AURORA - Visitors of the Aurora Inn got a chance to step back in time to 1833 Saturday. The inn, which was opened in 1833 and commissioned by Edwin Barber Morgan, celebrated its 175th anniversary.

Guests, who were greeted by Mr. and Mrs. E.B. Morgan, played by Maria Wechsler and Doug Keyes, had the chance to take a horse and carriage ride and hear about the history of the village, play croquet, see how far they could roll a hoop, visit a farmer's market and listen to a hammered dulcimer, an instrument that would have been popular around the time the inn was built.

This was the first year the Aurora Inn had a celebration to commemorate its presence within the community, said Lauren Tillapaugh, director of marketing and events for the inn.

“One day we realized it's been 175 years and with all of the history surrounding the inn, both past and very recent, we just thought it was a good occasion to celebration,” she said. “We haven't had a big event really celebrating the inn itself since the reopening in 2003.”

The inn closed several times throughout the 1990s for various reasons and again in 2001 for renovation, Tillapaugh said. It was reopened in 2003.

In addition to the entertainment, an elegant five-course farmer's dinner was served at 6:30 p.m.

The dinner, which cost $75 per person, featured locally grown organic produce and local meat and was put on by Harvest Home Organics, owned by Rose Ryan.

Marlene Kimball, of Moravia, was invited by Ryan to come to the event and sell her homemade goods at the market.

“It sounded like an interesting event to bring my soaps and baked goods to,” Kimball said.

Jim and Jean Cokus, both of Cayuga, were passing through on their way home from a garage sale and decided to stop by and see what was going on.

“It's just been lovely,” Jean said.

John Marshall brought his 9-year-old son, Tanner, to the inn because he wants him to get involved with the community, he said.

“I like to support what's going on locally,” Marshall, of Aurora, said.

The celebration was a kickoff to other fall events that will be happening at the Aurora Inn, Tillapaugh said. The inn will hold three conversation series with authors and musicians in October and November. Author Patricia Schultz, who wrote “1,000 Places to See Before You Die,” will visit the inn on October 2.

“To be in business that long, it's a pretty incredible achievement and that's why we wanted to celebrate. The remarkable thing about it is that it's been an inn since it was built and that's what it's operated as,” Tillapaugh said. “I hope people are able to place in perspective the achievement of the inn still being here after 175 years. I hope at the same time that they learn about history of the inn and that they're reminded of the beauty and bounty of the area.”

Staff writer Gitana Mirochnik can be reached at 253-5311 or gitana.mirochnik@lee.net