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John Roberts House

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1798, 1804, 1809, c. 1840. 225 N. Central St.

This beautiful stone and brick house was built in increments during the first half of the nineteenth century. The first section, a large log house of 1798, has been incorporated into the brick portion of 1840, while a stone addition of 1804 remains at the rear of the house. In 1809, the house received a second and more sophisticated stone section facing N. Central Street, which has elegant Flemish bond stonework on the east and south elevations. The exterior woodwork continues this high level of design: stars line the wooden cornice, a simple fanlit doorway retains its original paneled surround, and the southern eaves feature a gable pediment. The c. 1840 brick addition completes the N. Central Street facade at the north end, and duplicates the size and scale of the 1809 stone portion. This addition of two bays makes the house—ironically—the most typical house type in western Pennsylvania: the five-bay. The house commemorates the name of John Roberts, during whose twelve-year ownership, the 1804 and 1809 portions were built. The house was important to Canonsburg's former Jefferson College (see WS4), since for over thirty years it housed either its president or faculty members.

Writing Credits

Author: 
Lu Donnelly et al.
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Citation

Lu Donnelly et al., "John Roberts House", [Canonsburg, Pennsylvania], SAH Archipedia, eds. Gabrielle Esperdy and Karen Kingsley, Charlottesville: UVaP, 2012—, http://sah-archipedia.org/buildings/PA-01-WS17.

Print Source

Cover: Buildings of PA vol 1

Buildings of Pennsylvania: Pittsburgh and Western Pennsylvania, Lu Donnelly, H. David Brumble IV, and Franklin Toker. Charlottesville: University of Virginia Press, 2010, 287-288.

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