A Mansion in the Wilderness . . .
Baker Mansion was originally home to ironmaster Elias Baker and his family. Baker purchased the nearby Alleghany Furnace in 1836 in partnership with his cousin Roland Diller. Elias brought his wife, Hetty, and their two sons, David Woods and Sylvester, from Lancaster County to what was described as a “tolerable good mansion house” near the furnace. Shortly after they arrived, a daughter, Anna, was born. A fourth child, Margaretta, was born in 1839, but she died of diphtheria at the age of two.
In 1844, Elias Baker bought out his cousin’s share in the furnace. That same year, he contracted with Baltimore architect Robert Cary Long, Jr. to design him a new home. Work got underway on the mansion in 1845 but many problems and delays retarded its completion until 1849. The total cost was about $15,000. The cost overruns, coupled with falling prices for iron, pushed Mr. Baker to the brink of financial ruin before the home was finished. Still, Baker, ever the determined businessman, pressed ahead and achieved his dream house. He would enjoy it for fifteen years until his death in 1864. Hetty Baker remained a widow until her death in 1900.
David Woods Baker married Sarah Tuthill in 1851 and they had one daughter, Louise, in 1852. However, Woods was killed in a steamboat boiler explosion just two and a half weeks after the birth of his daughter. Louise later married Ernst Beckman and returned with him to live in his native Sweden. Sylvester and Anna both remained single and lived in the mansion until their deaths. At the time of Anna's death, she was the wealthiest resident of Pennsylvania. After Anna died in 1914, the mansion was closed until 1922, when the Blair County Historical Society leased the building and opened it as a museum. With the community’s support for a major fundraising campaign, the society was able to purchase the house in 1941. Since then, the mansion has served as the Blair County Historical Society’s headquarters and has become beloved community landmark.
This is a 4 stage multi cache. Stages 1-3 are virtual stages. Final/fourth stage is a camo tape covered PB jar. You will need to gather info at each of the first three stages to get to the fourth. Please take the time to take in each stage and the history that it represents to the Altoona area.
Stage 1: Home of Elias Baker and family. Locate the blue historical marker at stage 1 to gather info to get to stage 2.
Stage 2 coords: N 40 29.5AB W 78 24.4CD
A = Take second year listed and subtract the first year listed on the sign.
B = Last digit of the second year listed on the sign.
C = Take the last listed year on the sign. Deduct the fourth digit from the third digit.
D = Take the fourth year listed on the sign. Add 2 to the third digit in that year.
Stage 2: The reason Elias Baker came to the area. The Alleghany Furnace.
Locate another blue historical marker at stage 2 to gather info to get to stage 3.
Stage 3 coords: N 40 31.3EF W 78 24.GH5
E = Third digit of the first year listed.
F = Take the second year listed. Add the 3rd & 4th digits.
G = Fourth digit of the first year listed.
H = Take the last year listed. Add the 1st & 4th digits
Stage 3: The final resting place of the Baker family. The Baker family headstone.
Locate the family marker to gather info to get to the final stage.
Final Stage coords: N 40 31.3JK W 78 24.L8M
J = Anna was born June 9, 183?
K = Hetty was born Oct ?, 1803
L = Anna died Dec 2?, 1914
M = Hetty died May 1?, 1900
