Calvin and Juliet McCauley Mansion

Calvin and Juliet McCauley Mansion. Ridgway "Lily of the Valley". , By the 1890s, Ridgway's tanning industry had reached its peak. Calvin McCauley purchased both the OB Grant Tannery and the Eagle Valley Tannery, forming the Elk Tanning Company. He then sold his company to the United States Leather Company, which, at its peak, owned 153 tanneries and was the world's largest producer of sole leather., As prominent lawyer and chief solicitor for the U. S. Leather Company, Calvin McCauley made his fortune, and in 1891, he began building one of Ridgway's most elegant homes. Constructed of brownstone shipped from Buffalo, New York, the mansion took two years to complete. The Hyde-Murphy Company crafted the mansion's detailed interior woodwork. An Italian sitting garden, renowned for its beauty, graced the grounds behind the house., In 1923, McCauley sold the mansion to Samuel Murphy-son of Hyde-Murphy Company co-founder Walter P. Murphy-who lived there with his family for the next 33 years. On December 15, 1956, a truck lost its brakes on Bootjack Hill, careened onto Main Street, and slammed into the side of the McCauley Mansion, engulfing the house in flames. Though firefighters quickly responded to the blaze, the interior of the majestic stone mansion was destroyed. Samuel Murphy and his family were inside the house when the blaze erupted and were carried to safety by firefighters., Millionaire Acres , In the early 1900s, thanks to its rich lumbering heritage, Ridgway boasted one of the highest numbers of millionaires per capita in the United States. The McCauley's mansion was just one of Ridgway's many beautiful homes. Entering town from the east at the turn of the century, visitors glimpsed not only the McCauley mansion, but also the Harry R. Hyde mansion and the Mrs. William H. Hyde mansion. A walking tour of Ridgway reveals dozens of other historic residences, businesses, and public buildings., Elegantly Appointed , The mansion's twenty rooms included a billiard room, double drawing rooms, and a Turkish room. Inlays of both native and exotic hardwoods graced the floors, made of White Mahogany, African Mahogany, and native oak. McCauley spent $70,000 to build the house, a fortune at the time., (Photo Captions):, McCauley Mansion after completion in 1893, Calvin and Juliet McCauley, Mansion Interior, Mansion on fire, December, 1956, McCauley Mansion 1935, Formal gardens, Fighting the fire, All photos courtesy Elk County Historical Society