The huge three-story Inn represented what once was a bustling coastal Maine town, filled with granite workers and vacationers all looking for a place to stay.

The historic Manor Inn was recently demolished by Atherton Construction of Hancock, after standing watch from the hill overlooking Frenchman Bay in Sullivan since the early 1880s. The Inn and it's adjacent restaurant had been abandoned for close to 25 years and had turned into a liability for the town of Sullivan.

The Manor Inn's heyday was back in the mid to late 19th and early 20th century, when guests were treated to an authentic Swiss alpine chalet.  Workers would dress in traditional Swiaa attire and could be seen walking around wearing their clogs where the scenic area/rest stop is now on Route 1, and where other fine hotels and a stores were once located.

I moved to Sullivan back in 1975 and remember the amazement and wonder of seeing the Inn for the first time while walking on Manor Lane and up into the woods.  The Inn was huge compared to most homes and buildings in the area with it's three stories and long winding decks. Walking through the front door of the Inn brought you into the hotel's lobby where the biggest fireplace that one has ever seen stood. One could only dream of what once was while climbing the narrow staircases and walking the hallways by the many rooms, servant's quarters and kitchens within the building.

A second building that once housed the Inn's busy restaurant sat off to the left with it's huge brick oven and full-length balcony that overlooked a wide-open area where diners once sat below.

I remember the wonderful Gilman family from the Washington D.C. area once that lived there in the 70s until sometime in the early 90s when Mrs. Gilman then passed away.  They tried to keep up with the Inn's maintenance as well as they could, but the immense buildings and the amount of property were just too much.

It didn't take long for history to come crumbling down into a heap of rotten wood and dust back in early November.  Now, one can only remember and dream of the grandeur that once was hidden within woods of downeast Maine.

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