Archi-Ted-Ture: Washington Hall Building

Washington Hall on the corner of George & King built in 1849

The second building in my "building-a-bear" series was very nearly my home. When Anthony and Heidi were looking for a downtown apartment they looked at a loft on the 4th floor of this grand old structure located on the corner of South George and West King.

Built in 1849 the building has, as you might imagine, a long and varied history. The building originally housed a fraternal organization known as the Independent Order of Odd Fellows and so in the early days it was called IOOF Hall. During the Civil War the building was used as a hospital for wounded Confederate officers from the battlefields of Gettysburg, about 30 miles west. Since the captured rebel officers were held there it gives the building the interesting status of a prisoner of war camp.


Drawing of Washington Hall

Later the IOOF Hall housed a theatre for live performances on the second floor which was called Washington Hall. In the 1980's the Susquehanna Pfaltzgraff company renovated the building by making 12 loft style apartments on the upper 3 floors and fitting out retail space on the ground floor. The space is perfect for lofts thanks, in large part, to the nearly twenty foot ceilings on each level which allow for a lofted bedroom to be built almost as if it is a whole separate level.

If this building had a freight elevator there is every chance that it would be where I was sitting and blogging right now. Somehow the thought of carrying all their furniture up 8 modern stories worth of steps kept Anthony and Heidi from picking this one despite all its evident charms. Another small strike against it is the fact that it doesn't look like there's been much updating since the Pfaltzgraff renovation in the 80's.