The Black Bass has had many different names over the years, including Wall's Tavern, Lumberville Tavern, Temple Bar, and the Rising Sun. However, when it was originally built back in 1745, it functioned as a tavern and went by the name The Temple Bar. At the time the Delaware Canal was a major source of transportation of goods, and the Tavern was built so that canal workers could spend the night. At one point in 1776, General George Washington -- Commander in Chief of the Continental Army -- was turned away by the innkeeper of the Tavern who, like the rest of the village of Lumberville, was a tory/loyalist who remained loyal to the British Crown. One extreme event that occurred was in 1833, where a fire broke out in the Tavern. Fortunately, the owner of the Tavern at the time, Major Anthony Fry, risked his own life by carrying out huge quantities of gunpowder that was being stored there, thereby saving the Tavern from total destruction. Up until 1949, the Black Bass Hotel was known as a tavern/drinking  bar with rooms for rent. However, after Herbert Ward bought the Black Bass, he installed a kitchen and revonated the building into an upscale hotel. Paired with the pedestrian bridge built by John A. Roebling & Co that granted pedestrians access to Bulls Island, New Jersey and the Black Bass, the hotel gained a whole new customer base and has been thriving ever since.