The Asa Packer Mansion is a

historic house museum A historic house museum is a house of historic significance that has been transformed into a museum. Historic furnishings may be displayed in a way that reflects their original placement and usage in a home. Historic house museums are held to a ...

on Packer Road in

Jim Thorpe, Pennsylvania Jim Thorpe is a borough and the county seat of Carbon County in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. It is part of Northeastern Pennsylvania. It is historically known as the burial site of Native American sports legend Jim Thorpe. Jim Thorpe is loc ...

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

. Completed in 1861, it was the home of

Asa Packer Asa Packer (December 29, 1805May 17, 1879) was an American businessman who pioneered railroad construction, was active in Pennsylvania politics, and founded Lehigh University. He was a conservative and religious man who reflected the image of th ...

(1805–1879), a coal and railroad magnate, philanthropist, and founder of

Lehigh University Lehigh University (LU) is a private research university in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania in the Lehigh Valley region of eastern Pennsylvania. The university was established in 1865 by businessman Asa Packer and was originally affiliated with the Epis ...

. Asa Packer was also a major contributor in the

Lehigh Valley Railroad The Lehigh Valley Railroad was a railroad built in the Northeastern United States to haul anthracite coal from the Coal Region in Pennsylvania. The railroad was authorized on April 21, 1846 for freight and transportation of passengers, goods, w ...

system. The mansion is one of the best preserved Italianate Villa homes in the United States, with original Victorian furnishings and finishes. It was designated a

National Historic Landmark A National Historic Landmark (NHL) is a building, district, object, site, or structure that is officially recognized by the United States government for its outstanding historical significance. Only some 2,500 (~3%) of over 90,000 places listed ...

in 1985.

Description

The Asa Packer Mansion is located near Jim Thorpe's historic downtown Broadway area, on a terrace overlooking the

Lehigh River The Lehigh River is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map, accessed April 1, 2011 tributary of the Delaware River in eastern Pennsylvania. The river flows in a generally southward pat ...

on the west side of Packer Hill Avenue. The home of Packer's son, the Harry Packer Mansion, designed by Sloan's protegee

Addison Hutton Addison Hutton (1834–1916) was a Philadelphia architect who designed prominent residences in Philadelphia and its suburbs, plus courthouses, hospitals, and libraries, including the Ridgway Library (now Philadelphia High School for the Creative a ...

, is next door on the same road. The Asa Packer Mansion was built over a cast iron frame and cost $14,000 dollars. It contains a total of three stories, 18 rooms, a red-ribbed tin roof, and a two-story covered porch. Both the main roof and porch roof have extended eaves with brackets, and the main roof is capped by a cupola. The main three-story block is extended to either side by smaller blocks ending in bowed segments. The porch has elaborate Italianate details, including arched valances with lacework in the spandrels, and lacework balustrades on the second floor. The interior is also lavishly appointed, retaining original woodwork, features and period furnishings.

History

Packer commissioned it to be built in what was then the Borough of Mauch Chunk. It was completed in 1861. The architect was Samuel Sloan of Philadelphia who also designed the Southern Mansion Hotel in Cape May, New Jersey, and Longwood in Natchez, Mississippi. It took Sloan approximately two years to complete the 11,000 square foot mansion. The house bears a strong resemblance to a design published by Sloan in his 1852 ''Model Architect'', in which he promoted the Italian Villa style. The mansion is embellished with marble fireplaces and gilded mirrors, mostly added for the Packers' Golden Wedding Anniversary on January 23, 1878. The mansion is also filled with many distinct details including Gothic gingerbread trefoil motifs and window arches, and exquisitely carved panelling. The original furnishings are reflective of the Packer's wealth and remains as part of the preservation of the mansion.

Museum

Upon the death of Mary Packer Cummings, Mr. Packer's daughter (who could not inherit his estate unless she entered into an arranged marriage) in 1912, the home was willed to the Borough of Mauch Chunk to remain as a memorial to her father and his many accomplishments. The borough, not certain what to do with the home, closed it, and for 44 years the home sat idle. The Jim Thorpe

Lions Club The International Association of Lions Clubs, more commonly known as Lions Clubs International, is an international non-political service organization established originally in 1916 in Chicago, Illinois (''City in a Garden''); I Will , ...

, looking to sponsor a new community project, approached the borough about opening the home. It was opened for tours on Memorial Day of 1956. The home is owned by the town of Jim Thorpe and financially controlled by the Jim Thorpe Lions Club. Ava M. Bretzik is the Director and Historian of the Mansion Museum and oversees the day-to-day operations. Ronald J Sheehan serves as executive director of the Mansion Museum as is in charge of overall administration of the National Historic Landmark property. It was listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...

in 1974, and was further declared a

in 1985. and It is located in the Old Mauch Chunk Historic District. The Museum is open seven days a week from Memorial Day to October 31. It is also open on weekends in April, May, November, and the first three weekends in December. Packer Mansion002.jpg, Rear View Packer Mansion003.jpg, Side View

References

External links

The Asa Packer Mansion Museum

Asa Packer Mansion, Packer Hill, Jim Thorpe, Carbon County, PA
15 measured drawings at Historic American Buildings Survey {{DEFAULTSORT:Packer, Asa, Mansion Historic American Buildings Survey in Pennsylvania National Historic Landmarks in Pennsylvania Houses on the National Register of Historic Places in Pennsylvania Houses completed in 1861 Museums in Carbon County, Pennsylvania Historic house museums in Pennsylvania Thorpe, Jim Houses in Carbon County, Pennsylvania Lions Clubs International Pennsylvania state historical marker significations 1861 establishments in Pennsylvania National Register of Historic Places in Carbon County, Pennsylvania

Description

History

Museum

See also

References

External links