Fire Hits 200-Year-Old Pennsylvania Inn
By Gianna Palmer | Online Only | June 25, 2008
The June 15 fire gutted the Old Stone Inn.
Credit: Tim Wynkoop
On the morning of June 15, fire ravaged one of the oldest buildings in Glendon, Pa., known as the Old Stone Inn. The blaze, which started at 5:00 am, was declared under control by 6:15 a.m, according to John Price, deputy fire chief and fire marshal of Easton, Pa. The cause of the blaze remains under investigation.
"I wouldn't call it destroyed, but the building is not inhabitable," Price says. "Unfortunately, the place had been through quite a bit of disrepair in recent years. It had not been being maintained."
At the time of the blaze, the building, owned by Mario Russo, housed nine residents in four apartments. None of the occupants, which included two children, were hurt in the fire. The Red Cross has provided food, clothing and shelter to the displaced families.
According to Price, the Old Stone Inn was actually two attached buildings, one in the front and one in the rear. Price has consulted various historical sources, including a reference from 1877 that states that the inn's kitchen was once a place of refuge from Native Americans.
The Old Stone Inn had survived three previous fires throughout the years, according to local newspapers, but none as severe as the one this month, which led to the collapse of the second floor. Local historians have told Price that the front building dates back to the 1820s or 1840s. The older building, which dates to the 1750s, remains intact despite smoke and water damage.
Now the future of the inn is uncertain. Though the roof and second-floor exterior walls of one building had to be demolished this week because they were unstable, the roof and all four walls of the older rear building are still standing. It is up to the property owner to determine the next steps.
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