Brooke Mansion on the auction block
Owners previously listed property for sale at $1.7M
BIRDSBORO » In the market for your very own mansion? You’re in luck.
The Brooke Mansion, an architectural gem that dates back to 1887, is up for sale.
For the right price, you can own the three-story, 14,000-squarefoot mansion situated on three wooded acres at 301 Washington St.
The sandstone and cedar shake mansion is the work of renowned architect Frank Furness and was commissioned by industrialist Edward Brooke II as a wedding gift for his bride, Ann Louise Clingon.
The mansion features 42 rooms, including 16 bedrooms, 11 bathrooms, a breathtaking twostory entry foyers with an open staircase; 10 custom-built working fireplaces; stained and leaded glass windows; and a circular rosewood library with carved bookcases.
If you can afford to buy the mansion, you’ll probably need a place to store your valuables. That’s where a walk-in safe
comes in handy. The building also features an original wooden elevator; a huge wrap-around porch and a full basement with an additional 4,000 square feet of storage space.
The structure still retains 95 percent of the original Queen Anne architectural features and has been well-maintained through the years, according to Horst Auctioneers of Ephrata, which is handling the Sept. 29 auction.
It’s not just the building that’s up for sale. The entire contents of the mansion — furniture, antiques, architectural fixtures, oriental rugs, artwork, books, china and glassware and assorted collectibles — can also be had for the right price.
The 19th century estate has had several owners through the years. The Brooke children sold the mansion in the 1940s after their parents died. The most recent owners — Peter and Marci Xenias — renovated the building while living there and also operated a successful bed-and-breakfast on site for many years.
A recent one-day open house that served as a fundraiser for the Women’s Club of Birdsboro attracted nearly 900 visitors to the mansion, which hasn’t been open to the public in more than a decade.
The building auction is scheduled for Saturday, Sept. 29, at 1 p.m. The sale of contents begins at 9 a.m.
Interested buyers can also preview the building contents on Thursday, Sept. 27, from 1-4 p.m., and Saturday, Sept. 29, from 7 a.m. through the time of the sale.
A few more points of interest for serious buyers: The building is being sold as is. The winning bidder will have to place a $75,000 down payment on the day of the sale in cash or by Pennsylvania check with the balance due at settlement on or before Nov. 30.
The auction firm also points out that the building can be used as a residence, a bed-and-breakfast, offices or a restaurant under current Birdsboro zoning regulations.
In addition to the purchase price, the new owner will also be paying an annual school property tax bill of at least $17,000 to the Daniel Boone Area School District.