css3menu.com

html menu by Css3Menu.com

Connely/Holeman House, Chestnut Street, Pleasantville
Listed on National Register of Historic Places 2007
Pleasantville, Venango County, Pennsylvania

The Connely/Holeman House is a large scale (6000 square feet) three- story Second Empire structure built between 1869 and 1871. It is located on a long narrow lot of approximately one acre. Chestnut is a residential street that intersects State Street, the main road though the borough. The original edifice was built on a square cut stone foundation with two projecting bays, measuring 50 by 50 feet overall. The house faces east upon a slight elevation on an otherwise flat parcel flanked by mature trees on all sides. In addition to this contributing building, a noncontributing carriage house exists on the northwest side of the property. The carriage house was erected after the period of significance, 1869-1887. Both structures are wood-framed buildings sheathed in tongue and groove siding. The Connely/Holeman House has undergone no significant alterations since the time of a rear addition in 1887.

The main elevation, three bays wide, faces east. Two cut stone hitching posts occupy their original positions at the street near a semicircular walkway that terminates at the two front entries. The east façade features two covered porches and a bay window on the first level. The southeast porch is supported by three Corinthian columns. A pair of paneled black walnut double doors topped by a large fanlight opens to a formal vestibule from this porch. The two upper panels are tall narrow sections, arched at the top. The lower pair are square sections measuring approximately one half of the upper panels. The door surround is boldly framed by deep walnut moldings. A three section bay window faces the same street side, or east elevation. A large cornice frames the bay window, ornamented by square appliqués in a belt course below the fascia. The same mansard style cast iron cresting on the roof frames the bay balcony perimeter. The bay balcony is tripartite and reflects the bay window configuration. The second street façade porch enters the parlor at the northeast corner. It is supported by three Corinthian columns, topped by a balcony trimmed with cast iron railing. Both the porch and balcony are semicircular. The entry door has an arched glass upper section with an elaborately etched floral motif and a solid lower square panel. All exterior doors are made of solid black walnut with bold surrounds of the same material. A large floor to ceiling window on this porch looks into the second parlor.

The five tall narrow east elevation first level windows are single hung. The window surrounds are topped by splayed lintels made of wood layered in a triple ogee design. The stiles are wider at the upper and lower ends and decorated by a pair of brackets beneath the sill. A simple scroll cut integrates the wider terminal sections to the center. The four second story east elevation windows are not as tall as the first level openings, but are otherwise constructed the same. The distinguishing features of the east façade at the second level are the two balconies previously described and a series of large cornice brackets that extend around the entire house at the main mansard roof level. The brackets were made from four scroll cut boards secured together. The mansard roof was originally slate. At an unknown date, the steeper visible portions were replaced with asphalt shingles. The slightly sloped roof sections are currently rubber. The original roofing material is unknown. All sides of the mansard roof are pieced by dormer windows on the third story. The east elevation has a pair. Both feature the same lintels as the lower levels windows. Lower brackets are absent. The dormer centered above the bay has a segmented pediment over the lintel. All other dormers have shed roof construction. The dormer windows are single hung. The distinguishing Second Empire feature at the third level is the wrought iron foot high cresting that extends around all four elevations. The cresting design consists of a series of approximately 8 inch squares with central interior quatrefoils from which extend diagonals to the four corners. The upright sides of each square are topped by fleur-de-lis ornamentation. A taller spear shaped finial is positioned at all vertexes.

The north elevation is three bays wide and like the main facade, has a pair of dormers on the third level built into the mansard roof. The northeast corner projects out in a semihexigonal configuration. The dormer windows on this façade are similar in appearance to the shed roof one at the street side. The north elevation has five windows on the first level with an equal number at the second story. The five lowest level windows are identical to those facing east, although none are arranged in a bay configuration. Three second level windows on this side nearest the eastern elevation are the same as those described, however, the rear two differ. Both are dormer type windows built into a mansard style roof that tops the rear section of the house. The north elevation features mansard roofing at two distinct levels, as the rear section of the house is two stories as opposed to the three of the front section. Two brick chimneys are situated between the north elevation dormer windows. A new pair of steel doors, installed in 2004, opens into the full basement.

The opposite side, or south elevation, is similar to the northern facade with the major exception of a covered porch that has a single door entry with a fanlight above the door. The flat rubber porch roof is supported by square posts framed by simple S curved brackets at the eaves. This elevation also differs in the absence of the pair of chimneys on the northern side. Fenestration on this side varies from other elevations in the single hung arched window that opens to the foyer. The four other windows are the same as those found elsewhere.

The rear, or west elevation, features the house’s fourth covered porch. It has a flat rubber roof and is supported by three turned columns and has a pair matching pilasters attached to the house exterior opposite the outer posts.

A continuous row of turned spindles interspersed by wooden sunburst designs is located beneath the eaves on all three open sides. The lower mansard roof above the west elevation lacks dormers; however, a pair is visible at the third story roof. Wide vertical corner boards are found at all elevations, as is a chamfered exterior baseboard that extends around the entire building perimeter.

An addition was added to the rear of the house in 1887 when it passed from the Connelys to the Holemans. It is tempting to speculate the rear porch was original to the 1871 construction and was simply moved back for the addition. This addition doubled the kitchen from approximately 300 square feet to 600. The only existing exterior door to the kitchen is at the rear porch. It is a four panel door with two taller upper rectangular sections and a pair of smaller ones beneath. The exterior door hinges appear original; however doorknobs and locks are contemporary.

Six rooms are located on the first level, excluding the two pantries, half bath and vestibule. They average 400 square feet each with the exception of the larger kitchen and smaller library. The first story ceilings are thirteen feet high. All millwork at this level is made from solid black walnut produced by the Davis Tank Shop and Planing Mill in Titusville, PA. Walls and ceilings are the historic plaster with the exception of the kitchen ceiling. It was replaced by drywall (2005). Thirty inch oak wainscoting is found in the kitchen, 1887 panty, and original second story bathroom. Typical of high style Second Empire houses, elaborate foliated ceiling medallions are located in most rooms and the hallway. They are not present in the day room or kitchen. Deeply cast plaster cornices compliment the ornate medallions. The first level doors and windows are framed in deeply molded wood that measures just over 8 inches on the three sides. The door and window surround moldings were built from a total of seven separate boards secured together. Many windows have louvered shutters that are still functional. The downstairs baseboards are approximately a foot high and consist of five individual boards. The first level interior doors reflect the paneling configuration on the exterior doors which have two upper arched sections and a pair of lower rectangular panels. The downstairs floor plan includes a large easterly parlor with the bay window. The kitchen and day room are at the west end of the building. The library and second parlor flank the north side of the central staircase. The dining room and foyer are on the south side of the main staircase. The house gives the impression of substantial interior floor space, as halls and landings are as large as many contemporary rooms. The present day function of the first level rooms remains the same as the historic uses with the exception of the second parlor which has become a home gym.

The 8 by 14 foot foyer is accessed through double doors at the northeast porch. The room has a single arched window that faces north. Another pair of double doors opens from the foyer to a large landing at the foot of the central staircase. The double doors feature clear glass arched upper portions with solid paneled wood below.

The 1887 westerly addition that doubled the size of the kitchen from 300 to 600 square feet includes a second pantry, most likely historically used as a larder, or food preparation area. The original kitchen contains a butler’s pantry with built-in cabinets. A south facing room of approximately 300 square feet, the day room, opens through a swinging door into the added 1887 kitchen area. The day room is part of the 1887 addition. The 1887 larder was converted to a bathroom by a previous owner (1985). The present owners removed all bathroom fixtures (2005). The room is used once more as a pantry. The kitchen cabinets installed by a previous owner (1975) were removed (2005) and replaced with freestanding antique pieces. The same owners (1975) dropped the thirteen feet high kitchen ceiling and covered the plaster walls with inexpensive wood paneling which was removed in 2005. The original plaster walls and oak wainscoting were exposed and repaired at the same time. Removal of the paneling revealed two curved walls, one concave near the exterior door of the 1887 addition and the other convex, outside the original pantry built in 1871. The plaster ceiling was deemed beyond repair and covered by drywall (2005).

Another rear entrance was added to the house at the time of the 1887 addition. It opened onto the back porch from the day room. This door was removed and added to the open pantry when it was converted to a full bath in 1985. The day room exit to the rear porch was walled off at this time.

The house has eight fireplaces. All are marble with the exception of a brick faced fireplace located in the third floor servants’ quarters. They were originally fueled from a backyard gas well. The well was covered over at an unknown date. The fireplaces are no longer functional. The original ornate summer pieces and brass fenders remain intact on the seven fireplaces in the first and second level living areas. All fireplaces have an arched opening topped by a central S scrolled cartouche, except for the plain brick one on the third level. The most elaborately designed fireplace is found in the main parlor. The cartouche features an ornately carved bird’s nest with four eggs and a pair of birds that resemble doves. The ancones are deep S scrolls with carved seashells at the lower edge.

The solid black walnut central staircase features an ornately carved octagonal newel post. Each of the eight recessed panels has chamfered edges with detailed carving outlining the interior edge of the bevels. The curtail is a rounded soft semicircle. The outer string is decorated with double S scrolled valence brackets set beneath the highly molded tread edges. The wall string is a wider version of the base molding found throughout the house. Turned balusters and a wide molded railing complete the balustrade. The staircase rises to landing of approximately seven by ten feet. The balustrade continues around the right side of the upstairs hall and terminates in a larger landing of twelve by fourteen feet.

The six second level rooms have eleven foot high ceilings. All were historically and currently used as bedrooms or guest rooms. A pair of rooms opens onto the small landing at the top of the stairs, facing west. One room is a half bath that was converted from a closet in the 1950s, and the other is a bedroom that connects to the hall landing through a small anteroom. This room is part of the 1887 addition and is located above the room adjoining the newer kitchen (1887) section. The original bathroom faces east of the staircase landing and is entered through a closed off anteroom which likely functioned as a dressing room.

The master bedroom is off the main second level hallway on the north side. It contains a separate sitting room, or dressing room, that opens between the two rooms. A marble fireplace is situated in the smaller room. Another large bedroom is adjacent, facing the street side (east) of the house. It features a marble fireplace and large walk-in closet. All upstairs rooms, including three of the four in the servants’ quarters have large closets. There is another bedroom facing the rear of the building, or west on the right hall side. It contains another marble fireplace. All of the second level bedrooms feature ornate plaster cornices and detailed ceiling medallions that are original to the house.

The third floor is remarkable in that it remains entirely untouched from the construction completed in 1871. There are no electrical outlets, plumbing, or other evidence of modern renovation. The plaster walls have fallen into disrepair in a few limited sections. The area has a large central room with a brick fireplace and three smaller rooms. How the servants used these rooms is unknown. The third floor is accessed through a staircase at the rear of the first level kitchen that leads to a second story landing. This landing is closed off from the upstairs second floor bedrooms and has a second staircase leading to the third level. Only the Connely and Holeman households employed live-in servants and the servants’ quarters have remained unused for over a hundred years. The area is lit by dormer windows built into the mansard roof. The ceilings are nine feet tall and lack the ornamental plaster work present in the downstairs rooms. The baseboards, however, a nearly a foot high and are the same as those on the lower levels. Likewise, the paneled closet doors are similar to the ones on the second level. The second and third story doors are made of softwood rather than the black walnut on the lower level. Those that are not painted white upstairs feature the original faux finish wood graining. The painted grain simulates oak.

The noncontributing single-story 16 by 32 foot carriage house was built in the early twentieth century by the third owner, Nelson Shelmadine, to shelter his Overland automobile. It has two rooms, a garage that is accessed through two openings, and a storage section with a standard four paneled exterior door. The garage section has a pair of double wood barn like doors as well as sliding doors with horseshoe flat track hardware. The sliding door has two sets of fixed six pane windows above three panel wood lower sections. Current functions of the carriage house rooms are the same as the historic. The wood framed building is sheathed in tongue and groove siding and rests upon a stone foundation. It has a gabled roof and one single hung six over six pane window facing east on the garage opening side. Several of the twelve glass panes were replaced (2005). Another boarded off window is located on the north side. It is not known when this opening was closed off.

The Connely/Holeman House has maintained a remarkable degree of physical integrity. A late nineteenth century photograph shows the exterior unaltered with the exception of cast iron fencing out front, railing over the southeast porch, and a south side chimney that are not present in a 1972 photograph. Removal dates are unknown. No additions have been added to the house other than the 1887 rear section. The four porches and other architectural elements are the same as when originally constructed. The house interior is similarly unaltered with the exception of contemporary bathroom and kitchen fixtures, and replaced transoms on the second level. All save one of the original etched glass transoms were removed circa 1980 and later replaced with plain glass ones (2005). An original etched glass transom with an insignificant crack was found in the carriage house and repositioned in the door that between the master bedroom and master sitting room. These relatively minor alterations over a span of nearly 140 years do not impact upon the architectural significance of the Connely/Holeman House.

The Connely/Holeman House is significant under Criterion C for architecture as a representative example of a large scale Second Empire residence in Pleasantville Borough, Venango County. The period of significance begins with the 1869 start of construction and ends with the construction of the two-story kitchen addition at the rear of the house in 1887. The Connely/Holeman House is the only large scale Second Empire building in Pleasantville. Excluding the 1887 addition by the Holemans, it is essentially unaltered from the time of construction, making it an outstanding example of Second Empire Victorian architecture.

Pleasantville is located in Venango County, PA and has a population of around 800 people. The town was originally called Benedictown after early pioneer, Aaron Benedict, who came to the area from New York in 1819. A charter for the borough was granted in 1850. Population maintained steady at around 300 inhabitants until the discovery of oil in 1865. By 1868, numerous wells were in full production and the nearly 3000 people arrived in the borough. General stores, banks, and oil supply businesses prospered during the oil boom. The large scale homes built in the early 1870’s were a direct result of revenue from oil. By the mid 1870’s oil production had greatly diminished and the borough’s population fell concurrently. The borough population, although slowly declining, has not changed significantly in the twentieth century.

James L. Connely, the first owner of the Connely/Holeman House, purchased four acres of land from Alexander Brown in 1868 and commissioned construction of the house the following year. The architect and builders are unknown. The Browns were among the earliest Scotch Irish immigrants to the area. The tombstone of John Brown (Alexander Brown’s father) bearing his 1861 death date is located behind the carriage house. James L. Connely was born in Pleasantville in 1828. He attended local schools before leaving the borough to attend college. He was appointed associate county judge in 1867. Connely became the first president of the Pleasantville’s Citizens Bank in 1871. He owned several rentals in town as well as extensive farm acreage, some of which was leased to oil speculators. Connely and his wife, Sarah, moved to the house upon its completion in 1871 with their two daughters and two sons. The younger daughter, Bertha Connely, attended the Women's Medical College of Philadelphia. She graduated in 1887 and moved to Colorado where she practiced medicine for several years. The Connelys occupied the house for a period of sixteen years. In 1887, James L. Connely was appointed to a judgeship in Philadelphia. He sold his numerous rental properties and farms in Pleasantville over the next few years.

Ashbel Holeman purchased the house in 1888. He was born in Holeman Flats in 1824. Holeman Flats was settled by the Scotch-Irish Holeman family not long after the American Revolution. The town, which no longer exists, was located along the Allegheny River in Tionesta, not far from Pleasantville. Most likely the Pleasantville oil boom of 1868 brought Holeman to Pleasantville.

Holeman owned several stores, and like Connely, invested in real estate. Following a devastating fire in 1872 that destroyed most of downtown Pleasantville, Holeman rebuilt the business district. He erected a fine three-story corner structure known as the Holeman Building that carried dry goods, clothing, hardware, oil well supplies, carpets, stoves, groceries and household furnishings. An 1879 history of the county describes the Holeman Building as, “one of the finest brick blocks in Northwestern Pennsylvania.” The upper level was originally intended to be an Opera House, but the area failed to support the performing arts. Instead it was used for lectures and political meetings. When Holeman became justice of the peace, he performed wedding ceremonies on the upper story. Ashbel Holeman died in this house in 1898. His widow, the former Nancy Shelmadine, sold the house to her great-nephew, Nelson Shelmadine, shortly thereafter.

Nelson Shelmadine was an only child who lost his father at the Battle of Gettysburg in 1863. He was born on a farm a few miles from the Chestnut Street property. Shelmadine was a farmer who speculated in real estate and oil leases. He became wealthy enough to leave the farm and purchase the Connely/Holeman House at the end of the nineteenth century. He was active in borough politics and served on the city council. Shelmadine married a local teacher, the former Ida Black. Together they had a son and daughter. Nelson Shelmadine died in the house of Parkinson’s disease in 1920. His wife suffered a stroke and died at the residence ten years later.

The house passed to their adult children, Stanley and Marguerite Shelmadine. Stanley died at the house in 1944 of unknown causes said to be related to World War II. He was the burgess of Pleasantville at the time of his death and had worked as a pharmacist. His widow, Beatrice Shelmadine, moved to a small house across the street where she lived until the age of ninety-four. Marguerite Shelmadine had left Pleasantville for Rochester, NY, to assume a teaching position in 1921. Previously, she taught English at Pleasantville High School. During the wartime “male shortage” of 1918, she served as the first and only female principal of the high school. She continued to reside at the Connely/Holeman House during the summers with her longtime companion, Maude Mitchell, another teacher and Pleasantville native. Marguerite died in 1974 and is buried in Pleasantville’s Fairview Cemetery, near the Connely and Holeman family plots.

The following year the house was purchased by a Titusville High School teacher, William Greenly. Greenley added a heating system, replaced the slate roof with synthetic shingles, and restored the cut stone foundation by mortaring loose joints. At the time of the Greenley purchase in 1975, the building lacked a working heating system. In the earliest days, the home’s eight fireplaces were fueled by gas from the backyard oil well. Later at an unknown date four massive brick coal furnaces were built in the basement. Neither heating source was viable at the time of the Greenley purchase. It is not known when the original heating systems failed. In 1980, Greenley sold the house to Bob Miller. New Jersey artist, Cynthia Schooley, purchased the property in 1985. Schooley sold the house to Kathy Coffaro and Mark Kovac in 2004.

The Connely/Holeman House was used continuously as a primary residence between 1871 and 1944. After Stanley Shelmadine, son of third owner Nelson Shelmadine, died in 1944, his sister, Marguerite Shelmadine, used the house as a summer residence. Following her death in 1974, the house has been continuously used as a primary residence until the present time. The rooms within have maintained the same contemporary functions as the historic with the exception of the second parlor that is currently used as a home gym.

Although the Connely/Holeman House is the only large scale Second Empire house in the borough, two smaller buildings with mansard roofs were built next door around the same time. Both are described as mansard cottages in an 1869 newspaper article that notes their construction dates along with that of the Connely/Holeman House. The projected cost of the two cottages was $3,000 each in comparison to the expected $25,000 for the Connely/Holeman House.

Contributed by Kathy Coffaro
kcoffaro@roadrunner.com

venango.pa-roots.com/ website & graphics © Sheila Barr Helser - 2023
Materials on this website are the sole property of the webmaster and the original contributors/file donations.
You may copy this information for your own personal research.
Selling it commerically or reposting it online without permission from the author is prohibited.


Hosted by: