Brooks House, also known as Hotel Brooks, is a historic building in Brattleboro, Vermont. The building was designed by E. Boyden and Son Company for George Brooks to replace a previous hotel that had burned down in 1871. In 1980, it was added to the national register of historic places.

Early Years of Brooks House

Brooks House was a lavish hotel built in 1871 for George Brooks. There were 80 fully furnished rooms in the hotel. The hotel has a lengthy verandah with iron columns to sustain the structure's weight. Lintels were made of granite. The hotel was the largest in New England and New York City at the time. During the summer, it was very popular in New York and Boston. The hotel's verandah was mostly utilized for parades, although it also hosted meetings throughout the year. Parties were held in the hotel's ballroom.

The Brooks hotel was renovated from 1970 to 1972 in order to make it commercially viable. To keep the hotel from being demolished, changes were made as well. The ballroom, which took up most of the hotel's second and third floors, was divided into offices. The remaining floors have been converted into 59 modern apartments. The hotel's main entrance was converted into a bank. The interior of the building's columns was removed to make room for retail on the ground floor.

Hazards at Brooks House

The building's third and fourth floors were severely damaged by fire on April 17, 2011. Jonathan Chase, who had taken control of the building, was in charge of renovating it. The building's restoration and redevelopment cost a significant amount of money. Chase, however, decided to sell the hotel on April 4th, 2012, despite the fact that it was a hectic time for him. He did this after failing to raise the funds needed to restore the commercial building. Mesabi LLC, a group of five local investors, purchased the commercial building and plans to renovate it. Loans and federal tax credits were used to fund the project.

Dine and Live at Brooks House

Mesabi LLC's main goal was to renovate the commercial building on campus for the surrounding community, the Vermont community college, and a Vermont technical college. The college reopened after renovations, and operations began in 2014 and continue to this day. Restaurants and retail stores occupy the ground floor, while 23 fully rented apartments occupy the top floor. Of course, you can visit the restaurant at any time for delectable Vermont fare. The apartments are available to any interested party who is ready to occupy them. Because the pricing for rentals and restaurants are set, you won't get ripped off. The waiters and servers are quite friendly.