Lambertville – Then and Now

  • Address: 74 S. Union Street
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  • Historic Name: McCready Mansion
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  • Today: Inn of the Hawke
McCready Mansion, c. 1860 - 1895
McCready Mansion, c. 1860 – 1895
Photo courtesy Inn of the Hawke
Inn of the Hawke, December 2020
Inn of the Hawke, December 2020
Photo: Richard Freedman

The Inn, which was built circa 1860, was once the family home of wealthy mill owner William McCready.

McCready was the owner of The Perseverance Paper Mill (now the location of the Pittore Justice Center, and formerly the ACME Supermarket).

He was also elected mayor of the city of Lambertville in 1853 and re-elected for four consecutive one-year terms, without opposition (Mayor of Lambertville: 1853 – 1856).

The spacious three story Federal/Italian Revival style home was once a riverfront property. What was then the western portion of the property (between the current end of the property at S. Union St. and the Delaware River) is now retail space and a parking lot.

Around the turn of the 19th century the building was sold to the O’Brian Family who inhabited it for many years, until sometime in the 1920’s when it became an inn and a pub.

The inn was known to locals variously over the years as Ledgers, the Wilson Inn and the Elephant and Castle. In 1993 sisters Doreen and Melissa Masset purchased what was then a derelict inn. It had sat abandoned for over a year. With imagination and youthful enthusiasm, the sisters renovated the old Inn.

The result is Inn of The Hawke, a lovely tavern with a busy pub and six well-appointed guest rooms.