LEWISBURG, Pa. — Items from the former Packwood House Museum in Lewisburg will be liquidated in a series of upcoming auctions, the Sacred Heart of Jesus Parish announced Monday.
The Parish received the assets of the Fetherston Trust, which included the Packwood House Museum, in September as part of the last will and testament of Edith Fetherston, the parish said.
Proceeds from the auctions, per the wishes of Edith Fetherston, will be used to ensure that Sacred Heart of Jesus Parish "will continue as a beacon of Christian faith and Practice in Union County for generations to come," the parish said.
Online auctions are planned for Friday, Dec. 9 at 6 p.m. and Saturday, Dec. 10 at 9 a.m.
The sale will offer hundreds of 18th to 20th century art, furniture, ceramics, glass, sculpture and more.
"The items offered at auction range in variety and style, creating a magnificent collection from a long-standing community pillar," the parish said.
Item preview days will be Thursday and Friday, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. The items included in these auctions can be previewed in person at the former museum, located at the corner of Market and Water Streets, or by visiting the online auction site.
To register for these online auctions, please visit www.dovetailauctions.com or call 610-350-6845.
Once on the site, please click the “Register on Bidsquare” or “Register on HiBid” links.
Additional in person auctions will be held on Wednesday, Jan. 18 and Thursday, Jan. 19 at Pook & Pook Auctioneers, 463 East Lancaster Ave., Downingtown. Items from the collection will be included in the Americana Sale catalog and will be available to view online at https://pookandpook.com after January 1, 2023.
This auction will include furniture, art, Redware, guns, glassware, ceramics, statues, rugs, quilts, coverlets, WPA models and puppets.
The Fetherston Trust and subsequent Packwood House Museum was established in accord to the wills of John and Edith Fetherston. After living in various locations along the East Coast, the Fetherstons purchased the 27-room building as a retirement home in 1936.
Edith Fetherston, who was born in Lewisburg, was a parishioner of Sacred Heart of Jesus Parish. Upon John and Edith’s deaths in 1962 and 1972, respectively, the home was turned into a museum and opened to the public in 1976.
The museum had experienced decreased attendance for more than a decade and was also negatively affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, leading to its operations permanently closing in October 2020.
As Sacred Heart of Jesus Parish is a separately incorporated entity from the Diocese of Harrisburg, none of the Packwood House Museum assets will be transferred to the Diocese nor can they be used for the Diocese’s Chapter 11 reorganization, the parish said.
