Butterfly Farm
Benedums’ estate in Ligonier listed for $3.5 million
Paul “Benny” Benedum Jr. loved Butterfly Farm as a place to get away from it all. Built in 1969 by his parents, Willeen and Paul Benedum Sr., the home was where he spent a good portion of his adult life.
“I had driven him many times to the airport from the farm. But this last time I took him, as we were going down the driveway, he said goodbye to the lake and he said ‘Goodbye, Butterfly Farm,’” recalled Jerry McDowell, the property’s caretaker for 53 years.
“That was the first time he had ever done that, so I think he had an idea he might not be coming back,” said McDowell.
Benedum passed away in May at his Naples, Fla., residence at age 92.
The five-bedroom, six-bath estate at 201 McDowell Road in Ligonier is on the market for $3.5 million (MLS No. 1627870), listed with Annette Ganassi of Howard Hanna Real Estate Services (www.howardhanna.com or 412551-7300).
It was never a working farm, just a lovely home sitting on more than 124 acres of land with a man-made lake fed by a natural spring.
The name comes from an aerial
view of the property, which the Benedums thought looked a bit like a butterfly, according to McDowell. But Mike Higgins, a good friend and
co-executor of Benedum’s estate, believes it was because Willeen loved butterflies.
“When they got there, she saw some and said, ‘We should call this Butterfly Farm,’ ” said Higgins.
Her son had bleachers built near the front of the house to look over the landscape.
“He would sit with friends up there because it is such a beautiful view,” said Higgins.
The home features a primary bedroom suite and a second bedroom suite, both on the first floor. There is also quarters for live-in workers with a bedroom, a bathroom, a small kitchenand a sitting area.
“He had live-in help for awhile, but then he got away from that,” McDowell noted.
The kitchen is small and dated, but it is functional.
“There is room to expand it if someone wants to do that,” he said.
Butterfly Farm is about a 10minute drive from the town of Ligonier, but far enough away to feel secluded.
One of Benedum’s favorite rooms in the house was the wood-paneled denwith a large stone fireplace.
“He loved being in there,” said Higgins.
Everyone who visited the den noticed a mallard duck that hung from
“That duck has been hanging there a long time. When they moved in, that duck got hung up there and has been there ever since,” McDowell noted.
“That thing actually moves from one side to the other very slowly,” said Higgins with a laugh.
The room also features some of Benny’s Native American art.
“He loved Indian lore and had paintings and pictures in the room,” recalled Higgins.
There is also a log cabin on the property that his father had moved from the Rolling Rock Club and reassembled on the property.
“They redid the inside the way they wanted it, but it is an original old cabin,” said McDowell.
The one-room cabin features a large fireplace and overlooks the lake.
“The lake is about 7 surface acres, but the contour of the lake covers 10 acres,” the caretaker said. “Originally it was 17 feet deep, but sediment has filled it in some.”
“It is swim-able, fish-able and acts as a respite for migrating geese,” said Higgins.
Paul Benedum Sr. used the cabin as a getaway.
“There was no expense spared when they built the house at Butterfly Farm, but it is not overdone in any way,” insisted Higgins. “It is very comfortable.”