Upstate New York B&B Taps its Irish Roots to Mark St. Patrick’s Day in True Gaelic Style

HUDSON VALLEY, N.Y. - Feb. 11, 2014 - PRLog -- Once a refuge to an Irish family fleeing British persecution, the Caldwell House Bed and Breakfast is marking St. Patrick’s Day in style with weekend festivities, homemade Irish favorites and helping guests rub elbows at the Irish pub across the street.

“The entire history of Caldwell House is Irish,” said Dena Finneran, who co-owns the award winning Country Inn with her husband John. “This is definitely our most cherished holiday and we want to celebrate it in style.”

Guests at Caldwell House can benefit from two Irish-theme weekends (March 14-16 and March 21-23, 2014) full of Irish festivities and gourmet Irish breakfasts – complete with Irish Soda Bread, Irish coffee, and other Irish treats. The pub, within walking distance, features live Irish music on Thursdays and lots of tasty Irish beer on tap every day.

Guests visiting on March 16^th can catch the St. Patrick’s Day parade, a mid-Hudson favorite since 1976.

About Caldwell House

The history of the Caldwell House is a tribute to bravery and patriotism that spans various generations, an international journey, and epitomizes the American Dream.

In the beginning, The Caldwell House Bed & Breakfast was a refuge to an Irish family fleeing the British during the 1798 Irish Rebellion. The Caldwells, including a dozen children, packed their bags and headed to sea, in a dangerous journey across the Atlantic. They arrived in New York City, set up a convenience store, and saved as much as they could. By the early 1800s, they’d amassed 50-acres of land in Salisbury Mills and began to erect a cluster of buildings, an effort to recreate the estate they had in Ireland.

Sons John Jr. and Andrew were perhaps the most entrepreneurial and always kept the community at heart. Together they ran a store, a flourmill and a leather tanning business. John Jr. was affectionately known as “Honest John,” for keeping his word and repaying debts promptly. His credibility stretched far within the community and his focus on maintaining relationships never wavered. In 1841 he was a key figure in creating the Orange County Fair, an annual summer event that remains today. Andrew Caldwell was also a fixture in the town; helping to build a local schoolhouse and creating Washington's Headquarters in Newburgh, which became the first publicly operated historic site in the United States. Andrew’s son, Richard, and his wife, Sarah, would later inherit the main Caldwell home and continue to honor their activism, erecting a town monument in memory of family and friends who fought in the war of 1812 and the Civil War.

Today various buildings belonging to the Caldwell’s are part of the Caldwell House Bed & Breakfast. The main house, once home to John Caldwell, Sr was one of several inherited by several generations of Caldwells. The property was  first converted to a bed and breakfast in 2000. John and Dena Finneran purchased the Inn several years ago and have been steadily seeking to reclaim the buildings pertaining to the Caldwell legacy, once again piecing its history back together and continuing the Caldwell tradition in its community.

The Caldwell House Bed & Breakfast is located at 25 Orrs Mills Road, Salisbury Mills, NY 12577. To make a reservation call 1-800-210-5565 or visit www.caldwellhouse.com. Also at: facebook.com/CaldwellHouseBandB