Historic Name

Nicholson House

Address

4838 W Ridge Road

Municipality

Millcreek Township

Tax Parcel

33042230101100

Historic District

Classification

Class 1 (Definitions of Classes)

State Key Number

803463

Historic Function

Domestic - single dwelling

Style

Federal

Built

1827

Architect

Builder

Barn Type on property

Last Entry Update

7/18/2016

In 1795, John Nicholson was sent by Governor Thomas Mifflin to lay out roads at Presque Isle. One year later, he returned to obtain a grant of 400 acres of land in what is now Millcreek Township. Nicholson influenced the organization and development of the earliest Erie County community on the banks of Lake Erie called Manchester. He determined that commerce from Manchester to Erie should travel along the Ridge Road rather than the Lake Road. This would save many miles of difficult transport. Nicholson and his family had become the largest single holders and developers of agricultural land by 1850.

The Nicholson House and Inn, also known as Nicholson Tavern, was built by William & James Hoskinson, and John Pherrin between 1825 and 1827. It was first used to facilitate travel and commerce. The house was strategically located between the Ridge Road and the Erie Extension Canal. During the 1840’s and 1850’s, immigrant traffic increased, which permitted new homes to be built across the Erie County area. The Nicholson House was the perfect place for immigrant settlers to stop for food or an overnight stay at the inn. Between 1842 and 1857, the house was used as a post station. After the Erie Extension Canal closed in 1876, the Nicholson House and Inn was converted to a farm supply and general store called the Asbury Place. Later, the house would serve as a stop on the electrified Buffalo & Conneaut trolley line. Of the many stagecoach stops/inns that sprang up in the first half of the nineteenth century to accommodate the travelling public through Erie County, only the Nicholson House remains in any sense approaching its original condition and appearance. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1985. The Nicholson House and Inn has remained in the Nicholson family into 2016, and is currently used as a private residence.

Sources: Erie County Historical and Architectural Preservation Plan, p. 33.

John Nicholson House and Inn NR nomination

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Photo courtesy, Erie County Assessment Office