lancaster

Lancaster County

Site Name:

Thonsville Site (36LA227)

Borough, Township:

Lancaster County

Author:

Wade Catts wcatts@johnmilnerassociates.com

Representing:

John Milner Associates, Inc.

Date of Site:

1850-1900

Project Sponsor:

Pennsylvania Department of Transportation, District 8-0

In 1852 German immigrant Charles Thon purchased 'Prospect Hill,' a small lot overlooking the Conestoga River southwest of Lancaster. Eccentric, Justice of the Peace, school teacher, map publisher, and ultimately pauper, 'Squire Thon' built a 'peculiar cottage' in the style of the 'castlelated buildings' of Europe, known throughout the area as Thon’s Cottage.

Archeologists with John Milner Associates, Inc. (JMA) conducted Phase I and II archeological investigations at the site along Wabank Road uncovered the remains of this Gothic Revival cottage, bringing to light the remarkable history of this unusual man and his unusual building.

Archeological remains consisted of a large cellar hole, stone-arched cellar, brick-lined cistern, and late a nineteenth-century surface midden. Archeological evidence of the peculiar, castlelated cottage included the remains of three turret or tower foundations, red-painted stones, and burnt architectural debris. Following Thon’s occupation, which ended in financial ruin, the property was the home of a series of tenants, the last of whom was Christian Ketterman. Thon’s Cottage was destroyed by fire circa 1890-1903, and was not rebuilt.

Lancaster County
Site Name:	Thonsville Site (36LA227)
Borough, Township:	Lancaster County
Author:	Wade Catts wcatts@johnmilnerassociates.com
Representing:	John Milner Associates, Inc.
Date of Site:	1850-1900
Project Sponsor:	Pennsylvania Department of Transportation, District 8-0
In 1852 German immigrant Charles Thon purchased 'Prospect Hill,' a small lot overlooking the Conestoga River southwest of Lancaster. Eccentric, Justice of the Peace, school teacher, map publisher, and ultimately pauper, 'Squire Thon' built a 'peculiar cottage' in the style of the 'castlelated buildings' of Europe, known throughout the area as Thon’s Cottage. Archeologists with John Milner Associates, Inc. (JMA) conducted Phase I and II archeological investigations at the site along Wabank Road uncovered the remains of this Gothic Revival cottage, bringing to light the remarkable history of this unusual man and his unusual building. Archeological remains consisted of a large cellar hole, stone-arched cellar, brick-lined cistern, and late a nineteenth-century surface midden. Archeological evidence of the peculiar, castlelated cottage included the remains of three turret or tower foundations, red-painted stones, and burnt architectural debris. Following Thon’s occupation, which ended in financial ruin, the property was the home of a series of tenants, the last of whom was Christian Ketterman. Thon’s Cottage was destroyed by fire circa 1890-1903, and was not rebuilt.