Former Army couple takes on ‘stewardship’ of historic home
By Randy Arrington
LURAY, May 8 — The 1875 structure once served as a private manor for the Hudson family in Luray. And while the home marks its sesquisentennial, the bed and breakfast launched there in 2000 — the South Court Inn — is marking its silver anniversary.
“We are so proud to be the current stewards,” Shannon told the crowd gathered at 160 South Court Street on Thursday. “We are just keeping it alive until someone else comes in.”
Joe and Shannon Socolosky were both serving in Army intelligence when they met in Baghdad, Iraq in 2017. The next year they began visiting Luray “two or three times a year,” while residing in Alexandria, and they were wed on May 14, 2022 at Shawnee Farms Estate right here in the Page Valley.
On May 15, 2022 — the very next day — they held off a honeymoon in Portugal until they signed papers to become the new owners of the South Court Inn Bed & Breakfast along one of Luray’s most historic and beautiful streets. They purchased the well-landscaped property from Mike and Adelheid Osmers, who in turn purchased it from Tom and Anita Potts who launched the bed and breakfast in 2000.
On Thursday, local leaders and supporters in the community gathered on the front porch of the historic home to cut a ribbon marking the silver anniversary of this unique player in Luray’s short-term rental market.
“How better to celebrate than to invite the community that has supported us,” Shannon told the crowd.
The Luray-Page County Chamber of Commerce hosted the event for the couple, who have attended many other ribbon cuttings and Chamber events in town.
“We hope everyone gets to tour the beautiful job they did,” Chamber President Gina Hilliard said. “They’ve added their own touches.”
In 2020, the couple started looking at potential bed and breakfasts to purchase in eastern Maryland and all long the East Coast.
“We wanted to find a great town that we wanted to live in and that would attract tourists,” Joe said. “For us, [Luray] was that perfect mix… everyone was welcoming, it’s beautiful, just gorgeous… with great attractions, and not be on top of people… we had seven years of living on top of people.”
During their seven years in Alexandria, the military couple said they got to know their neighbors on only two occasions — once when a neighbor hit a car parked in front of their house (not theirs); and again when a neighbor thought they had stolen her cell phone (it actually fell out of her pocket on the street in front of their house).
Their search for the perfect B&B lead them once again back to Luray, and the South Court Inn where they had stayed several times. After closing on the sale in August of 2022 and a few months of renovations, the couple moved in during December and hosted their first guests during Valentines Day weekend in 2023.
“We’re private people, so living in a home where you welcome strangers… has been an adjustment for us,” said Shannon.
New furniture and a return to the home’s Victorian roots became part of the new decor, including hand-painted gold highlights by Shannon on the molding along the parlor’s ceiling. Its five bedrooms each offer a glimpse of the past, while the ornate dining room offers a pleasant setting for breakfast with other guests. Afternoon snacks are served in the sun room.
The property also offers a side cottage, separate from the main house, several outdoor patios, two barns, a garden and a sizable courtyard. The small building out back that once served as a smokehouse is now used for storage.
The new “stewards” of the South Court Inn say they have been very successful with bookings over the last two years, with guests coming from all over the world — places like Japan, South Korea, Denmark, Italy, “so many from England” and the Netherlands. They say Shenandoah National Park has been the biggest draw, but “we send them to the Caverns.” The couple says they have almost been “too busy,” with little time to take a break.
“We have found that if we are open, then they will come,” Shannon said.
They credit a portion of their success to the help of the Chamber.
“The Chamber has been great,” Shannon said. “Clancy [Arnold] was the first call I got at this house.”
Although the young couple has been mistaken for the groundskeeper and caretaker rather than the owners, according to Joe, they have found what they were looking for in Luray and the Page Valley.
“There’s a profound sense of community here.”
For more information about the South Court Inn, CLICK HERE.
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