Group focuses on local property
Moon Lorn was the longtime residence of the late artist Malcolm Parcell.
Preservationist Erin Hammerstedt speaks during a public meeting about Moon Lorn, a former artists retreat and former home of the late Malcolm Parcell, an internationally renowned artist.
Bob Von Scio speaks during a public meeting about preserving Moon Lorn, a former artists retreat and former home of the late Malcolm Parcell, an internationally renowned artist.
SYCAMORE – Erin Hammerstedt saw Moon Lorn for the second time Wednesday and is intrigued by the crumbling property of the late Malcolm Parcell, an internationally renowned artist.
Soon afterward, she fielded a pitch from a small group of local residents interested in preserving Parcell’s home and surrounding 14 acres.
“Ideally, we’d like to keep the property intact,” said Hammerstedt, preservation services director for Preservation Pennsylvania, a nonprofit that, according to its website, is “dedicated to the protection of historically and architecturally significant resources.”
She and Preservation’s program assistant, Julia Chain, navigated 250 miles from Harrisburg to Greene County on Wednesday to meet with three Moon Lorn supporters in what amounted to an information session for both sides. They gathered at the home of Bob Von Scio in the Sycamore section of Morris Township, about four miles from the erstwhile Parcell domicile in Prosperity, Washington County.
One of those area residents, who requested anonymity, is interested in buying or becoming the caretaker of Moon Lorn, where he also would like to reside and relocate his business.
But for now, it is not on the market. CONSOL Energy has owned it since 2014, when it purchased the land, home, adjacent buildings and mineral rights for $270,000. CONSOL has done no longwall mining there as previously planned.
In the meantime, Moon Lorn has deteriorated into a forlorn state. The house has been unoccupied for 2 1/2 years. Thieves and vandals have stolen copper plumbing and wiring, furniture and a stained-glass window; broken doors and locks; scrawled graffiti on walls and dumped trash, prompting CONSOL to step up security there last fall.
It isn’t the idyllically rural place where Parcell (1896-1987) painted and lived for nearly 60 years; where it served as a residence/studio for artists in the decade following Parcell’s death; and where a family lived for 15 years.
There has been renewed interest in reviving the property. In November, Sandy Mansmann, coordinator of the Washington County History & Landmarks Foundation, nominated it for the 2017 Pennsylvania at Risk list of endangered historic properties. Preservation Pennsylvania compiles that list and will announce the selected sites Feb. 6.
“Part of our concern is that it has not been determined historic,” Hammerstedt said. “Preservation laws don’t apply to this property. My goal is to come up with a feasible plan and pitch it to CONSOL. Preservation Pennsylvania would love to reach out, tell them we have a potential solution for this.”
One potential solution, she said, is “to find a group willing to invest in this property.”
Von Scio, the host, said almost “everybody who has an interest in (Moon Lorn) is in this room. A lot depends on the price tag required. Depending on the initial cost, Sara (his wife) and I might be willing to invest.”
The guest who withheld his name said others, especially artists, could be interested in purchasing the site – if it becomes available.
Hammerstedt listed several other options, some that would involve tax credits.
Moon Lorn, she added, has another, lesser-known feature beyond art and culture. She said there are two recorded archaeological sites on the property, one a hearth.
“Little is known about these sites,” Hammerstedt said in a follow-up email. “But they have the potential to yield important information and may be significant.”
Moon Lorn making the at-risk list Feb. 6 would be a positive for its supporters. That, however, would be one of what may likely be many steps to reviving this location.
“This is a long trip, and this may never happen,” the unnamed guest said. “Bringing Moon Lorn back to a livable condition is the question here.”
Yet he is a among a group that is trying.