Meet the visionaries
About Us
The story of how a 1904 Carnegie library became a place to stay the night.
John & Shannon
The couple behind the restoration.
When John and Shannon first walked through the front doors of the old Carnegie library, they didn’t see an aging building. They saw a story that wasn’t finished. A landmark that had spent more than a century serving the town of St. Joseph and was quietly waiting for its next chapter.
With backgrounds in design, hospitality, and deep respect for preservation, they took on the project themselves — not to flip it or fill it, but to bring the building back to life in a way that honored what it was and gave it something new to do.
What you’ll find today — the guest rooms named for the people who once ran the library, the speakeasy in what used to be the boiler room, the original oak bookcases still framing the suites — is a direct reflection of that vision.
A Landmark, Preserved
Keeping the building’s story alive.
The 1904 Carnegie library was one of more than 2,500 libraries Andrew Carnegie funded around the world — small brick temples of learning designed to give any resident, of any income, access to books and to something bigger than themselves. Ours served St. Joseph for the better part of a century.
John and Shannon’s restoration is built on a single principle: preserve everything worth preserving. Original millwork, the arched windows, the reading-room ceilings, the oak bookcases — all remain. Modern comforts were tucked in around them, not on top of them. The result is a building that still feels like the library it was, with everything a boutique hotel guest expects.
The Journey
From studs to suites.
Every wall, every beam, every corner of the Archive Lounge. Here’s the library the way John and Shannon found it — and the work it took to bring it back.
Swipe to explore
Come See For Yourself
Come write the next chapter.
The library isn’t closed — it’s open, differently. Book a stay, spend a night in a piece of history, and see the restoration up close.