Local lore says the inn was built where two old paths converged because a fox once led a lost woman to the same dais where the Hearth & Haggard now stands. The carved fox on the lintel is said to be the guardian of safe passage; travelers sometimes leave a ribbon for good luck. Old timers swear that if you fall asleep under the rafters during the dead of winter, dreams of important crossroads will visit you—sometimes with warnings, sometimes with names of people you will meet.