About Zehr Retreat

Architectural Character

Zehr Retreat, 142 Shaw avenue, Lewistown, PA, was built around 1900. The corner lot location, wrap around porch, three bays, multi roof design & tall windows lead to its visual appeal. 

This Folk Victorian restoration/revitalization is ongoing. If you enjoy old home restoration, please follow and subscribe to our video channel - our channel also includes two other properties in a different area. For our Lewistown home, click onto the Playlists towards the top of the youtube page, (under the subscribe button), then click on the magnifying glass/search button and type in “Zehr Retreat”. Our videos pertaining to Lewistown, PA, should come up, you can scroll down thru to find playlists.

We, Amy and Brad Zehr, purchased this property, 142 Shaw avenue, Lewistown, PA 17044, on May 22, 2014, from the U. S. Bank National Association as Trustee for the Pennsylvania Housing Finance Agency.
Nearby neighbors have told us that our house was vacant for quite a long time before we purchased it in 2014.

After we purchased this house, our daughter and ex-son-in-law lived in our house. Today, the home is our “home away from home.”

Brad was born and raised on the edge of the Adirondack's, in Lowvile, NY. He grew up on a dairy farm. Brad worked for a carpentry crew during his school years and also had a great uncle who taught him fine woodworking skills. Brad and I met during our college years at Alfred, NY. Brad built our home in Athens, PA, where we raised our two children. In the past, Brad has been employed as a research lab technician for the Guthrie Foundation of Research in Sayre, PA, as an analytical chemist at Osram Sylvania in Towanda, PA, for marketing at Guthrie in Sayre, PA, and as a Circuit Librarian for the Guthrie. He was also employed at Granite Works in Waverly, NY. He is currently working at Secrist Lumber in Sayre, PA. and is also self-employed, zehr.net, a website related service.

I, Amy, grew up in Athens, PA. I was employed in the past as a registered nurse on a medical/surgical floor of the Robert Packer Hospital in Sayre, PA and also as a Charge Nurse for the Sayre House, in Sayre, PA. I chose to be a "stay at home Mom" and also to have home schooled our two children. As of 2014, I am a volunteer board member and researcher of the Waverly Historical Society (Waverly, Tioga county, NY). I enjoy spending time on the restoration / revitalization of this property and researching its history.

We stay very busy with the revitalization and restoration of another property in Waverly, NY, where we have been working on our Zehr Estate. Our revitalization / restoration projects, both in Lewistown, PA and Waverly, NY, are both definitely a “labor of love” and we work at them as we have the time and money to do so, therefore it is taking a very long time to “bring back”  both properties.  "Slow and Steady!"

Part of the Zehr Family of Sites

DiscoverNYS.com is created by Brad Zehr and is part of a growing collection of Zehr websites dedicated to history, creativity, nature, health, craftsmanship, and lifelong learning.

The project reflects a simple belief: there is always something new to discover, even in places we think we already know.

Podcast

Available on Linked Website or Apple Podcast ...rss feed link on site under Podcast

Architectural Style Is Zehr Retreat
Architecture of Zehr Retreat
Exploring the Lewistown Region: Nature, Geology, and the Landscape That Shapes It
Folk Victorian vs. Eastlake: What’s the Difference?
History of 142 Shaw Avenue
Marian B. Stimely
Russler - Manbeck
The Community Value of Restoring a Victorian Home