Cherokee Inn History

When Outer Banks native Walter Perry retired from his criminal justice career in Washington, D.C. in 1947, he and his wife Ruby, came to Kill Devil Hills and built a hunting and fishing lodge about 500 feet from the ocean. An avid hunter and angler, Perry named his lodge “The Cherokee” because of his great appreciation for the Cherokee Nation of North Carolina. As a former Chief of Detectives in the nation’s capitol, Perry had quite an influential circle of friends in Washington, many of whom, including J. Edgar Hoover and several U.S. Congressmen visited him at his Outer Banks lodge. The lodge was later sold to the Ward family, who rented rooms to summer people and visitors. At this time, it was quite a popular place to stay, and people still return to tell the innkeepers stories of the good times they had at The Cherokee.

In 1978, Bob and Phyllis Combs purchased the place, renamed it “Ye Olde Cherokee Inn” and converted it into a Bed and Breakfast. They also painted it bright pink and to this day some old bankers still refer to it as the pink house. In 1993, Bob and Kaye Combs bought the inn from Bob’s parents and continued to run it as a B&B. They changed the exterior to the present color and simplified the name to the “The Cherokee Inn”. Karen and Leon Faso purchased the inn in 1998 and changed the name to the “Cypress House” because of the all original tongue and groove walls and ceilings made of cypress. Since May of 2005, Bill and Veda Peters are the current owners of the Cypress House Inn and are committed to retaining the relaxing hunting and fishing lodge/beach house feel to this grand old lady of Kill Devil Hills on the Outer Banks of North Carolina.