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Elisha Packer Wilbur Mansion
Elisha P. Wilbur – Born circa 1833 he was the son of a sea
captain and his mother was the sister of Asa Packer.
The tower on the mansion’s north side was built possibly to permit
Elisha to keep an eye on the passing trains of the Lehigh Valley
Railroad and to be sure they were on time.
The game room was designed by a famous architect, Stanford White,
who had an interesting history himself: He was the victim in one of
the most celebrated murder cases in the early 20th century. (White
was shot in New York’s Madison Square Garden by the jealous husband
of a showgirl.)
One of the great mysteries of the mansion is who is buried in the
old cemetery, now covered by the paved parking lot behind the
mansion. Some say soldiers of the Continental Army. Some say no,
they are buried beneath the nearby spur route. This is one mystery
that may never be solved without an earthquake.
Elisha P. Wilbur went to school in Mauch Chunk (now Jim Thorpe). He
left school when he was young and became a clerk in Uncle Asa
Packer’s general stores. It appears that Uncle Asa saw in his nephew
Elisha much more potential than what is usually associated with
someone who sweeps floors and keeps the pickle barrel clean. Packer
gave Wilbur a key role on the crew that surveyed the future route of
Packer’s Lehigh Valley Railroad, and later became his personal
Secretary. It was this later job, with its travel between Mauch
Chunk and Philadelphia that introduced Wilbur to Bethlehem. The
Christmas City must have impressed him as he settled here around
1857 and married Stella Abbot. This mansion was built in 1866-67
when Wilbur was only 33 years of age.
Obviously he was wealthy at the time and could have received help
from his father, who may also have bought in with Asa Packer.
Someone certainly advised him to invest money in coal and the
railroads.
Wilbur and his wife raised seven children and the family was part of
the city’s social elite, mingling with other local entrepreneurs
such as Robert H. Sayre, who was involved with both the Railroad and
the Bethlehem Iron Company. They kept to themselves thus little is
known about them. Wilbur loved culture – he built the now gone
Fountain Hill Opera House – and donated large amounts of money. Some
of this philanthropy went toward the purchase of a new organ for the
Church of the Nativity located on Wyandotte Street. Wilbur chose to
build his brick mansion on Wyandotte Street, probably because of the
proximity to the Railroad line, when asked how much it would cost to
build today, some indicated millions. That appears to be a good
ballpark figure. For example one would have to bring in an artist
all the way from Italy to hand carve the teakwood in the library and
dining room, just as Wilbur did. You would also have to purchase
enough marble from which to build a fireplace for the living room
and enough furniture for 18 really big rooms, including seven
bedrooms and seven baths.
No records are available to learn how much money was spent to build
the mansion, however the Masonic Society (then called the Masonic
Building Corporation) bought the property in 1924 for $70,000. The
purchase was a real bargain.
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