Holland Hall
RESTORING HOLLAND HALL
Holland Hall is a historically significant property located at 681 Terrace Street in Meadville, Pennsylvania purchased by the Crawford County Historical Society in July of 2021. In October of 2021, the Society retained the services of the Boston-based firm, designLAB architects to lead the project.
The Society’s long term vision for this property is to redevelop the building into a boutique hotel with an upscale restaurant featuring farm-to-table cuisine and an evening entertainment venue showcasing wines, craft brewers, and craft distillers from the region. The front lawn can further be used seasonally for outdoor events. Ultimately, the property will be a landmark amenity, offering guests a unique experience that also celebrates our history and local vendors.
To learn more about the restoration of Holland Hall and how you can be involved, click here.
THE HISTORY OF HOLLAND HALL
The story of Holland Hall starts with Samuel Lord, a veteran of the War of Independence who was awarded 403 acres of land in 1789 by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania as compensation for his military service. The property itself spanned the distance from French Creek to what later would become the site of Allegheny College. On the sloping hill overlooking current-day Terrace Street, Lord built a large log home which he referred to as Mt. Hope.
In 1805, Lord leased a portion of the property adjacent to Mount Hope to James White, a successful tanner, and carpenter of the day. White soon built what is recognized as Meadville’s first brick home in 1807 using local clay and calcified mollusks taken from French Creek as the mortar. The house, which paralleled Terrace Street, was representative of the Federal style, with a five-over-five façade and single gable ends. The home bears witness to more than a tannery, however. At the time of its construction, slavery was legal in Pennsylvania and according to the 1810 census, White owned one slave at this location. This building is one of the few remaining structures in northwest Pennsylvania with direct connection to slavery in the region.
In 1827 the “Tanner White” house would bear witness to the opening ceremony for the French Creek feeder canal which took place in front of the house on the banks of the canal. White would remain on the property until 1839 when he died at which time it was inherited by Colonel John Bliss before later passing to the Hastings family in 1845.
Next door at Mount Hope, Supreme Court Justice Henry Baldwin completed construction of a two-story, Greek Revival mansion in 1843 only to die soon after. In 1847 his widow, Sally, deeded the property to her nephew, William Reynolds who moved into the home with his wife and infant daughter, Frances.
Reynolds would eventually purchase the Tanner White house in 1868 for $19,500 and then gifted it to Frances in 1869 upon her marriage to Arthur Clarke “AC” Huidekoper. The Reynolds and Huidekoper names represented Meadville’s upper class, and it was a perfect union for the two families. For the next 30 years, AC and Frances would live comfortably, raising three children, Albert, Earl, and Edith, who sadly died at age 7 in 1887.
Like his father and grandfather, AC, who also served in the Civil War, proved to be an adept businessman. Through diversified ventures in the railroad, public utilities, manufacturing, shipping, and ranching, AC accumulated a substantial fortune. By 1897, AC and Frances, decided it was time to have a home that represented their wealth, and they commissioned New York architect Alfred Huidekoper Thorp to design a home that represented the Huidekoper’s Dutch heritage while also incorporating their beloved Tanner White house as part of the larger structure.
Thorp, who is known to have worked on Mark Twain’s famous Connecticut home, made several trips to Europe for inspiration. In England, Thorp found what he was looking for in the Holland House, a Kennsington estate near London. Constructed in 1605, Holland House’s features were perfect representations of the baroque style the Huidekopers desired. In fact, the building’s scaled footprint is echoed in the outline of the Huidekoper’s new home and its name -- Holland Hall.
To include the Tanner White house in the design meant moving the brick structure up the hill and rotating it 90 degrees to face Mt. Hope. The Huidekoper’s original home would retain its Federalist interior features to include the fireplace adorned with blue and white Delft tiles that were a gift from AC’s grandfather, Harm Jan Huidelkoper. It would also serve as the main entry to Holland Hall.
A huge public gala celebrated Holland Hall’s completion in 1899. The date would be carved in stone above the south wing gable, while 1807 adorned the same spot above the north gable in homage to the original Tanner White house.
Guests were likely amazed by the 22 rooms and indoor plumbing linking to seven full bathrooms. An impressive central stair hall curved up to the second and third floors which were decorated with all manner of objects, art, and antiquities acquired by the Huidekopers over the course of their many travels to Europe and the Far East.
The most striking of these artifacts are the two carved likenesses of Hercules obtained in Florence, Italy by AC and Frances. The figures said to be from the 1600s, would flank the floor-to-ceiling fireplace which incorporated baronial elements crafted from the Brazilian mahogany used specifically to compliment the two statues which have remained intact to this day. The two-story great room and its fireplace were lit by an imported crystal chandelier using gas but later was converted to electricity.
Behind the stair hall sat the dining room which included a semi-circular space with towering leaded stained glass windows. Leaded glass was also used in the upper sashes of each window on the first and second floors.
The exterior was equally impressive with its Dutch appearance. This included six large wall-head gables topped with a baroque rounded and stepped outline which is also present above the third-floor dormers. Several exterior features harken back to Holland House including the semi-circular columned front porch and the yellow fawn brick produced in Zelienople, PA specifically for Holland Hall.
After the passing of AC in 1928 and Frances in 1932, sons Albert and Earle who preferred living at the family’s Conneaut Lake cottage, sold Holland Hall to O.J. Graham in 1934 for use by Allegheny College. Graham in turn sold the house to the Phi Delta Theta fraternity in 1936.
Extensive changes were made to Holland Hall in 1957 to better accommodate the needs of the fraternity. Among the renovations were moving the basement kitchen to the first floor, constructing dorm-style rooms on the upper floors, and creating a private living space for the fraternity's house mother. In the 1970s additional changes and repairs were made to maintain the home.
In 1994, a fire broke out on the second floor of the Tanner White wing. While the fire caused no real structural threat, it did inflict interior smoke damage. As a result, the fraternity was banned by the college and the house stood empty for several years.
The property was purchased by local business partners in 1996 with hopes of turning Holland Hall into a bed and breakfast. However, financial troubles foiled these plans, and Holland Hall was put up for tax sale in 2006. The following year, it was purchased by Crawford Energy Search, but while the property was maintained, no plans were announced for a complete renovation.
By 2011, the house was listed on the "Pennsylvania at Risk" website of Preservation Pennsylvania as being in danger of demolition. Seeing this, Ethan P. Jackman, a graduate of Allegheny College, obtained the property for $10,000 with plans for restoring it. As the Holland Hall Foundation, Jackman made needed repairs to the building and maintained its security through 2021 when it was sold to the Crawford County Historical Society.
MAJOR ARTHUR CLARKE “AC” HUIDEKOPER
Major Arthur Clarke “AC” Huidekoper (1845-1928) was an entrepreneur, philanthropist, veteran, and environmentalist whose positive impact on Meadville and Crawford County can still be seen today.
Following graduation from Harvard and service as a Civil War officer, AC invested in many local business ventures. These included owning the Meadville & Linesville Railroad where he negotiated railway passage rights with Andrew Carnegie which greatly benefited the local economy. He also helped establish Exposition (Conneaut Lake) Park, where he later built a power station that brought electricity to the residents of Conneaut Lake.
AC’s deep concern for the welfare of others was demonstrated in projects such as establishing the building of the Hillside Home for Children and his ongoing advocacy for the care of veterans. When troops killed striking steelworkers in Pittsburgh, AC resigned his officer commission in the Pennsylvania National Guard in a moral protest over the crime.
As a rancher in the North Dakota Badlands, AC became internationally renowned for quality stock of horses. It was here, he also befriended a young Theodore Roosevelt. In the early 1900s, however, AC battled the Federal government over his environmentally responsible practice of rotating herds to prevent overgrazing of the natural grasslands. AC captures this period of history in his autobiography, My Experience and Investment in the BadLands of Dakota and Some of the Men I Met There published posthumously in 1947.
AC eventually sold his ranch and traveled around the world with his wife, Frances Huidekoper, the daughter of William Reynolds. During their travels, they collected art and artifacts which they displayed in their home, Holland Hall, where AC died peacefully after a full and accomplished life. In 1998, AC was inducted into the North Dakota Cowboy Hall of Fame.
Discover more about AC Huidekoper’s interesting life at Don't Fence Me In: A.C. Huidekoper's Government Tangle Over Public Lands
HISTORICAL TIMELINE
1789 - Samuel Lord acquires 403 acres of land near Meadville as compensation for his service in the War for Independence.
1790 - Lord builds a log cabin on Mt. Hope, a sloping hill overlooking current-day Terrace Street
1804 - Lord family leases a parcel of property adjacent to Mt. Hope to hide tanner, James White
1807 - James White builds Meadville’s first brick home along Terrace Street
1827 - The city celebrates the opening of the Erie Canal feeder situated across Terrace St. from the brick house
1839 - James White dies, and the “Tanner White” house is inherited by Col. John Bliss
1842 - Supreme Court Justice Henry Baldwin purchased the neighboring Mt. Hope property
1843 - Baldwin completes construction of a two-story, Greek Revival mansion
1845 - The Tanner White house and property are passed to the Hastings family
1847 - Henry Baldwin’s widow deeds Mt. Hope and its mansion to her nephew, William Reynolds
1868 - Reynolds purchases the Tanner White house next door for $19,500
1869 - William gifts the Tanner White house to his daughter Frances upon her marriage to Arthur Clarke “AC” Huidekoper
1869 - Francis & AC occupy the home where they raise their three children, Albert, Earl, and Edith (who died at age 7).
1897 - The Huidekopers commission NYC architect, Alfred H. Thorpe, to design a mansion which he based off of the Holland House Estate in England
1898 - The “Tanner White House” is relocated up the hill to be incorporated into the construction of the Huidekoper’s mansion.
1899 - A public ball celebrates the completion of the mansion, officially known as Holland Hall
1928 - AC Huidekoper dies
1932 - Frances Huidekoper dies
1934 - The Huidekoper brothers sell the home for $1 to OJ Graham for use by Allegheny College
1936 - Holland Hall acquired by Phi Delta Theta fraternity at Allegheny College again for $1.00
1957 - Holland Hall modified extensively with dorm rooms and cafeteria for fraternity use
1978 - Local Phi Delta Theta chapter petitions national chapter for funds to make repairs
1994 - 2nd-floor fire in the “Tanner White” wing causes burn and smoke damage to the interior
1996 - Holland Hall is purchased for $160K by business partners with plans to renovate as a B&B
2004 - Holland Hall is as the center of a legal suit filed by one business partner against the other
2006 - Property is sold at sheriff’s sale $24,820 to Crawford Energy Search
2007 - Crawford Energy Search officially closes on the property
2011 - Holland Hall added to Pennsylvania’s list of endangered historic homes
2011 - Holland Hall is bought for $10,000 by the Holland Hall Foundation
2021 - The Crawford County Historical Society purchases Holland Hall with long term plans…