The #1 Rated Bay City Bed and Breakfast
About The Historic Webster House
A Rich History: The Historic Webster House Bed and Breakfast has many tales to tell
It didn’t take long for Thomas E. Webster to enter a life of service to others. Born in 1848 to Ebon and Margaret Webster in New York, he ran away from home to join the Union Army in 1864, at age 16. After an honorable discharge from the military, he entered an educational pursuit that would take him from the Delaware Literary Institute to Cornell University to the University of Michigan.
In 1874, he moved to Bay City, Michigan, where he would live out his years. He would immediately make his mark on the city, practicing law and winning election as a Bay County probate judge in 1880. In 1886, he commissioned the construction of his majestic Fifth Street manor, where he would start his family with wife Ella Howell of Bay City, who died shortly after the birth of sons Charles and Warren. He later married Isabel Ingraham, with whom he had daughter Amelia. A house that Webster had built for Amelia is next door. It shares the driveway with the Webster House.
Webster’s service as a teen in the military instilled in him a compassion for others who served. He organized the Peninsula Military Company of Bay City, the city’s first organization for war veterans. Until he died in 1940 at age 92, he was the last living Civil War veteran in Bay City, as well as the last member of the Grand Army of the Republic, also a veterans organization. He lived in his Bay City home – now the Webster House bed and breakfast – until his death. He is buried in Elm Lawn Cemetery.
Judge Thomas Webster
Made His Mark on the Bay City Area
Webster was also an amateur photographer and produced the images below
Common Areas
We give the same attention to detail for our common areas at The Historic Webster House as we do for our guest rooms.
Our parlors offer elegant yet comfortable places to relax and socialize. The impressive Eastlake fireplace in our northwest parlor is truly an inviting area to unwind with your favorite glass of wine or champagne, all complimentary.
Scalamandre fabrics in our custom draperies, antique furniture, and elegant decor hearkens back to a time when elegance and comfort were premier.
Our breakfast room features Asian influenced Bradbury and Bradbury custom wallpaper, a beautiful fireplace, and luxurious furnishings which make for a comfortable, yet elegant experience.
All public areas have been painstakingly restored with period wall coverings and faux painting, complimenting each other perfectly to further enhance your yesteryear experience.
