MEADVILLE Home offers season display

Each room has a theme assembled with meticulous detail.
By REBECCA SLOAN
VINDICATOR CORRESPONDENT
MEADVILLE, Pa. -- If you haven't caught the holiday spirit yet and are searching for a magical way to usher in the yuletide season, take a trip to the Baldwin-Reynolds House in nearby Meadville, Pa.
Every two years, the Meadville Garden Club pulls out all the stops and transforms this elegant antebellum mansion into an Eden of old-fashioned Christmas charm and enchantment.
This year's Garden Club display is titled "Yuletide Traditions," and tours are available from noon until 8 p.m. Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays through Dec. 8. The cost is $3 for adults and $1 for children.
During tours, visitors will wander through three floors decked out in high style with live evergreen trees, yards of glistening ribbon and unique tree trimmings handcrafted by garden club members.
Each room has its own theme, and each display has been assembled with meticulous detail.
For example, the mansion's parlor is ready for a Christmas wedding, and a creamy antique gown waits near a stately evergreen draped with white toile, baby's breath and snowflake ornaments.
An upstairs bedroom has been transformed into a "Crystal Forest," and dainty, handmade fairy ornaments dangle among icicles and beaded garland.
In the children's bedroom, toys and storybooks hang from the boughs of a petite evergreen, and in the law library, a mighty blue spruce is dressed with stars and drums to represent Victorian patriotism.
The sun-drenched solarium emits tranquility with its potted ivy topiaries, live wreaths and sweeping views of the mansion's manicured grounds.
You'll hear carols
As your eyes enjoy the opulence, your ears will also be pleased since in every decorated room, local musicians have assembled to sing and play beloved carols.
But even if it weren't Christmastime, the Baldwin-Reynolds house would still be breathtaking.
The moment you turn into the winding blacktop drive and get your first glimpse of this imposing antebellum house sitting high on a rolling Pennsylvania hill, you'll catch your breath.
Built in 1843 for Henry Baldwin, a former U.S. Supreme Court Justice, the home's interior is a dazzling mix of sparkling crystal, gilded mirrors and gleaming mahogany that reflect the grace and refinement of a bygone era.
Some of the furnishings are original to the house, and many of the pieces have interesting histories.
For instance, a massive mirror in the entry hall boasts a 24-karat gold frame.
The mirror was made in Europe in 1812 and found its way to Pennsylvania after crossing the Atlantic on a clipper ship.
The mansion's "satin glass" entry doors were made in 1844, and the intricate, frosty designs are one-of-a-kind.
More history
And the house itself has its own stories.
Baldwin died only seven months after the home was completed, and for a time, the property was used as a girl's academy.
In 1847, Baldwin's nephew, William Reynolds, a former Meadville mayor, acquired the home. After that, the estate belonged to the Reynolds family until 1963 when the Crawford County Historical Society purchased it.
When it's not bejeweled in holiday splendor, the home is open as a museum May through September.
Also included on the 3 1/2-acre grounds are a spring-fed pond, an herb garden, a circa 1875 icehouse, circa 1805 tannery vat and a rural doctor's office.
The doctor's office once belonged to a country doctor who practiced medicine in the Meadville area during the early 1900s.
The office includes all of his original equipment and provides visitors with a firsthand look at how medicine has evolved over the years.
XFor more information on the Baldwin-Reynolds House, call the house at (814) 333-9882 or the Crawford County Convention and Visitor's Bureau at (800) 332-2338. No photography or videography is permitted during the "Yuletide Traditions" Christmas tours, and there are no public restrooms.