Innkeeper, John Faulk bought the Applegate Inn on somewhat of a whim. In 1995, newly married and living near Morganton, he and his wife were looking for a change from their corporate jobs when friends from Florida invited them to the mountains on a real estate shopping adventure.

“And the next thing you know we made an offer on the place,” John said.

Two years later the couple had sold their house, moved to Dillsboro and taken over the inn.

Faulk gradually grew his entrepreneurial holdings, opening B & Al’s Hotdog Stand — nicknames for his grandfather, B, and grandmother, Al — on Front Street in 2001 and using the store’s commercial kitchen to cook meals for the inn, located a stone’s throw across Scott’s Creek. In June of 2004, Faulk took over the Burger Shak, a short order institution near Harold’s Supermarket near the Dillsboro/Sylva city limits.

The floods of September 2004 destroyed the Bed and Breakfast house of the Applegate Inn. With little assistance from insurance and some from  the government relief fund, John has been working to revitalize the Applegate. A building housing three themed suites continues to provide lodging to Applegate guests with great plans in the works for a Grand Re-opening.

Since the floods, John has added a conference building to the property as a step toward the rebuild. This conference room is beautifully decorated and provides an excellent location for reunions, parties, receptions, conferences and even monthly Bingo for the town of Dillsboro.

Plans are to complete the cleanup of the property and rebuild additional themed suites to the conference building. The former Applegate Inn Bed and Breakfast is being renamed the Applegate Retreat providing beautiful scenery and all the amenities, service and privacy we've provided for 15 years.