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SECTION A, PAGE 14 mry- SUCKS COUNT'Once-proud mansion dying amid attempts to save herBy DON WOLF Of the Sunday StaffGeorge Washington may net ha\e slept there, but Tern. Mary. Tom. Da\e. and Kevin have all left their mark on Bolton MansionOnce a proud, impressive estate. Bolton Mansion, located in Bnio! Township’^ Holly Hill section. is succumbing to an agonizingly slow miserable death Fires and vandals have almost totally guiteo its interiorThe floors of the building are torn up with holes large enough to aliow a person to forgo the use ofWhere those lovely young ghosts haunting my home will go, I sometimes wonder.If the Bristol Township commissioners succeed in tearing down my home, those ghosts will have to find a new place to haunt. Maybe they'll take up residence in the present municipal building.Let me introduce myself. I. Phmeas Pemberton, was the builder of Bolton Mansion 287 years ago. And now Bristol Township officials want to tear the place down. A public eyesore and fire hazard, they say.Well, Bolton Mansion was beautiful in my day. I actually had to build my home twice, but it was worth it. My first home in Falls Township was called Grove Place, but the marshiness of the land finally forced my wife Phebe and me to build inland. 1 had come from Bolton, England, and so that's the name we selected for our new place.Off TargetBucks County was a beautiful place to live, but we almost settled in another part of the country. Maryland to be exact. You see. navigation wasn’t so good in my day, and instead of landing in Philadelphia, the ship brought us to Lord Baltimore’s lands. Two years later we arrived in Bucks. and I began to hold the first of many political offices.While enroute to Penn's “holy experiment, 1 thought my trade, surveying, would be able to keep me prosperous But once I arrived I found myself doing more for the new county than pursuing my profession.Next to William Penn’s manor house, my estate was probably THE place to visit in the early years of our county's history. Penn was a close fnend of mine since I married the daughter of his steward. I handled all the proprietary quit rents for him and sat at various times on the court and assembly.Folks used to call me the “Father of Bucks County because I did everything from serving as thethe dilapidated stairs Tbe waits, if they are not without plaster, have been marked up by uninvited visitors who are frequent.Still StandsBut the building still stands, and for nearly ten years now. several groups of Bristol Township residents have periodically attempted to preserve and protect Bolton Maibion and its heritage For various reasons, however, they have been unsuccessful m raising funds to renovate the structure.Nevertheless, the ’ save Bolton Mansion movement continue to live Yesterday, a rally to informjustice of the peace to keeping the county “earmarks” book which identified ownership of livestock in the county.But enough about me. You're probably anxious to learn more about ghosts. Of course, they’re not your duke and dutchess type ghosts of Tudor England, but they 're ghosts all the same.After I died in 1702, my house stayed in the family, and about 100 years later we got our ghosts. Back in those days young people in love couldn’t always get married. You guessed it. On a hazy night modern-day Levittown residents say a young girl, once a servant, wanders through the house.Nobody KnowsWhether it was suicide or murder no one knows. Some say there was a murder and suicide and that two ghosts roam the grounds.Apparently the presence of ghosts never bothered ray descendants. Generations of them lived in the house, each one perhaps knocking down a wall or adding another room to my original house By the time my home was sold to the University of Pennsylvania Medical School in 1930, there were 20 rooms in the mansion.Later as a goodwill gesture William Levitt gave the home to the township for municipal offices. Bristol Township and its police used Bolton Mansion until 1968 when the new building was completed.Lately teenagers have been using my place to hang ouif but these new “residents have “caused so much trouble that fireman refuse to answer any calls for Bolton Mansion any more.Levittowners interested in fixing up my place estimate it would take over $250,000 to renovate, and township officials say it’s not worth the effort. If that's the case. I may just tell those two ghosts to find a new home.Then the Bristol Township commissioners might know the real meaning of a woman scorned.the citizens of the Bokoa situation was held oo tbe estate Some two dozen people turned out to view the site and listen to Pete Kraus, who is candidate for the 140th State Assembly District.Kraus feels the Bolton Mansion is a legitimate historical issue as well as an issue of local concern‘*1 think that Bolton Mansiongraphically demonstrate* that just as the building is deteriorating, so is the responsiveness of our government representatives. says Kraus ' The whole situation displays a complete lack of confidence on the part of our officials m the citizens’ ability to decide whether the building should be saved or not Seeks A Voie'Working with the Comma tee lo Save Bolton Mansion. Kraus intends to petition the Bristol Township residents in an effort to put a referendum question regardingdie llt;ite oi the building utt theNovember ballot Kraus is hopeful the citizens will opt to put up funds to preserv e the structure.At the same time, the board of commissioners according to Ninth Ward lt;where Bolton Mansion isi Commissioner Tony Melio, have d ecided to have the specifications written up for demolition of the building.To fix up the mansion could rost as much as 5300.000,*’ says Melio, but we re considering razing it at cost if contractors are willing.The board takes the attitude that we don't want to desirov the building, but we don’t want to excessively tax the the entire township to restore it either.We appreciate the people's interest in the builiding. but you have to wonder if it’s genuine or politically motivated.Several FiresA major argument against preserving Bolton Mansion comes from Levittown Fire Co. No. Two. The volunteer firemen have already answered several fires at the mansion, and Chief Vincent Latronica is concerned for his men’s safetv should another fire break out at Bolton.Referring to the building as being a fire hazard, Latronica says:“I’ve got a job fire fighting and protecting my men. This (attempts to save Bolton) has been going on for nearly 10 years, and we still have the same problem.Where's this guy who's running for office been for the last nine years? says Latronica vehemently. I've got applications on my desk for volunteer firemen; he can come and be a volunteer fireman.And so the struggle continues, as it has for nearly a decade. To raze the building or raise its heritage? Only time will tell, or will it be the Bristol Township residents?Bolton’s 6ghosts’ need new home
Newspaper Details
Bucks County Courier Times
Levittown, Pennsylvania, US
Sun, Apr 21, 1974
Page 14
Full Page
Clipped by
Margaret R.
PA, USA 18 Apr 2022
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