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   Thayer-Thompson House

PROPERTY INFORMATION

Historic Name

Thayer-Thompson House

Address

605 W 8th St

Municipality

City of Erie

Tax Parcel

16030035025100

Historic District

 

Classification

Class 1 (Definitions of Classes)

State Key Number

79901

Historic Function

Domestic - single dwelling

Style

Italianate

Built

1861

Architect

 

Builder

 

Barn Type on property

 

Last Entry Update

8/11/2016


HISTORY

Oscar Cornelius Thayer, a builder and stone manufacturer originally from Vermont, commissioned the construction of this home in 1861. Thayer lived in the home for two years and sold it to Victory Marion Thompson in 1863. At a young age, Thompson manufactured washboards while attending the old Erie Academy. In 1848, at the age of nineteen, Thompson sold his washboard business and bought a canal boat, which he sailed on the Erie Extension Canal for three years. While attending Meadville College, he started the “Thompson Line,” which consisted of sixteen canal boats that sailed on the Erie Extension Canal. In the midst of this investment, he also operated a coal yard on West Eighth Street. At the time Thompson purchased this house, he had become a wealthy oil dealer through his investments at Drake’s Well in Titusville, Pennsylvania. Thompson later owned and operated the Erie City Oil Works, one of the earliest refineries in the United States. Upon Thompson’s death in 1887, O.C. Thayer, who built this home, purchased Erie City Oil Works, and later sold it to the Atlantic Refinery Company. The Thompson family owned the home until 1940, when it was purchased and renovated into five apartment units. In 1972, the property was purchased and restored to preserve its architectural integrity. The Thompson-Thayer house was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1985. Despite this designation, in 2016, the property is vacant and in need of repair and restoration.

Sources:


DESCRIPTION


LINKS AND ATTACHMENTS

Thayer-Thompson House National Register nomination


UPDATE

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Submitted information is reviewed by Preservation Erie prior to updating the database.


CURRENT ASSESSMENT PHOTO


Photo courtesy, Erie County Assessment Office


PHOTO FROM 2014 SURVEY

HISTORIC PHOTOGRAPHS

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