The John Wheeler House, also known as The Little Hermitage of Berea, was home to
John Wheeler, an American educator and the first president of Baldwin University in
Berea, Ohio
Berea ( ) is a city in Cuyahoga County in the U.S. state of Ohio and is a western suburb of Cleveland. The population was 19,093 at the 2010 census. Berea is home to Baldwin Wallace University, as well as the training facility for the Cleveland ...
. Baldwin College eventually merged with nearby German Wallace College to become
Baldwin Wallace University
Baldwin Wallace University (BW) is a private university in Berea, Ohio. It was founded in 1845 as Baldwin Institute by Methodist businessman John Baldwin. The school merged with nearby German Wallace College in 1913 to become Baldwin-Wallace C ...
. Wheeler also has a building named after him on the Baldwin Wallace University campus. Wheeler's home, built in 1834, is the oldest continuously occupied residence in Berea, Ohio.
The property was coined The Little Hermitage in a nod to Andrew Jackson’s estate near Nashville. Designated a century home by the Berea Historical Society, The Wheeler House has been restored by its current owners yet retains its original character and charm. The home is a modern classic and will celebrate its bicentennial in 2034.
The Wheeler House is
Italianate architecture
The Italianate style was a distinct 19th-century phase in the history of Classical architecture. Like Palladianism and Neoclassicism, the Italianate style drew its inspiration from the models and architectural vocabulary of 16th-century Italian R ...
and boasts original wood floors, crown moldings, windows, stained glass, two staircases, and hardware. The front porch, with dual swings, opens to the south lawn with its original stone walkway and two mounting blocks. There are also two expansive verandas overlooking the north, east, and west lawns.
The home comprises of living space on three levels with a foyer, living room, formal dining room, kitchen, library, five bedrooms, three bathrooms, mud room, laundry room, and a home gym in the large, finished cellarage. The kitchen is a
Clive Christian
Clive Christian, (born 12 July 1951) is a British designer best known for his designer kitchens and his creation of Clive Christian No. 1, the world's most expensive perfume.
Early life
The eldest of four children born to a biochemist father a ...
original and features two sinks, two islands, a table that faces a working fireplace, a bay window, and French doors that lead out to the back tree-shaded veranda.
The property sits on of land and features some of the oldest trees in Cuyahoga County. At the end of the driveway is a carriage house that has been converted into a two-car garage and studio with a brick patio that overlooks a ravine, creek, and waterfall. The home and grounds are surrounded to the north and south by Mill Stream Run Reservation, part of the
Cleveland Metroparks
Cleveland Metroparks is an extensive system of nature preserves in Greater Cleveland, Ohio. Eighteen reservations, which largely encircle the city of Cleveland, follow along the shore of Lake Erie and the rivers and creeks that flow through the ...
system.
The John Wheeler House was added to the
U.S. 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 1978. Its current owners, Dr. Scott J. Latiolais and Joel M. Latiolais, acquired the home in 2022.
Gallery
File:John wheeler house - south view.jpg, alt=, South View
File:John Wheeler house - north view.jpg, North View
File:John wheeler house - east view.jpg, East View
File:John Wheeler House.jpg, West View
References
External links
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Wheeler House
Berea, Ohio
Houses in Cuyahoga County, Ohio
Houses on the National Register of Historic Places in Ohio
National Register of Historic Places in Cuyahoga County, Ohio
Italianate architecture in Ohio