"Million Dollar House"

Eber Culver, a popular architect who designed many of Williamsport's homes, designed the Mahlon L. Fisher residence in 1865. It was considered his greatest architectural accomplishment. He liked it so much that it was featured on the back of his business cards that were given to all of his clients (1).

Mr. Fisher's home was nicknamed "The Million Dollar House" (3). It was a detailed Italianate style villa with gorgeous towers in both front and back. The home was built in three separate sections connected by one hallway on the second floor (1).

The front section consisted of the entrance hall and two drawing rooms. The center housed the main staircase, the dining room, and the library. The back section held the kitchen, the pantry and the back stairway. The house was made of brick made to look like blocks of polished stone. The walls were of 16 inch thick plaster, the ceilings are 18 feet high, and the house included stained glass windows, black marble fireplaces, and mahogany stairways (1).

The Mahlon L. Fisher residence was the first in the city to be heated by steam with radiators designed by Isaac Barton. It was also the first house in Williamsport with an interior bathroom (1).

Fisher came to Williamsport from Flemington, NJ in 1855. He became affiliated with members of the powerful lumbering families and eventually became a wealthy dealer himself.