Step back in time to Brighton, a historic turn-of-the-20th century estate in a spectacular setting on the East River with today's comforts. Downstairs there’s a formal living room, dining room, gourmet eat-in kitchen and half bath. Upstairs there are 3 bedrooms (2 with queen beds and 1 with 2 twin beds) plus 4th room used as a TV room with a daybed. Full bath with clawfoot tub w/ shower. Screened porches for outdoor relaxation. Hammocks, kayaks, bicycles, spa, and gym are all available for you.
The space
Our guest house is known as The Winter House. It was the only house at Brighton with heat when it was built around 1911. The interior was renovated in 2025 and the exterior in 2026. The house now features an updated kitchen with Bosch 6 burner range, original bath sinks and clawfoot tub. The main house, where we live, is known as The Summer House and is a few hundred feet away. It was built in 1917.
Herman Hollerith, a resident of Washington DC and the inventor of the punch card system (and the founder of a company which would eventually be called IBM) bought most of the peninsula in the early 1900s and built the Winter House, Summer House, and supporting staff and farm buildings. In addition to his other business interests, Dr. Hollerith owned a local steamship line and would travel overnight from DC, with family, friends, belongings and staff, to stay the summer. Brighton was a much loved summer home for generations of Hollerith’s, used to escape the hectic pace and humidity of Washington, DC and to reconnect with family, friends, and self for over 100 years.
Guest access
The entire guest house is available for your use.
Want to relax? Swing in the hammocks by the river, read a book sitting in the Adirondack chairs, or enjoy the glorious sunset from the hot tub.
Want to explore? We have a bicycles available to explore the land and kayaks available to explore the water.
The newly renovated gym, located in the old laundry house, includes an exercise bike, treadmill, a Lagree megaformer, and free weights. You can swim in the creek or take a yoga class at the Wharf.
Need extra space? The Doll House is also available to rent. It has a sitting room, 1 bedroom, 1 bathroom, and a fantastic screened porch overlooking a lovely cove. It will be available to book in the Summer of 2026.
We hope you enjoy your time at Brighton.
Please note the entire property is no smoking - smoking is not allowed in the home or on the grounds. We have many old and flammable wooden structures. Thank you for understanding.
Other things to note
Your visit to Mathews County can be as laid back or as busy as you would like. Brighton is about 10 minutes from downtown Mathews with its charming shops and great local coffee shop. You can play pickleball at the free courts in Mathews, visit the lovely public Haven Beach or the wild Bethel Beach, get a massage at Soothing Shores spa, go bird watching to see our amazing ospreys, blue herons, bald eagles, and more. Visit the Saturday morning farmer's market, go shopping or out to dine in Mathews, Gloucester, or Deltaville, explore one of the local historical museums, join a local archeological dig, take a class at the Bay School community art center, or go further afield to one of the historical sites like Yorktown, Jamestown, or Williamsburg or to visit Busch Gardens. Alternatively, you can read a book while swaying in the hammock and grab some fresh fish from the local market.
The Brighton Winter House has everything you need for a memorable stay. We look forward to welcoming you.
A few things to note:
1) We have 2 German Shepherds who live in the main house with us. They do not go outside unsupervised but it is possible you could meet them. Let us know if you don’t like dogs and we can come up with a plan to reduce the odds of you meeting them!
2) The air conditioning is provided by window units (as shown in some of the photos) which are new but do make a little noise.
3) Brighton was in the same family for over 100 years and while it was much loved it did have some deferred maintenance. We purchased the property in 2024 and we are working to restore the entire property. Its a large project with 10 different buildings (check out brightonourday (dot) com to learn more about the property and see some very cool historic photos). We may have small restoration projects taking place during your stay - feel free to reach out and we can tell you about the current projects.
