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Woodville (Heidelberg, Pennsylvania)
Encyclopedia
Woodville, also known as the Neville House or John Neville House, is a house on Washington Pike (PA 50
) south of Heidelberg
, Pennsylvania
. It is significant for its association with John Neville, a tax collector whose other house was burned in the Whiskey Rebellion
in 1794. The oldest portion of the house dates to 1775, with a main section built a decade later. It is one of the oldest houses in Allegheny County
, preserved
and restored to its original condition.
For those reasons, it was declared a National Historic Landmark
in 1983. After being significantly renovated by an early 19th-century resident, it remained a private house until 1975. Today it is a historic house museum.
on the west side of the highway. There is a small gravel parking lot on the south side, with a hedge to buffer it from some modern commercial buildings. The west and north sides border on woodlands.
Woodville is a one-and-a-half-story frame
house with moderately pitched
gable
roof pierced by four dormer windows and two brick chimneys at either end. A full veranda stretches across the east (front) elevation, and a one-story kitchen wing projects from the south, with a small garden next to it.
Inside, the house follows a center-hall plan. The stairway rises from the hall to the upstairs bedrooms. A large living room occupies the north side of the first story; a dining room and another smaller room are on the north. The kitchen is located in the wing; slaves slept in the garret
above it. All the interior rooms have been restored to their original furnishing.
, shortly after buying 14000 acres (5,665.6 ha) five miles (8 km) south of Fort Pitt
, located at the forks of the Ohio in what is today downtown Pittsburgh. He took command of the fort on behalf of the Colony of Virginia the next year, and served in that capacity until Edward Hand
relieved him in 1777. Neville was an officer of the Continental Army
for the rest of the Revolutionary War
. During this time it is believed the present farmhouse at Woodville was also built, since Neville reported a tenfold increase in his slave holdings in 1780.
In 1783 Neville retired shortly after reaching the rank of brigadier general
. Three years later, the name "Woodville" was used on the land patent, and was mentioned in a report in the Pittsburgh Gazette
when his sister-in-law was married at the house. He built another home, Bower Hill, and let his son Presley live in Woodville. During the 1780s he continued his public career, serving in several posts, including as representative to the Pennsylvania Constitutional Convention in 1787.
He was named federal revenue inspector for a district comprising Allegheny, Bedford
, Washington
and Westmoreland
counties. This put him in the position of collecting the excise tax on whiskey imposed at Alexander Hamilton
's suggestion to pay off the states' war debts. Since it favored large producers over small farmers, it was unpopular with many of the farmers of Western Pennsylvania
, who often had no other way of getting their grain to market. In the early 1790s this led to the Whiskey Rebellion
. Farmers marched on Woodville in 1794. Neville and his servants fought them off, but were unable to protect Bower Hill from being burned down despite reinforcements by soldiers from Fort Fayette
. Fort Lafayette (Pennsylvania) George Washington
eventually sent in the Army
to put the rebellion down, an occurrence seen as the first test of federal authority under the newly-adopted Constitution
.
Four years later, an assessment for the Direct Tax of 1798 shows the house at its present dimensions. Thomas Jones, probably an overseer or caretaker, is listed as the resident. In 1814, it was sold to Stephen Barlow, a director of the Bank of the United States
, for $12,000 ($ in contemporary dollars). He, in turn, sold it two years later to Christopher Cowan at a $2,000 profit.
Over the next decade, Cowan significantly renovated the house. He added a shed to the north wall and extended the south wall seven feet (2.3 m) to connect the house and the kitchen. Some effects of this can still be seen in the house today. On the outside, it was painted white and the porch added to the east side. A storehouse was also built.
His daughter inherited the house when he died in 1835. Members of the Cowan family continued to live there for almost a century and a half. They made some changes to the exterior, such as repainting it brown and then yellow, and adding some Victorian Gothic touches like the porch latticework and the lancet window
s on some of the dormers. A married couple that lived in the house during the mid-20th century had modern heating and plumbing installed.
In 1975, shortly after it was first listed on the National Register of Historic Places
, the last Cowan descendants moved out. The house had already become the property of the Pittsburgh History and Landmarks Foundation
, which began operating it as a historic house museum. It became a National Historic Landmark
in 1983.
In the early 21st century it was transferred to another not-for-profit, Neville House Associates, a smaller organization which is focused only on Woodville. NHA oversaw restorations
that included painting the house white again and bringing in an early 19th-century pianoforte similar to the one Cowan had bought.
Pennsylvania Route 50
Pennsylvania Route 50 is a long state highway located in western Pennsylvania. The western terminus of the route is at Pennsylvania Route 844 in the Independence Township community of Independence less than a mile from the West Virginia state line. The eastern terminus is at Pennsylvania Route 60...
) south of Heidelberg
Heidelberg, Pennsylvania
Heidelberg is a small suburb southwest of Pittsburgh in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 1,244 at the 2010 census.-Geography:Heidelberg is located at ....
, Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
. It is significant for its association with John Neville, a tax collector whose other house was burned in the Whiskey Rebellion
Whiskey Rebellion
The Whiskey Rebellion, or Whiskey Insurrection, was a tax protest in the United States in the 1790s, during the presidency of George Washington. Farmers who sold their corn in the form of whiskey had to pay a new tax which they strongly resented...
in 1794. The oldest portion of the house dates to 1775, with a main section built a decade later. It is one of the oldest houses in Allegheny County
Allegheny County, Pennsylvania
Allegheny County is a county in the southwestern part of the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. As of the 2010 census, the population was 1,223,348; making it the second most populous county in Pennsylvania, following Philadelphia County. The county seat is Pittsburgh...
, preserved
Historic preservation
Historic preservation is an endeavor that seeks to preserve, conserve and protect buildings, objects, landscapes or other artifacts of historical significance...
and restored to its original condition.
For those reasons, it was declared a National Historic Landmark
National Historic Landmark
A National Historic Landmark is a building, site, structure, object, or district, that is officially recognized by the United States government for its historical significance...
in 1983. After being significantly renovated by an early 19th-century resident, it remained a private house until 1975. Today it is a historic house museum.
Building
The house is located on a one-acre (4,000 m²) lotLot (real estate)
In real estate, a lot or plot is a tract or parcel of land owned or meant to be owned by some owner. A lot is essentially considered a parcel of real property in some countries or immovable property in other countries...
on the west side of the highway. There is a small gravel parking lot on the south side, with a hedge to buffer it from some modern commercial buildings. The west and north sides border on woodlands.
Woodville is a one-and-a-half-story frame
Framing (construction)
Framing, in construction known as light-frame construction, is a building technique based around structural members, usually called studs, which provide a stable frame to which interior and exterior wall coverings are attached, and covered by a roof comprising horizontal ceiling joists and sloping...
house with moderately pitched
Roof pitch
In building construction, roof pitch is a numerical measure of the steepness of a roof, and a pitched roof is a roof that is steep.The roof's pitch is the measured vertical rise divided by the measured horizontal span, the same thing as what is called "slope" in geometry. Roof pitch is typically...
gable
Gable
A gable is the generally triangular portion of a wall between the edges of a sloping roof. The shape of the gable and how it is detailed depends on the structural system being used and aesthetic concerns. Thus the type of roof enclosing the volume dictates the shape of the gable...
roof pierced by four dormer windows and two brick chimneys at either end. A full veranda stretches across the east (front) elevation, and a one-story kitchen wing projects from the south, with a small garden next to it.
Inside, the house follows a center-hall plan. The stairway rises from the hall to the upstairs bedrooms. A large living room occupies the north side of the first story; a dining room and another smaller room are on the north. The kitchen is located in the wing; slaves slept in the garret
Garret
A garret is generally synonymous in modern usage with a habitable attic or small living space at the top of a house. It entered Middle English via Old French with a military connotation of a watchtower or something akin to a garrison, in other words a place for guards or soldiers to be quartered...
above it. All the interior rooms have been restored to their original furnishing.
History
Neville came to the region in 1774 from Winchester, VirginiaWinchester, Virginia
Winchester is an independent city located in the northwestern portion of the Commonwealth of Virginia in the USA. The city's population was 26,203 according to the 2010 Census...
, shortly after buying 14000 acres (5,665.6 ha) five miles (8 km) south of Fort Pitt
Fort Pitt (Pennsylvania)
Fort Pitt was a fort built at the location of Pittsburgh, Allegheny County, Pennsylvania.-French and Indian War:The fort was built from 1759 to 1761 during the French and Indian War , next to the site of former Fort Duquesne, at the confluence the Allegheny River and the Monongahela River...
, located at the forks of the Ohio in what is today downtown Pittsburgh. He took command of the fort on behalf of the Colony of Virginia the next year, and served in that capacity until Edward Hand
Edward Hand
-Early life and career:Hand was born in Clyduff, King's County, Ireland January 10, 1742, and was baptised in Shinrone. His father was John Hand. Among his immediate neighbours were the Kearney family, ancestors of U.S. President Barack Obamba [1]...
relieved him in 1777. Neville was an officer of the Continental Army
Continental Army
The Continental Army was formed after the outbreak of the American Revolutionary War by the colonies that became the United States of America. Established by a resolution of the Continental Congress on June 14, 1775, it was created to coordinate the military efforts of the Thirteen Colonies in...
for the rest of the Revolutionary War
American Revolutionary War
The American Revolutionary War , the American War of Independence, or simply the Revolutionary War, began as a war between the Kingdom of Great Britain and thirteen British colonies in North America, and ended in a global war between several European great powers.The war was the result of the...
. During this time it is believed the present farmhouse at Woodville was also built, since Neville reported a tenfold increase in his slave holdings in 1780.
In 1783 Neville retired shortly after reaching the rank of brigadier general
Brigadier General
Brigadier general is a senior rank in the armed forces. It is the lowest ranking general officer in some countries, usually sitting between the ranks of colonel and major general. When appointed to a field command, a brigadier general is typically in command of a brigade consisting of around 4,000...
. Three years later, the name "Woodville" was used on the land patent, and was mentioned in a report in the Pittsburgh Gazette
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, also known simply as the "PG," is the largest daily newspaper serving metropolitan Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA.-Early history:...
when his sister-in-law was married at the house. He built another home, Bower Hill, and let his son Presley live in Woodville. During the 1780s he continued his public career, serving in several posts, including as representative to the Pennsylvania Constitutional Convention in 1787.
He was named federal revenue inspector for a district comprising Allegheny, Bedford
Bedford County, Pennsylvania
Bedford County is a county located in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. As of the 2010 census, the population was 49,762. The county seat is Bedford. It is part of the Altoona, Pennsylvania, Metropolitan Statistical Area.- History :...
, Washington
Washington County, Pennsylvania
-Government and politics:As of November 2008, there are 152,534 registered voters in Washington County .* Democratic: 89,027 * Republican: 49,025 * Other Parties: 14,482...
and Westmoreland
Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania
-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 369,993 people, 149,813 households, and 104,569 families residing in the county. The population density was 361 people per square mile . There were 161,058 housing units at an average density of 157 per square mile...
counties. This put him in the position of collecting the excise tax on whiskey imposed at Alexander Hamilton
Alexander Hamilton
Alexander Hamilton was a Founding Father, soldier, economist, political philosopher, one of America's first constitutional lawyers and the first United States Secretary of the Treasury...
's suggestion to pay off the states' war debts. Since it favored large producers over small farmers, it was unpopular with many of the farmers of Western Pennsylvania
Western Pennsylvania
Western Pennsylvania consists of the western third of the state of Pennsylvania in the United States. Pittsburgh is the largest city in the region, with a metropolitan area population of about 2.4 million people, and serves as its economic and cultural center. Erie, Altoona, and Johnstown are its...
, who often had no other way of getting their grain to market. In the early 1790s this led to the Whiskey Rebellion
Whiskey Rebellion
The Whiskey Rebellion, or Whiskey Insurrection, was a tax protest in the United States in the 1790s, during the presidency of George Washington. Farmers who sold their corn in the form of whiskey had to pay a new tax which they strongly resented...
. Farmers marched on Woodville in 1794. Neville and his servants fought them off, but were unable to protect Bower Hill from being burned down despite reinforcements by soldiers from Fort Fayette
Fort Lafayette (Pennsylvania)
Fort Lafayette, sometimes called Fort Fayette, was an American fort in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States.It was sited near present-day Penn Avenue and Ninth Street in the Cultural District of Downtown Pittsburgh.-History:...
. Fort Lafayette (Pennsylvania) George Washington
George Washington
George Washington was the dominant military and political leader of the new United States of America from 1775 to 1799. He led the American victory over Great Britain in the American Revolutionary War as commander-in-chief of the Continental Army from 1775 to 1783, and presided over the writing of...
eventually sent in the Army
United States Army
The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...
to put the rebellion down, an occurrence seen as the first test of federal authority under the newly-adopted Constitution
United States Constitution
The Constitution of the United States is the supreme law of the United States of America. It is the framework for the organization of the United States government and for the relationship of the federal government with the states, citizens, and all people within the United States.The first three...
.
First Bank of the United States
The First Bank of the United States is a National Historic Landmark located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania within Independence National Historical Park.-Banking History:...
, for $12,000 ($ in contemporary dollars). He, in turn, sold it two years later to Christopher Cowan at a $2,000 profit.
Over the next decade, Cowan significantly renovated the house. He added a shed to the north wall and extended the south wall seven feet (2.3 m) to connect the house and the kitchen. Some effects of this can still be seen in the house today. On the outside, it was painted white and the porch added to the east side. A storehouse was also built.
His daughter inherited the house when he died in 1835. Members of the Cowan family continued to live there for almost a century and a half. They made some changes to the exterior, such as repainting it brown and then yellow, and adding some Victorian Gothic touches like the porch latticework and the lancet window
Lancet window
A lancet window is a tall narrow window with a pointed arch at its top. It acquired the "lancet" name from its resemblance to a lance. Instances of this architectural motif are most often found in Gothic and ecclesiastical structures, where they are often placed singly or in pairs.The motif first...
s on some of the dormers. A married couple that lived in the house during the mid-20th century had modern heating and plumbing installed.
In 1975, shortly after it was first listed on the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
, the last Cowan descendants moved out. The house had already become the property of the Pittsburgh History and Landmarks Foundation
Pittsburgh History and Landmarks Foundation
The Pittsburgh History & Landmarks Foundation is a nonprofit organization founded in 1964 to support the preservation of historic buildings and neighborhoods in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA....
, which began operating it as a historic house museum. It became a National Historic Landmark
National Historic Landmark
A National Historic Landmark is a building, site, structure, object, or district, that is officially recognized by the United States government for its historical significance...
in 1983.
In the early 21st century it was transferred to another not-for-profit, Neville House Associates, a smaller organization which is focused only on Woodville. NHA oversaw restorations
Building restoration
Building restoration describes a particular treatment approach and philosophy within the field of architectural conservation. According the U.S...
that included painting the house white again and bringing in an early 19th-century pianoforte similar to the one Cowan had bought.