OUR HISTORICAL JOURNEY
In the heart of the historic district of Saugatuck, Michigan, the Judson Heath Colonial Inn has been fully reimagined through a thoughtful restoration of its historic home and gardens by innkeepers Stephen Boyd and Jennifer Davenport.
The Judson Heath Colonial Inn was built in 1837 by Elnathan Judson in Gull Prairie Michigan and operated as The Judson Hotel, a stagecoach stop on The Good Intent coach line. In 1854 Judson moved his family, business operations and the inn to 607 Butler Street in Saugatuck, Michigan. The inn served as a personal residence for Judson, a mill owner, lumber dealer, and land speculator, as well as a boarding house for his mill workers.
In 1870, the property was purchased from Judson by George P. Heath, a mill owner and lumber dealer. The home served both as the Heath family residence and as guest quarters for ship captains negotiating lumber contracts to help rebuild Chicago after the Great Fire of 1871.
Following the Judson and Heath industrial era in the early 1900s, the house evolved through several chapters of Saugatuck history—operating as The Colonial Rest, The Colonial Inn, and later a private residence. Designed by Asher Benjamin in the Georgian Federal style, the building remains architecturally significant and deeply connected to the heritage and development of the town of Saugatuck.
Following an extensive and thoughtful restoration of the historic home and gardens by owners and innkeepers Stephen Boyd and Jennifer Davenport, the Judson Heath Colonial Inn opened its doors in 2017. Guided by a “Hip & Historic” philosophy, modern comforts were blended with authentic touches that reflect the inn’s journey from frontier days to today.