More than 75 years ago, the house at 306 W. Sixth St. was a sight to behold.
The yard and lawn were perfectly manicured. The hardwood walls of the library were polished. Every single room was opulently furnished.
The home’s former maid, Myrtle Mittelmeier Nye, 96, can still picture it. Nye and her sister, Mercie, lived and worked in the home during the 1930s and early 1940s, receiving free room and board and $12 a week.
“Everything was so pretty and nice. It was easy to take care of,” she said.
Originally built for Erie entrepreneur James McBrier in 1891, it was just one of many ornate homes owned by wealthy Erieites along West Sixth Street.
“Just being there among the beautiful homes and wealthy families made you feel important,” Nye said.
“Geez, we lived there for so many years,” she said. “It was really a fun place to live and work.”
In part of Millionaires Row, a six-block stretch along West Sixth Street between Perry Square and Gridley Park on Poplar Street, many of the old houses built in the late 19th and early 20th centuries are celebrating milestones.
Along with the McBrier home, which has since been converted into an apartment building, the Erie County Historical Society’s Watson-Curtze Mansion will mark its 120th anniversary this year.
Back in the late 19th century, the wealthy elite and industrial tycoons of the era started to build their homes along the street. The big names, including the Taylors, Palmers, Reeds and Strongs, started building homes east of the Erie Extension Canal — a northwestern connector to the Pennsylvania Canal that opened in 1844 to connect Lake Erie to the Ohio Valley, and ran through the 300 block of West Sixth Street on its way to the Canal Basin just west of Dobbins Landing in the late 19th century.
In 1871, 140 years ago, the Erie Extension Canal closed, allowing further development in the area.
“You look at the names of the houses, … it’s like a Who’s Who of the area at that time,” said Wally Knox, co-owner of the Boothby Inn, 311 W. Sixth St. “At different periods of time, the wealthy people tend to congregate together at different places.
“This was the place in the latter half of the 19th century.”
Knox and his wife, Gloria, began renovating the home — built in 1888 for William Sands, a successful bakery owner — about 10 years ago to open their four-bedroom bed-and-breakfast. The carriage house in the back of the property was also renovated and is now the Knoxes’ home.
Opening the inn afforded the opportunity to restore one of the old mansions, which can be an expensive undertaking. Wally Knox declined to disclose how much was spent to renovate the building.
At the time the couple bought the building, it was split into apartments. But many features of the original house, including the ornate brass door hinges and knobs, the inlaid floors and some of the tile work, survived years of remodeling.
In most of the old mansions here, history oozes out of every detail, he said. Without even setting foot in any of the old mansions, passers-by — from Erie and elsewhere — quickly recognize the significance of Millionaires Row when they pass it.
“I’m not sure what kind of reputation it has here in 2011 in the city of Erie,” he said. “Most people from out of town and guests at our inn are most impressed with driving up and down this area to see the wonderful old houses.”
Each house along the Row looks different — the architectural styles include Richardsonian Romanesque, Colonial Revival, Victorian Eclectic, Tudor Revival and Neoclassical. At the time many of the homes were built, it wasn’t unusual for people to display their wealth in the detailed facades of their homes, said Andrew Adamus, director of education and outreach for the Erie County Historical Society.
“You can see how they were trying to outdo each other. Everyone was trying to keep up with the Joneses,” he said. “You can still get that feel and that vibe when you’re walking around down there.”
The neighborhood is also unique in that it’s one of the only areas in Erie to have so many old buildings and diverse architectural styles in one place.
Historic “preservation is key to culture. In some cases, these homes look farther back than when they were built,” he said. “There’s a lot in these buildings. There’s a lot of art and architecture that’s nowhere else in Erie.”
While some local history enthusiasts lament the alteration of these old buildings, it’s not always economically feasible to keep them as single-family mansions, said Jeff Kidder, a partner in the Erie architectural firm Kidder Wachter Architecture Design.
“They’re able to continue serving a purpose. They’re viable, usable, fairly good-condition buildings,” said Kidder, who has consulted on improvements to the Watson-Curtze Mansion and the Boothby Inn. “What’s the option of not saving them? Tearing them down?”
In 1984, the former Preservation Project of Erie put the West Sixth Street Historic District on the National Register of Historic Places. The classification allows federal tax breaks of up to 20 percent for property owners who maintain and preserve the historic homes in the qualifying area, Kidder said.
Preserving or restoring buildings in a historically accurate way can be costly.
“One could do it in a manner that could last longer,” Kidder said. “There’s always a cheaper, simple solution, and then there’s the right way.”
Gannon University, which owns several buildings on West Sixth Street, has made it a part of its mission to renovate and repair buildings while keeping their historic integrity intact, said Linda Wagner, the university’s vice president for finance and administration.
A recent project, completed in summer 2010, which converted the Sisters of Divine Spirit convent at 409 W. Sixth St. into part of the university’s freshman hall, required updates to the kitchen and modern additions such as air conditioning, and security and fire systems. Those renovations of the complex amounted to more than $1.3 million.
“It amazes me that these were actual family homes, that people used to live in these places,” Wagner said. “You don’t want to destroy that. You want to keep that and know the history.”
A few properties along West Sixth Street are listed for sale. The 4,024-square-foot Spencer House Bed Breakfast, 519 W. Sixth St., is listed at $364,000 on www.realestateerie.com.
A nearby four-bedroom home at 561 W. Sixth St. is listed at $249,000. At 652 West Sixth Street, the 6,788 square feet of commercial space was originally priced at $1,099,000 but is now listed for $895,000, according to the website.
Gregory Kress was 19 when he bought the house at 542 W. Sixth St., originally built in 1910, for about $210,000, with plans to renovate and maintain it.
“The houses down here are phenomenal. Very stately,” said the now 29-year-old General Electric quality leader of commercial operations. “I also thought it would be a good way to invest back into Erie.”
Ten years and about $250,000 worth of work later to the seven-unit apartment building without the aid of tax incentives, the building serves a different purpose than it did 101 years ago. But pieces of its long history, including old sliding doors, wooden floors and carved fireplace mantels, can still be found inside.
A recent appraisal estimates the house’s value at about $450,000, Kress said.
“A lot of stuff is irreplaceable. I think twice before I remove anything or paint over anything,” he said. “I look at the house as a little treasure.”
The neighborhood, too, is unique. Although the mansions are no longer home to wealthy families, they still have a long life ahead of them, Kress said.
“I look at the house as serving a new purpose,” he said. “Giving it these other purposes allows the history to continue.”
LINDSEY POISSON can be reached at 870-1871 or by e-mail.