picture of the log-stone house,
picture of farm from the road
picture of the log-stone house,
picture of farm from the road
The Mechling Homestead located near Hosensack, Lehigh County, Pennsylvania on the King`s Highway has been in the Mechling family for over 250 years. Hosensack means pants` pocket because there is only one way in and you have to go out the same way you went in. Located in the beautiful rolling hills is the farm that Theobald Mechling received in a land grant from Thomas and Richard Penn, proprietors of the province of Pennsylvania. Theobald took out his first warrant 29 June 1734 for 125 acres. He built a log cabin which is still standing and occupied today, later incorporated into a larger home. This log portion represents the earliest one room log cabin with a loft. It contains the heavy summer beam with the smaller horizontal beams. These are exposed and show the beautiful hand-hewed workmanship. It now has a new random width oak flooring. The original floor is under the new. It has a massive walk-in fireplace that had folding doors. The opening is now partially blocked in with stone to conserve heat. The original mantle crosses the entire space.
Some time around 1800 a three story field stone addition was added on the South facing side. There is a spiral staircase going from the basement to the attic. The last addition was built in the 1950`s and includes a kitchen, den and bath. All three sections have a slate shingle roof.
Sometime after Theobald`s children were older, he built a second home, a two story, five bedroom log house. In about 1875 it was remodeled into a Victorian home with white siding and a slate roof. This structure has been said to be the largest log home in the area. Some of the characteristics used to date the house are: 1. the fact that the cellar was under the main part of the house but not under the kitchen which is on the North-west; 2. the attic has the original tongue and groove floor; 3. beams in the attic were marked with Roman numerals used during construction; 4. summer beam in the basement is completely exposed; and 5. there were spaces called paling in the ceiling of the basement for mud and straw insulation to keep the dampness in the basement.
In front of the home is the summer kitchen with red tile roof, also used as a place to cure the meat. It has a very unique beehive oven.
picture of the Pennsylvania German barn with two hexes
The farm includes 214 acres which have been put in different crops, Wine-sap apple and Bartlett pear orchards and a herd of registered Guernseys at different times. The main barn is stone and frame bank with slate roof, a silo and space for 30 head of cattle. It was built in 1906 after the first one burned.
In 1987 the Mechling Historical Association was reorganized. We meet every two years for a family reunion. The next reunion will be held August 1-3, 2008 at Quality Inn Royale, Kittanning, Pennsylvania. There will be more information in the next newsletter. For more information contact me at Wanda Mechling Gantt`s E-mail or wgantt@vnet.net or Paul Smith at PDSMITHMSGTRET@escapees.com.
The Mechling Historical Association membership is open to descendants of Theobald Mechling and his brother, Jacob who came to America in 1728, and all others intersted in this surname with variant spellings of: MECHLIN, MACKLIN, MECKLING, MACHLIN, MACKLING, MAECHLING, etc. Please join and enjoy our four newsletters each year by writing a check for $10.00 payable to Mechling Historical Association and send it to Treasurer: Jennifer Wallace R.R. 3, Box 3280, Saylorsburg, PA 18353-9630
A newsletter, The Mechling/Mechlin/Macklin Newsletter, is published in March, June, September and December of each year. You can contact the editor, Caral Mechling Bennett at cmechlingb@aol.com.
Are you related to the Mechling family? Dorothy Hallarn Mercy has written seven volumes on the descendants of Theobald Mechling who arrived in the United States in 1728. The 4th volume is about Theobald`s brother, Jacob Mechling and Mechlings, that she can't trace back to their origin. For information on purchasing her books please contact Allen Mechling of Mechling Associates, Inc. at info@mechlingbooks.com or 203 Pine Tract Road, Butler, PA 16001, phone(800) 941-3735.
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