The following newspaper story -
published in 1941 - is printed verbatim.
Alterations to be few; Panels kept
By
Nat Gorham
A
Fabulous period in Buffalo's history is
typified by the Goodyear
mansion, 888
Delaware Ave., which was
taken over this
week by the Hospital Service Corporation and the Western New York
Medical plan.
From the time it was completed in 1902 at a cost of $500,000 the
mansion was
the scene of many interesting social functions. The large living
room or,
"hall,"
its walls covered with a rich red Italian brocade and with pilasters
and cove mouldings of exquisitely carved American walnut,
has enclosed receptions for royalty and dances for
debutantes and their beaux. Soon it will be the "underwriting and
service" room of the corporation. Instead of string orchestras there
will
be tapping typewriters and the hum of busy people.
The lavish study used by Charles W. Goodyear, who built the home,
will be the
office of the director and the delicate, charming oval breakfast
room will be
the office of the comptroller. The board will meet where once the
Goodyears
kept their books and spent their evenings.
Prince's Chair Remains
Mr. Goodyear owned timber tracts In Louisiana, Mississippi,
and
Pennsylvania. So extensive were his holdings that if one tract were
shorn and
replanted, it would have been reforested by the time the lumber
jacks had
harvested the others. The wood in the Goodyear house is naturally
the finest
that could have been supplied. Beautiful walnut paneling fills the
library and
hallways, as well as the living room.
The dining room was furnished with a table, sideboard, and 12 chairs
of solid
Honduras mahogany,
said to have cost $7000. Descendants of Mr. Goodyear own
the two chairs in which the King and Queen of Belgium sat in 1919,
but the one
for Prince Leopold, with his name carved in the back, remains in the
house.
One door in the dining room opens into the breakfast room. Another
leads onto
the loggia
commanding a spacious view of the gardens nearby and the
lawns beyond. Through still another, one reaches the palm room.
Over the mantle
of the marble fireplace in the main hall is a six-foot
marble relief called "Life" by K.
Bitter, which won first prize at the
St. Louis exposition.
Weighing two tons, it is placed on a foundation extending to the
cellar. It was
bought at the recent sale of Goodyear pieces, but the purchaser
never took it
away because experts found they would have had to tear down the
house to get it
out
On Five Levels
In the butler's pantry, presided over for years by Alfred
Taylor, are
two long German silver sinks and rinsing trays. The kitchen was
distinguished
by a fine large stove with an overhanging metal hood and by an
electric
refrigerator opening into the kitchen and also into a hall back of the
kitchen.
It was large enough to hold a side of beef as well as other large
stores.
The house has five levels: basement, ground floor, first bedroom
floor, second
bedroom floor, and attic. Through three of these floors, from the
ground to the
second bedroom floors, spirals a graceful staircase with a
wrought-iron
balustrade and an oak hand rail. A heavy iron chain drops 40 feet
through the
well and at the end is a polychrome chandelier.
There are nine bedrooms on the two bedroom floors, each with a
luxurious marble
fireplace and each with a marble bathroom. A sewing room, 20 by 20
feet, has
flowered wallpaper, a fireplace, and a built-in closet with wash
basins.
Mrs. Goodyear, who died last September, occupied the bedroom in the
southeast
corner of the second floor and Mr. Goodyear, who died 28 years ago,
the room
adjoining. Both are beautiful paneled with solid mahogany.
In Blue Brocade
Two of the most beautiful rooms of the house were those
occupied by Mrs.
Arnold B. Watson, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Goodyear. The large sitting
room of
her apartment was covered with a light blue brocade and the woodwork
painted
with 10 or 12 coats of ivory enamel.
There are four servants' bedrooms on the second floor, five on the
third, and
four over the garage. In the attic is a 40-foot cedar chest for
storing
Oriental rugs and several cedar rooms for linens. An elevator extends
through
the five levels. In the basement are two boilers for the steam heat
and a coal
bin holding 65 tons.
The main floor is supported by steel "I" beams resting on giant stone
and concrete pillars. On the beams is a layer of two inches of
concrete and on
this a rough wood flooring and finally the hardwood. Experts believe
this floor
is as strong as a factory floor.
With the exception of the kitchen and pantries and a few of the
bedroom
partitions, the house will not be changed by the hospital corporation.
It
expects to move in May 1.
Taylor Caldwell (Mrs. Marcus Reback), Buffalo author, was inspired to
write her
forthcoming book, "The Strong City," while attending the sale of
furnishings in the house.
See also: Highlights
of
Buffalo's History, 1941
