ENOLA, Pa. — Commercial development in Cumberland County could force a historic landmark to move sooner than expected.
Developers want to move the Enola Miller House, located along Rt. 11 and Rt. 15 in East Pennsboro Township, 1/3 of a mile uphill to create a drainage pond for some new development. Several developers and investors have plans to turn the 50-acre land it's on into apartments, office buildings, and other businesses.
The developers appear to be cooperating with the Historical Society of East Pennsboro Township. It wants the Enola Miller House to be preserved. Its biggest concern is making sure it doesn't get damaged during the move.
Believed to be about 180 years old, the Enola Miller House is the most historic house in East Pennsboro Township.
"It's a hidden gem in the County," Dr. Lindsay Varner, Community Outreach Director of the Cumberland County Historical Society, said. "People recognize it because they drive by it, and they see this beautiful house but they don't always know the story."
Its story starts with a little girl name Enola Miller. She grew up in the town. The rail yard across the street was named after her. So was the town.
"You can go across the country and people who study trains and train yards know the Enola Yards," Varner said. "And I think very few people know she was a person."
Several years ago, after passing through a number of ownerships, the plan was to demolish the House to make room for development. The Historical Society stepped in, and both parties came to an agreement to move it instead.
"It's a done deal but we're basically at the point where we want to make sure the House is preserved and when it's relocated it's in good condition," George DeMartyn, a board member of the Historical Society of East Pennsboro Township, said. "As good as it is now."
Back in July, the Enola Miller Home was added to the Cumberland County Historical Society's Register of Historic Places. It's only the second structure in the Township to receive this designation.
The developers told FOX43 the plan is to relocate the house and donate it to the Historical Society of East Pennsboro Township After that, the Society plans to restore it, turn it into a museum, and make it the home of its new office.
"This is our biggest endeavor," DeMartyn said. "But at the same time this is our most historic house. So that's our job as a historic society is to preserve this house."
"We're losing historic properties all across the region and they tell a very important story of who we are, and where we've come from," Varner said. "It's very easy to lose identity when you don't have a place to really be thinking about our past."
No final plan has been submitted to the Township. The Historical Society of East Pennsboro Township believes the House could be moved as early this spring. It said the last time someone lived in the House was 5 years ago.