
9 High St.
Camden, ME 04843

Elegance and comfort are the hallmarks of this 1894 Queen Anne-style beauty, one of the few in town with glimpses of the Camden harbor. Well-traveled owner Maryanne Shanahan offers ten guest quarters and a nicely landscaped back yard sloping down toward the harbor and a gate opening onto the town amphitheater.

Six guest quarters are in the main inn and four in the rear carriage house, painted in barn red with a pale yellow trim that matches the house. All have queensize beds (except one with twins). 

Appointed in upscale cabin style, the Cloud Nine Suite covers much of the top floor with a large bedroom with TV/VCR and cozy reading area, a sitting room with gas log fireplace and a bath with clawfoot soaking tub. 

The regal Regency Room, second floor rear, boasts a fireplace and an extra-large bathroom with a great water view from the washstand – if you turn sideways. 

Framed botanical prints enhance Jillian’s Suite, formed by dividing a large room into a fireplaced sitting room separated by french doors from the bedroom. 

The Turret room has a wicker chaise and a rocker in the turret, while everything from wallpaper to china accessories comes up roses in the twin-bedded Rose Room on the lower garden level.

The four prime accommodations, three with double jacuzzis and three with gas fireplaces, are in the carriage house. All have private decks or patio, aqua blue upholstered rocker or swivel chairs, and TV/VCRs. Maryanne renovated the downstairs Watney into “a sensuous and serene retreat,” installing a double jacuzzi and two-person shower in its large bath. A collection of birdhouses is hung as art on the walls of the Cabriolet, prized for its garden patio. The best view is from the upstairs Norfolk, a huge room with white iron queen bed, extra day bed, gas stove and private deck overlooking shady lawn and harbor. The adjacent Broughman Room offers a mahogany poster bed, stenciling around the jacuzzi and another great water view.

Back in the main house are a double parlor with not one but two turrets. Healthful breakfasts featuring locally grown and organic products are served at individual tables in a formal dining room or on a spacious rear deck. The fare the day we visited included a fresh fruit plate, homemade hazelnut granola and a raspberry blintz soufflé. In lieu of breakfast meats she might serve fish, smoked and otherwise.

Limeade and iced tea are offered summer afternoons on the deck.


(207) 236-8842 or (866) 381-3647. Fax (207) 236-6181. E-mail: info@camdenhawthorn.com

For more information: www.camdenhawthorn.com

Eight rooms and two suites with private baths. Doubles, $149 to $289 May to mid-November, $99 to $199 rest of year.


Material excerpted from Inn Spots & Special Places in New England, by Nancy and Richard Woodworth, copyright 2004, and from The Ultimate New England Getaway Guide, by Nancy and Richard Woodworth, copyright 2005.

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