Submitted by ELAINE SAVOLDI, HARB BOARD MEMBER
Beaver’s history was on full display at Garrison Day, which is named for the Fort MacIntosh Garrison and takes place in the town’s lovely parks. We took advantage of the crowds and nice weather to get some insight as to what visitors and residents alike appreciate about Beaver’s historic architecture.
“I love riding on River Road! I like the houses with old turrets and moldings on the buildings. I saw on Facebook someone had photos of the old courthouse. I thought of how beautiful it would have been to be in there. When you see old architecture, you start wondering about the past.”
– Diane Baynes, New Brighton
“I enjoy looking at old buildings—I was just in Poland and blown away by the architecture there.”
– Kale Woods, Beaver
“It’s beautiful. Why preserve it? It is part of our history. We have modern construction but not like the construction of the artisans of 100 years ago.”
– Patti Fedak, Hopewell
“You can come into Beaver and see just as nice buildings as in Pittsburgh.”
– Becky Francis, Darlington
“All architecture is worth preserving. It costs so much to replace it. A lot of buildings, just to replace in kind would be costly. But if you lose that architecture, you lose that heritage.”
– Stan Kocuba, North Fayette, Air Heritage Museum
“I love to see the turrets, the wood-working. They keep it [the town] nice. I even love riding through the back streets, and near the train station.”
– Paul Rassau, New Kensington
“I moved from Erie in April. We just fell in love [with Beaver]—we love it. We are trying to take our house back to its original looks. We cannot tell you how much we love this house—beautiful hardwood floors, pocket doors. I have been scraping paint off the old wallpaper and spent hours looking at old wallpaper samples to match it.”
– Jenny Krakoff, Beaver
“My house is done in all Beaver memorabilia. Preserving the architecture is 100% important. I want it [the town] to look like it was. I just had my house repainted to preserve it; it will be 100 years old!”
– Sherree Fontenot, Beaver
“I rent in Beaver. I like the inside of my house. I love the railing, there is a fireplace in the building, which is from 1910. I like walking the sidewalks and looking at the top of buildings to see turrets and moldings.”
– Hannah Dugan, Beaver
“I grew up near Chambersburg, PA. We moved to Beaver in January. My son goes to Tiny Tots in Rochester, and we visited the parks and looked at the architecture in Beaver while he was there. I grew up in an old house, and I love old houses. There is nothing like this [town]! I just walk around and admire the houses every day.”
– Britney Bernola, Beaver
