John Parke House, 345 Main Street, Parkesburg, Chester County, PA

Significance: This small 19th century frame house over a fully raised basement of stuccoed stone was built circa 1846. One the first floor, two rooms had walls decorated with painted murals and trompe-d'oeil woodwork and trim. One of the walls includes a mural showing the house circa 1850; it is in the collection of Herbert Shiffer, Chester County, Pennsylvania, a former owner of the house. The rest of the walls are in the William Penn Memorial Museum, Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. At the date of this report, the walls are in storage.
Survey number: HABS PA-1310
Building/structure dates: ca. 1846 Initial Construction
Building/structure dates: after 1850 Subsequent Work
Building/structure dates: 1977 Demolished