Explore Victorian Bellefonte Through Art & History
Originally published in 1987, Victorian Bellefonte: A Coloring Portfolio offers a creative look at the architecture and history that helped shape Bellefonte, Pennsylvania.
A project of Historic Bellefonte, Inc., the portfolio was illustrated by Joseph Teplica and Dennis Krill, with historical text by Hugh Manchester. The collection features drawings of notable Bellefonte buildings and landmarks alongside brief histories that tell the stories of the people, businesses and events connected to them.
Download the coloring portfolio to explore Bellefonte’s architectural heritage, discover some of the community’s best-known historic landmarks and add your own color to a piece of local history.
Originally published: 1987
Illustrations: Joseph Teplica & Dennis Krill
Text: Hugh Manchester
A project of: Historic Bellefonte, Inc.
Original building descriptions copyright © 1987.
Original Introduction — A Brief Bellefonte History
Hugh Manchester
Reading the history of the buildings contained herein gives one a brief look at the historical legacy of Bellefonte. One is struck by the variety of the history, covering many fields.
The population is 6,300. The population when many of these things were taking place was far less.
The town was founded in 1795 by Lt. Col. James Dunlap and James Harris. The Dunlap family interested themselves in the iron business and Harris was a noted Surveyor. The attraction here was “The Big Spring”, providing an abundant water supply to the community to this very day. On a hot summer day Bellefonte has the highest per capita consumption of water in the world. It was this water supply, in conjunction with nearby iron ore, limestone, coal and wood, that attracted the pioneers to this area. Bellefonte iron products were found in Commodore Perry’s fleet at the Battle of Lake Erie and at the construction of the Brooklyn Bridge. It was this element that attracted people of unusual ability to our town and the result today we see all about us, near and far.
There are few fields of endeavor in which Bellefonte has not made its imprint known. We were among the first to have telephones and the electric light, radios and television. One of the pioneer cable television companies in the United States was founded here. In 1919 one could get an air mail letter from New York City to Bellefonte in two hours, thanks to Bellefonte’s being the primary landing field on the Transcontinental Air Mail Route between New York and Cleveland. As late as 1940-1948, as a station on the Air Pick Up Service, letters arrived in California the next morning.
Five governors of Pennsylvania, one governor of California and one of Kansas have called Bellefonte their home.
Historic Buildings Featured
Text from the Original 1987 Portfolio
Centre County Court House
On the Diamond. The original court house on this site was built in 1805-1806. Wings were added in 1811 and the columned porch was built in 1835. When the original building was torn down and the present one completed in 1855, the columned porch was retained. Further additions were made in 1909-1910 and 1963-1964. The round ball below the fish on the weather vane is at the level of Bellefonte’s reservoir on Reservoir Hill and was used as a landmark for determining water pressure in the Borough. The location of the Centre County Soldiers’ and Sailors’ Memorial and the Governor Andrew Gregg Curtin Monument in front was laid out by Joseph Houston, architect of the present State Capitol in Harrisburg. William Clark Noble did the Curtin Monument.
Bush House
315 West High St. Built in 1868-1869 by Daniel G. Bush, first president of the Norfolk and Southern Railroad. At the time it was the third largest hotel in Pennsylvania, exceeded in size only by the Logan House in Altoona and the Herdic House in Williamsport. A later addition on the west side made it the largest. In 1929 it became the “Penn Belle Hotel”. In 1974 it was renamed the “Bush House” by Mr. Gino Fornicola, owner at the time.
James L. Sommerville House
113-115 South Spring St. built in 1869. Mr Sommerville was chief engineer of the Bellefonte-Snow Shoe Railroad and father of Bond and Donald Sommerville, also prominent railroad engineers. On October 30, 1892, the upper story and roof of the house were severely damaged by fire. Other owners have included: Dr. R.G.H. Hayes, 1892-1908, who located the first hospital in Bellefonte to the rear of the house at the turn of the century; Thomas A. Shoemaker, builder of the Pennsylvania Railroad Classification yard at Northumberland, Pa., 1908-1919; Harry J. Holz and his sister, Edith Holz Friedman, prominent in the Bellefonte business world, 1919-1927; Dr. J. Coburn Rogers, 1927-1950, and his son, Dr. Hugh J. Rogers, 1950 to date.
Bellefonte High School
North Allegheny St. Built in 1909-1910, it was destroyed by fire on February 13, 1939. Until 1925 the school contained elementary grades and the high school. One of its main features was a large auditorium on the second floor where many civic functions were held. “The Commons” at the rear of the building was both a physical education site and a drill ground for the Bellefonte National Guard troop.
Post Office
132 North Allegheny St. Built 1933-1934. One of the best looking post offices in the United States, it occupies one of the most important historic sites in Bellefonte: the location of the town’s first bank and newspaper. Here was also the home of Governor Andrew Gregg Curtin, United States Senator Andrew Gregg, General David McMurtrie Gregg, who stopped Jeb Stuart of Gettysburg, and Judge Amos Shaler, Edwin M. Stanton’s law partner.
Centre County Jail
213 East High St. at the top of “Jail Hill”. Built in 1867-1868 and destroyed by fire on January 16, 1959. For many years the town’s fire siren sat on top of the jail. It sounded its own end that January night. Site of the present jail which was built in 1964-1965. Between 1890 and 1911 five men were hanged within the jail’s walls after being convicted of murder.
Masonic Temple
125 North Allegheny St. Built in 1841 by Hamilton Humes, a Bellefonte business man. A dwelling house for many years it stood on a marble base and had marble entrance steps and marble window sills. At one time before the Civil War it was the Bellefonte residence of General James Irvin, Centre County Ironmaster, who gave the land upon which the Pennsylvania State University is now located. Twice the building served as the headquarters for the First National Bank of Bellefonte. During the latter part of the 19th century it was known as “Miss Mary Ann McGill’s Boarding House”. The Bellefonte Masonic organization purchased the building April 1, 1902 and remodeled it for their use.
Hotel Markland
123 South Spring St. Built by Daniel G. Bush in 1865 as his home. He arrived in Bellefonte in 1856, selling school maps. Within the next 13 years he built the Bush Arcade, the Bush House Hotel, and founded Bush’s Addition to Bellefonte. In 1926 the building became “The Brockerhoff Hotel Annex” and in 1931 the “Hotel Markland”, named after its founder, Mark Landsy, of the famous portrait painting of “Antrim and Landsy”. In 1942 the hotel was purchased by the Bellefonte V.F.W. Post.
Brockerhoff Block
127 West Bishop St. Built 1868 by Henry Brockerhoff, Bellefonte capitalist. It was torn down in 1971. In 1968, Penn State professor Pierce Lewis, and authority on architecture, called the building “one of the best examples of Georgian architecture in the United States.” William Zellers opened his drug store in this building in 1869. The Brockerhoffs restored the building in the early 1960’s. For a time it contained the Bellefonte Office of the Centre Daily Times and has been referred to as the “Feed Store.”
Linn Home
133 North Allegheny St. Built in 1810 by General Phillip Benner, ironmaster, for Judge Jonathan Walker of the Centre County Courts. Later it was the home of John Blair Linn, author of “Linn’s History of Centre and Clinton Counties” and since 1954 the house has served as both a living quarters and a business site.
First National Bank
101 North Allegheny St. The original bank building, built in 1872-1874, similar in design to this one, was destroyed by fire in 1888. It was rebuilt in 1888. Today it is owned by Centre County and houses the County Treasurer and County Controller offices. It is constructed of Beaver County limestone and trimmed with Hummelstown brownstone. In the Treasurer’s office is a wall mural, painted in 1962 by Professor and Mrs. Milton S. Osborne of State College, of Bellefonte as it looked in 1880.
Centre County Bank Building
205 West High St. Built 1881-1882. For many years the building was the location of the Centre County Bank and later The Farmers National Bank. This was in addition to local businesses such as Henry Linn’s China Shop and Ed Garman’s store. From the early 1950’s to date the building has housed primary restaurants.
