Underground Railroad History independent inns

Set on Kennebunk's Summer Street, the Waldo Emerson Inn is the kind of New England lodging that wears its age openly — hand-hewn oak framing the rooms, and a past entwined with the Underground Railroad. A quilt shop on site keeps the handcraft theme going, and guests seem thoroughly won over, with a 4.9 rating across more than 200 reviews. It's a small, storied retreat rather than a polished hotel stay.