May 27th, 2021 … Summer of Fun continues!

We also headed back into Wellsboro and looked at some of the historical architecture that remains. Did you know that Wellsboro was a Pennsylvania Audubon Bird Town? In January 2019, A director of Pennsylvania Audubon Society traveled to Wellsboro and announced the borough was officially a “Bird Town.” Wellsboro was the first borough outside of southeastern Pennsylvania counties to receive the Bird Town designation. It is also the first county seat accorded the designation. The program reflects the community’s commitment to bird conservation. The coverage area includes all of Wellsboro Area School District, including Charleston, Delmar, Duncan and Shippen townships. Once the designation was received, the local Audubon chapter purchased additional signs to place on the five main roads entering the borough. The local Audubon chapter was founded in 1906 with 23 members, making it the oldest chapter in the state of Pennsylvania. The Tiadaghton name was selected in 1953, and in 1972 the chapter was officially chartered.

The Penn Wells Hotel was Wellsboro’s first tavern or inn, built in 1816, at this site. It has always been occupied by a tavern, inn or hotel. In 1869, AP Cone erected a four-story brick hotel. A fire in 1906 damaged the fourth story so badly that it had to be removed. The building was purchased in 1885 by JS Coles and renamed the “Cole House.” A group of local residents purchased the hotel in 1925 when it was closed for extensive remodeling and the addition of a fourth floor. The hotel re-opened in 1926 as the Penn Wells Hotel.

Currently the law offices of Walrath & Coolidge, was the residence of the Honorable Henry W Williams. Constructed in 1885, at the time he was President Judge of Tioga County and in 1887 he was appointed to the Supreme County of Pennsylvania.

The First Presbyterian Church was built in 1894. When Calkins left Wellsboro in 1879, active membership of First Presbyterian was 280. During his tenure as pastor he received 443 members. In 1880 the population of Wellsboro was not more than 400 people. In that year the Rev. Augustus C. Shaw succeeded Calkins as pastor. Shaw was born in Attica, New York and his father was the distinguished pastor of the Brick Presbyterian Church in Rochester, NY. Whereas Calkins was remembered for his fiery eloquence and high energy, Shaw was appreciated for his organizational skills, scholarship and deliberateness. Shaw served as Stated Clerk of the Presbytery of Wellsboro from 1883 to 1915. Under Dr. Shaw’s pastorate the congregation built the present impressive stone edifice, which was dedicated February 12, 1895. Due to his leadership the Wellsboro church functioned much like the Presbytery’s mother church. At the time it was held to be “The finest church of its size” in Northern Pennsylvania. 

The Green Free Library was established in 1912 by an endowment from Charles Green of Roaring Branch. In 1916, the library moved into this beautiful house called “Chester Place,” which was built by Chester Robinson, brother and business associate of John J Robinson. Chester Robinson dies and the family home becomes the property of his daughter, Mary B. Robinson. In 1890, Miss Robinson hires architect William Henry Miller of Ithaca, NY, to remodel the house. In 1898 the remodeling is completed and the house is named “Chester Place.” The square shape of the old home serves as a nucleus for the new estate, which includes east and west wings, plus a formal garden to the rear. A curve is added to the front of the house to accommodate a big fireplace and chimney in the large living room, which today houses the library’s juvenile and young adult collections. The young girl’s portrait in this room is of Mary B. Robinson, or “Miss Mazie,” as she is called. The west wing is Miss Robinson’s former library. The fireplace is made from Italian marble. Today, this room contains children’s materials. Also in the west wing is a sunroom, which houses a train set, LEGO table, easy readers, and other materials for children. The east wing consists of a porte-cochere and the dining room. This dining room, with its Tiffany window (installed in 1903), has become the library’s Pennsylvania Room.  Many patrons use this room for genealogy research and other reference work.

Located at the west end of Main Street is the oldest grocery store in Wellsboro, the West End Market. First opened in 1902, the store has been operated as a convenience market, fish market and a bulk food store.

The United Methodist Church is on the corner of Main and Queen Streets. The building was completed in 1905. The first church building was located at 7 Main Street and was a simple, neat church finished very plainly inside. It was dedicated on May 21, 1842 being the second church building in the borough at the time. By 1867 the church needed repairs and improvements, which were completed in November. The evening of the first Sunday service held after the work was done, the church was discovered in flames and it burned to the ground. The people worshiped in the Courthouse for the next two years while a new brick church was built. During the winter after the fire a protracted revival was held that swept the town for a period of 14 weeks, resulting in more conversions for the Lord. A building fund was begun and through the next two years a substantial Gothic structure was erected at the corner of Main and Queen Streets. It was dedicated on November 17, 1869, exactly two years to the day after the fire. 

Ohhhh, there is so much history to see on our #TwoLaneAdventures