About Us

Joan Wells was born in Montana, went to high school and undergraduate college in Southern California, and did her graduate work in history and museum administration at the University of Delaware. She was the first Curator of the "Unsinkable" Molly Brown House in Denver, Colorado, then become Executive Director of the Victorian Society in America headquartered in Philadelphia.

Dane Wells grew up in Villanova, Pennsylvania and went to Hobart College in Geneva, New York, where he got his degree in economics. He served in the US Army in Military Intelligence, mostly in Brussels, Belgium working for SHAPE-NATO. Though most of his career has involved retailing and hospitality, one of his favorite jobs was as the Main Street Manager for the City of Philadelphia.

 

In 1980, Dane and Joan quit their jobs, moved to Cape May, New Jersey, and established The Queen Victoria® Bed& Breakfast Inn, which grew over the years to become a very successful 32-room inn. In 2004, they sold the inn and retired to Center City Philadelphia, where they have restored one of the city’s elegant brownstones in Center City.

Now they enjoy having the time to volunteer in their new city and to travel and explore new and old favorite destinations.  History, art, architecture, and of course food and drink are among their favorite travel themes.