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Historic Parkinson Farm torn down in Morris Township

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MORRIS – The Robert Parkinson Farm was built a little more than 50 years after the Declaration of Independence was written. It stood through the Civil War, the Great Depression, the Cold War and all the other large and small events that have transpired in close to two centuries.

But the Parkinson Farm wasn’t sturdy enough to withstand the equipment that tore into it last month and brought it to the ground.

“It was originally a hog or sheep farm,” said Dale Leach, a resident who lives nearby. “Throughout the years it was well-maintained and kept,” but it had been vacant for about the last three years, he noted.

Its house and barn built in 1830 on the edge of an outpost called Concord (it now goes by the name Old Concord Village), the Parkinson Farm had been on the National Register of Historic Places and had been deemed a landmark by the Washington County History and Landmarks Foundation. For the last couple of years, it has been owned by Consol Energy, which had struck an occupancy agreement with a man identified as Eugene Scherich. Consol said they were not made aware that Scherich wanted to tear the property down.

“Although we currently own the property where the structure was located, we were not responsible for the demolition,” said Zachery Smith, a spokesman for Consol Energy. “This property is under and subject to a private agreement with a third party.”

Along with being demolished on short notice, Scherich did not get permits from Morris Township to tear down the property, according to Supervisor Rob Sanders. He said the township was not contemplating any legal action against Scherich because it did not “have a dog in the fight.”

Scherich did not respond to requests for comment. A West Finley resident, he is described in a 2018 Commonwealth Court memorandum as “a businessperson who purchases real estate and mineral rights.”

The Parkinson Farm was one of almost 100 sites in Washington County on the National Register of Historic Places. Other sites include the Donora-Webster Bridge, the LeMoyne Crematory in North Franklin Township, the David Bradford House in downtown Washington and the Bethel African American Episcopal Church in Monongahela. The Parkinson Farm was added to the National Register in 2002.

Despite having received that designation, the properties can still be torn down, according to Howard Pollman, a spokesman for the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission. No one would need to “consult with our office to make changes to the property – even if the property is on the National Register, and even if that change is demolition.”

Nevertheless, the loss of the property stings for Sandy Mansmann, the coordinator of the Washington County History and Landmarks Foundation.

“It is very disappointing that there seems to be no real protection for historic properties that are important to Washington County heritage,” she said.

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