301 Main Street: The Theodore Wheeler house
Plots
he Wheeler house is certainly one of the best examples of high Queen Anne style in Penn Yan, displaying all the earmarks of the style in original form, a textbook case. The house was built by Wheeler in 1885 and he obviously intended his house to be a showplace, and spent freely to make it one.
The lot it was built on was purchased from Caroline Martin in 1868. Before that it was part of the much larger lot that #303 stands on, and together with lots now facing Linden Street, were the property of Israel Brown. The land Wheeler bought went right through from Main to Jackson Street, where he built an elaborate carriage house, now a separate residence, notable for the very early use of stamped tin shingles as a building material.
Near left: An older picture of the same house, published in 1917 in Walter Wolcott's Penn Yan, New York. The picture must have been taken before 1912, however, as Main Street is still unpaved. It shows how little the house has changed since it was built, and how it dominated - and was meant to dominate - its site.
Above far right: 301 Main Street, built in 1885 by Theodore F. Wheeler. The house is a gorgeous example of Queen Anne style, with its asymmetrical massing, multiple gables, dominant porch, surface detail and use of multiple materials and shapes, with nevertheless yield a harmonious whole.
People related to this lot and structure:
Related structures:
Related history:
Railroads
and Queen Anne
