Recalling Honesdale's grand Hotel Allen | Local History

One of Honesdale's grandest downtown hotels was the Allen House, known as the first concrete hotel in Pennsylvania.

The hotel proprietor had an enviable location among his competitors, a corner lot opposite Honesdale's Central Park. Built a few years before the Civil War, the hotel was a central meeting place, high on the social scene and could have remained as one of the town's fine historic landmarks had it not been for a disastrous and sinister end one infamous night in November 1978.

In 1985, The Dime Bank opened their main offices at the site of this hotel at the southwest corner of Church and 9th Streets opposite Grace Episcopal Church on one side and the Park Hotel on the other.

The hotel was built in 1857 by Samuel Allen. He operated the Allen House until his death in 1875, at which time his son Martin B. Allen continued the family ownership into the early 20th century.

Samuel Allen was born in Chelsea, Vermont, Nov. 2, 1818, where he engaged in the stage coach business.About 1843, Allen was wed to Betsey Barrett. Their three sons Martin B., William R. and Charles W. were all born there.

He relocated his stage business to Pennsylvania with the coming of the railroad. The Erie railroad reached Narrowsburg, New York in 1848. Allen became proprietor of the stage line between Honesdale and the new rail depot at Narrowsburg (steam trains did not reach East Honesdale until 1868).

He settled in Honesdale about 1850. The census that year listed him as stage proprietor; residing in the household was Albert Kendall, stage driver, who also was from Vermont. Stage barns were on 11th Street, across from his home on the northeast corner with Court Street.

Martin Allen added a three-story addition on the 9th street side in the fall of 1881.

Businessmen made a deal

Allen invested his capital largely in his stage business but was known as an energetic, enterprising, trustworthy and hospital gentleman. In March 1857, a group of local businessmen approached Allen and his business partner, W.W. Bronson, with $3,000 to buy the vacant corner lots on the condition they would erect a hotel there. (Bronson transferred his interest to Allen in 1864.)

Loans and endorsements totaling $8,500 followed. Allen simultaneously bought a 30-acre farm near town to raise food for his hotel.

Henry Heath, who previously built Grace Episcopal Church, was the hotel contractor. Three stories (160 feet) high, the 50-room hotel was the first concrete building in Pennsylvania according to the Portland Cement Company.

Cement and cracked stone were brought from Rosendale, New York, on the Delaware & Hudson Canal. Muscle power mixed the cement and carried it up ladders; laborers were paid 50 cents a day. The outer walls were 18 inches thick and the inner walls, 12 inches. Groundbreaking occurred April 13, 1857. The roof was on by November.

The Allen House opened June 30, 1858. A large gathering of local businessmen and others attended. Officers were picked in the reading room following the entertainment. The Hon. William H. Dimmick was president. They passed a resolution stating, "Resolved, that the erection of this large and commodious hotel in our borough, is a matter of just pride to every good citizen, both as an ornament to the town, and a welcome resting place to the traveler."

Expressing confidence in Allen, the public was cordially recommended to patronize the house. A public reception was held the next day from 9 a.m. to noon. Hundreds of citizens attended.

The two Honesdale newspapers waged an editorial squabble over Allen's character, The Herald accused the Democrat of painting the hotel enterprise as "political." Allen flatly denied this in a letter in the Herald July 15, 1858. The feud lasted several weeks, a local journalistic tradition which no doubt sold papers. The late Wayne County Historian Vernon Leslie compared it to boys throwing snowballs at each other.

That August there was a great celebration in Honesdale for the success of the telegraph cable connecting Europe and America, hailed as the "eighth wonder of the world". Church bells rang, a bonfire was built and a throng gathered outside the Allen House where speeches were extolled from its steps.

"The house came into immediate public favor on account of its modern conveniences and popularity of Mr. Allen," an article in Illustrated Wayne stated. His son Martin went into business with him in 1862 and subsequently leased the property. His father was again in charge from 1873 to 1875.

Martin Allen added a three-story addition on the 9th street side in the fall of 1881.

Public servant

In 1852 the elder Allen unsuccessfully ran for the state senate. He held several local offices, including six terms on borough council. He was president of Honesdale Fire Department Engine Co. 1.

At the time of the 1860 census Samuel was 44; his wife, 40. Their boys at the time were 16, 13 and 11, respectively. The hotel had a real estate value listed at $16,000. Accounting for inflation that would be $571,202 today.

The present Wayne County Fair, which is hosted by the Wayne County Agricultural Society, held its first fair in 1862, a revival of an earlier fair. Allen took an active interest in restarting the fair and was an earnest and active director. Most meetings of the 15-member board were held at the Allen House. His son Martin was later an active director as well.

Once the Civil War started, in the fall of 1862 Allen enlisted in Co. C. 24th Regiment State Guards (Rescue Rifles), and became its captain. Allen was named Wayne County Provost, keeping record of Union volunteers during the war.

Smallpox scare

A guest, a traveling salesman named Charles Parcells became confined to the hotel in February 1873 with smallpox. He was quarantined to the third floor and medical care was arranged. Allen closed the hotel at great financial loss for several weeks to protect the public. Extensive renovations and thorough sanitizing took place to cleanse the hotel.

Parcells recovered.

Afterwards, other boarders and Allen’s friends threw a surprise party for Allen thanking him for his diligence and care. He was given a gold watch.

Took in canal boy

In September 1873 a fight broke out between a bunch of driver boys sitting on the cabins of their canal boats, awaiting turns to load coal at the Union docks in Honesdale's canal basin. The boys were pelting each other with coal. One of the lads was named John Williams, about age 13. He and others took refuge behind some coal cars. Samuel Clark, one of the boat captains, remonstrated and was laughed at by the boys. Clark allegedly came out with a gun. One of Williams's companions pushed Williams in range and when Clark fired, a piece of buckshot struck the boy's head.

There being no hospital at that time, Allen had Williams taken to hotel where the boy was properly cared for. Two weeks later the boy's boat returned to Honesdale to pick up more coal; Williams went back to his job leading the horse (or mule) down the towpath. When the boat returned, Willams deserted the boat and begged permission to stay at the Allen House.

The Allens took him in, and for three or four years the boy was clothed and fed and schooled. The bright lad had a good voice, and Mr. Allen paid for the boy's music lessons. Williams finally went to New York where he married.Allen was active with Honesdale Masonic Lodge.

He died March 7, 1875 at age 56. His sons Martin and William then managed the hotel, until 1878 when Martin became sole proprietor.

Several owners

Martin Allen, who remained single, managed Honesdale Iron Works, became postmaster and was involved in other civic concerns. In 1905, Allen leased the hotel to Frank Crissman, and then to George Brandon. Farmers & Mechanics Bank acquired the property in 1915. Bank trustee John Krantz managed the hotel for several years. The bank sold the Allen in 1922 to Charles McDonald and William Buckhart. Krantz then bought the former Dimmick residence across the street and started the Park Hotel.

Martin Allen continued to live at the hotel. He was 79 at his death in 1923.

Frederick Coyne ran the hotel 10 years until his death in 1942, followed by his son-in-law Thomas Hosie who operated it for about 30 years using the name Hotel Allen. It was regarded as a fashionable place and celebrated night spot. It had a popular restaurant and bar. James Bressett had the hotel afterwards. George Petto took it over in 1977 for a year and a half before the hotel was lost.

In the mid-70's the old Allen hotel was affixed with a large neon sign on the corner spelling out "MOTOR INN."

The writer recalls there being a murder trial going on at the courthouse in that time frame, and the jury was sequestered at the Allen hotel. He watched a sheriff deputy march the jurors to the park one summer evening where they tossed a flying disc.

Tragic end

Immense tragedy befell Petto's Allen Inn (also called Allen Motor Inn) in the wee hours of Sunday morning, November 5, 1978. Fire spread fast through the interior, trapping residents inside. Twelve residents perished.

Area consciousness was still singed by a disastrous fire on October 19, 1971 at the Gieger Nursing Home just outside Honesdale. Fifteen elderly residents died there. Robert F. Jennings, who was Wayne County Coroner, investigated both incidents and ruled each as arson.

Jennings labeled the old Allen hotel a "fire trap" in court testimony a month before the fire. There was no sprinkler system. The hotel was reduced to a concrete shell.

A resident of the hotel was later arrested for starting the fire. He was later acquitted of the November 5 fire but sentenced to 5-10 years in state prison for a fire set one month earlier, at the hotel.

This article originally appeared on Tri-County Independent: LOCAL HISTORY: Recalling Honesdale's grand Hotel Allen