A few months ago I posted this describing a possible trend toward people buying Buffalo's large mansions to convert them back to single occupancy houses for their families. I talked about four recent conversions in that story. Some commentors rightly pointed out that four houses do not make a trend. But what of this? A few months ago I attended the Linwood Avenue Walk of Homes. This is a spectacular tour held every other year offering a rare opportunity to see the inside some of the magnificent houses on this grand street as well as on some houses on nearby blocks. Of the fifteen or so houses open to the public only three or four were currently used for something other than single family occupancy. Most had been recently renovated, to a very high level, for use as single-family residences (one tour stop was also at nearby ArtSpace). A decade ago a very large majority of these houses would have been split into apartments or used as office space. One of the tour houses had a spectacular backyard reminiscent of a high-end resort. Perhaps the most interesting stop was a house on Delaware Avenue that had also recently been converted back to single-family use.
Yes, I said Delaware Avenue and single-family house in the same sentence. The magnificent house pictured here was recently featured as The Junior League Show House (too bad if you missed that tour too). The 8,600 square foot mansion was built in 1906 for Asa Silverthorne, a local lumber merchant. It has eight bedrooms and eight bathrooms, several elaborate fireplaces, and extensive, extravagant woodwork among many other luxuries. After the Show House event the current owners took control and renovated the house for use as their own residence. Despite its size the house is warm and homey. The owners have great pride in their new home and use it extensively for the betterment of the community. They regularly sponsor charity events in the house, some of which have raise hundreds of thousands of dollars for worthy causes. So thanks to the owners of this beauty and to the benefit they bring to all WNYers as caretakers of this precious piece of Buffalo's heritage.