Holiday House Tour No. 2, 'Belle of Charlotte Street'

Photos by Evan Brandt

482 N. Charlotte St., Pottstown, 'The Belle of Charlotte Street,' was my second stop on my journey along Pottstown's Historic Holiday House Tour.

Even the front porch is an architectural wonder.

Blogger's Note: This is the second in an undetermined number of posts (I'm making this up as I go along) from the Dec. 8, Historic Holiday House Tour in Pottstown.

After leaving the Freese household (see previous post), my next stop was easy enough as it was next door, at 482 N. Charlotte St.

Built in 1864 for Mr. and Mrs. William Young, a prominent Pottstown businessman and lawyer who not only bought one of the first Fords in town, he also opened the first Ford dealership.

(He also build the Freese house next door in 1890).

According to the house tour guide, this home was once known as the "Belle of Charlotte Street" and one step inside makes it easy to see why.

As we noted yesterday, it was owned, at one point, by Jerry Lenfest, the founder of Comcast. Who knew our beloved Comcast all started in Pottstown?

Anyway, when he was going to sell it, Barry Robertson and his wife Nina, who lived next door in the house we profiled yesterday, purchased it to ensure it did not get cut up into apartments as so many grand Pottstown homes did in the 1970s and 1980s as the industrial employment base closed up shop and moved overseas.

The Robertsons have moved on and the home is owned by Michael DiIorio, who has taken the restoration of the home to remarkable new levels.

It has stained glass all over the house, seven working fireplaces and, DiIorio took pains to point out, the original William Morris wallpaper.

The woodwork, carpeting and overall detailed craftsmanship were matched only by DiIorio's decorating and furnishing of the house in the appropriate style.

And, like his neighbors next door, DiIorio permitted those wandering about his house to go upstairs to the second floor as well.

Let's have a look:

The stained glass in the front door as seen from the inside. As DiIorio pointed out, the dragonfly theme persists throughout the house.

The front hall.

Like the home next door, also built by William Young, the DiIorio house has a charming little nook under the stairs.

DiIorio's interest in his house is such that he had on display, a copy of a Mercury First Look at History article from February, 2008, by Mike Snyder about Robert Young, the building of the house; just one reason why Snyder was the perfect choice to be the trolley tour guide to these homes; he has written about half their builders.

The home's owner, Michael DiIorio, comfortably ensconced before one of his many fireplaces.

The dining room table was lushly set for a party of eight.

The tree in the family room.

A panoramic shot of the family room (isn't technology wonderful?)

Now, let's head upstairs.

The second floor hallway features a Tiffany ceiling lamp and an interesting wooden architectural feature at the top of the stairs.

One of the several large bedrooms serves as DiIorio's office.

The master bedroom.

The first room of the master bathroom features a walk-in shower ....

... a pair of truly unique sinks ....

... and a luxurious whirlpool tub. 

Well that's it for today's house. Tomorrow, we venture across the street to 541 N. Charlotte St. and the home of Sarah Pinard. See you tomorrow.