Aces of Trades: Musser is a business owner inspired by history
CHILLICOTHE – He’s dotted the “i” in Script Ohio – more than once. Learned the resort business out west. And now runs a B&B on the National Register of Historic Places.
“As a child,” recalled Drew Musser, “my parents always taught me about the history of the area. It always appealed to me. My brothers and I would often scour the plowed fields around the area looking for arrowheads and other artifacts of days gone by. We collected these treasures, and most of them I still have to this day.”
Bigger still, today Musser is co-owner and host, with wife Steph Moore, at The Willis-James Bed & Breakfast, now on the National Register of Historic Places.
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“The fact we wound up with the house is rather serendipitous,” he said. “In the fall of 2019, Steph and I were touring around Chillicothe with my mother and stepfather. We stopped in front of 58 W. 5th St. to talk about the Historical Society across the street, noticed a ‘For Sale’ sign in the front yard and were curious to look at the old house. Sure, the house had been neglected but showed promise. We purchased it, intent on doing some minor fixes and flipping it. After learning more about the history of the home and those who built it, we vowed this piece of Chillicothe history needed to be properly preserved. We embarked on what became a 3-year restoration project, filled with surprises, tears, treasures and fulfillment.”
“As he said,” noted his wife Steph Moore, “this was not our lifelong plan. This wasn't a dream we thought about for decades. It just kind of happened. The journey was exciting, scary, fascinating, hard, and usually it just felt right!”
The house got its name, by the way, from Nathaniel Willis and Thomas James. Willis, originally from Boston and a participant in the Boston Tea Party, came to Chillicothe and built the home in 1805. James, president of the Bank of Chillicothe, bought the home in 1812. Thus the name The Willis-James.
“Since the house had been a bed and breakfast in the past, we thought it made sense that it be one again,” Musser said. “It was important to us that if we were going open our own B&B, that we were going to create the best bed and breakfast in Ohio, something for Chillicothe to be proud of, something that offered more than just a hotel room.”
Musser was born in raised in Chillicothe, graduated from CHS in 1988, then went to Ohio State to major in English and history.
“Two of my dreams as a child were to become a meteorologist and dot the ‘i’ in Script Ohio,” he said. “Unfortunately, my lack of love for math prohibited me from pursuing a degree in meteorology, but I consider myself a bit of an amateur weather scientist, nonetheless. At Ohio State I became a member of the marching band and during my 4th and 5th years in the band I accomplished that childhood dream by dotting the “i” several times. I am, and will always be, a Buckeye at heart!”
After graduation, Musser worked for Petland, Inc. Then at the age of 29 he moved to Vail, Colorado where he worked as a sales manager at a luxury resort. That’s where he met Steph and they both transferred with the company to Santa Barbara, CA, then back to Beaver Creek, CO.
They opened The Willis-James Bed & Breakfast in October 2022.
“I hail from a large family,” Musser concluded. “As a result, I love to be surrounded by people. We thoroughly enjoy hosting friends at our home and feel our life experiences have provided us with the training to deliver exceptional ‘resort-style’ customer service. It’s paramount to us that when someone is a guest at The Willis-James, they’re treated as our friends, and we’ll give them our full effort to provide the best in accommodations – as well as a wonderful breakfast meal.”
The Willis-James Bed & Breakfast is located at 58 West 5th Street in Chillicothe. For more information, call 740-229-9019 or log on www.thewillisjames.com.
About the Series
Aces of Trades is a weekly series focusing on people and their jobs – whether they’re unusual jobs, fun jobs or people who take ordinary jobs and make them extraordinary. If you have a suggestion for a future profile, let us know at gaznews@nncogannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Lancaster Eagle-Gazette: Aces of Trades: Drew Musser is a business owner inspired by history
