Historic house in Pennsylvania, United States
United States historic place
The Joseph Sinnott Mansion, also known in Gaelic as "Rathalla," meaning "home of the chieftain on the highest hill" is the Main Building at Rosemont College. It is an historic home that is located on the campus of Rosemont College in Rosemont, Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, was originally a part of the Ashbridge estate, and was called 'Rosemont Farm'.
History and architectural features
In 1889, Joseph F. Sinnott, a Whiskey distiller, purchased forty acres of land, and built his summer home there between the years of 1889 and 1891. Designed by Hazlehurst & Huckel, its construction cost $150,000.[2] Edward Hazelhurst and Samuel Huckel were both fellows of the American Institute of Architects [3]
Rathalla is a 2+1⁄2-story, thirty-two-room, stone building that sits on a brick foundation and was designed in a Renaissance Revival/Châteauesque style.[4]
This mansion features a high, steep-sided, slate covered hipped roof, six decorated chimneys, numerous dormer windows, turrets, and stone carvings including gargoyles. The exterior of the home is laden with fifty-two carved limestone images. The stained glass window above the staircase features the Sinnott family's coat of arms, containing the motto "Ama Deum et Serva Mandata." This crest consists of a black swan above a striped wreath, with a gold crown around its neck and an arrow piercing its heart. Beneath this swan is a coat of arms with three more black swan. The motto is written on a scroll that drapes beneath the images.[5] Hazelhurst and Huckel built the mansion in the style of the Loire Valley homes in France. This style was in vogue at the time, as high-end clients such as the Vanderbilts in New York also fashioned their mansions in a chateaux style during the same decade.[6]
The property was purchased for $250,000 by the Sisters, Society of the Holy Child of Jesus (SHCJ) in 1921 [7] and later sold for $1 to Rosemont College in 1927.[5]
As the Main Building of Rosemont College, Rathalla has seen its fair share of elite guests. Notable visitors have included John F. Kennedy in 1953, whose sister, Patricia, graduated from Rosemont College during the 1940s,[8] and Joseph Biden as the 1974 commencement speaker. Both Biden and Kennedy were senators when they visited Rosemont and Rathalla.[9] Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen was a frequent visitor of Rathalla and Rosemont College, speaking at more than thirty graduation ceremonies.[10]
Rathalla was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1980.[1][11] Rathalla is said to have historic significance because it embodies the era in which it was built.[5]
The Main Building at Rosemont College can be seen in the films "The Sterling Chase" and "Tenure," as filming took place on the college's campus.[12]
In 1999 The board of trustees at Rosemont College updated the mechanical systems in Rathalla, their Main Building. New wiring, heating and air conditioning, modern plumbing, an elevator, chair lift, and a handicapped accessible bedroom were all added. The construction company, Pancoast and Clifford Inc., was awarded the "Best Restoration/ Renovation Award" which is given annually by the Associated Builders and Contractors, Inc. in recognition of their feat of renovation.[5]
