Irish-Townsend House – History

Irish-Townsend House

1229 7th Avenue

New Brighton, PA 15066

 

 

Only a small distance north from Pittsburgh, PA and situated along the Beaver River, the small suburb of New Brighton holds a slew of history practically hidden in plain sight yet is well versed to all locals of not only the town but also the surrounding areas. The town itself dates back to 1838 as its official founding, but the township and its residents were a tight-knit community long before that. However, as the town became official, droves of settlers and immigrants moved into the area, buying property and beginning small businesses throughout this period. The history seems to reflect the morals and livelihoods of its citizens and really showed themselves during the Civil War and acted as a main point along the western Pennsylvania Underground Railroad. Along with some of the more prominent families in the area, the Irish family settled here and eventually showed their true passion for their country as three of their sons fought for the Union and even served as statesman. Even though they moved on following the Civil War, just as noteworthy of a historical figure from the area, the Townsend family purchased the area and, formerly Irish house, adding to its historic value. As time moved on, the house fell under different ownerships but there is something that is said to remain here to this day. Its unsure if this is remnant energies from the former families or just the town itself living up to a moniker of “Living History.”

 

The Past

 

While living in Lisbon, Ohio and making a name for themselves as devout Quakers, the couple of Lydia Irish and William Becke Irish raised four children and lived a happy but business life as William was a prominent member of the town and area. William passed away and Lydia along with her five children migrated east to the small but expanding town of New Brighton overlooking the active Beaver River in order to raise the family in 1855. The beautifully placed property sat above a hilltop and overlooked the entirety of the town and river. The humble, two story stone and brick structure was large enough to accommodate the family of five and the Irish family quickly made friends with other high class residents of the area, most notably the Stantons, Merricks, and the Townsends. 

 

Well before the horrors of the Civil War, the family stayed true to their religious beliefs and truly empowered the Underground Railroad throughout this valley. This was documented by the youngest Irish, Dallas, later in his life as he recalled having full families of former slaves staying in their attic and later helping them into carriages toward freedom in Canada. The family lived happily here until that time when war struck the nation, forcing three of the men into the deadly and brutal conflict of the nation in 1863 while the fourth was serving the state in office.

 

 

As the war began, there was simply too much upkeep for just Lydia and her daughter so they were forced to move on. They ultimately accepted an offer from a family friend of William Penn Townsend in the sum of $4,000. Even though this seemed under-valued, the morals of the family again took stronghold as they knew that the Townsends would take care of the house and make real, long-lasting changes to it. Aside from also raising his family there, and of that upper echelon of society thanks to the ownership of a rivet and wire company in the nearby town of Fallston, William Townsend similarly shared a love of this property and house with the former owners. He held true to his word and did in fact add great change in the form of updating the house with top of the line fixtures and elements but most visibly the large stone wall and the sidewalk constructed of slate.

 

Following a long and happy  life, William passed away inside his home in 1896. After the Townsend family sold the property, the house never truly found another long-time inhabitant. Instead, after a few families and even an apartment owner sold the property from one to another, it finally landed with a loving, caring owner in the New Brighton Historical Society in 2020. These are actually the owners who dubbed the building the Irish-Townsend House after the two faithful and loving families.

 

 

Aside from simple cleaning and trash removal, the historical society has also hired inspectors for full re[orts of any structural or mechanical failures and put in place construction and security plans. During all of this restoration work, there have been a slew of features original to the first iteration which is worth the effort that has already been undertaken since its purchase.

 

Paranormal Experiences

 

Being that the town itself is ripe with history and energy, there’s no doubt that there’s a strong possibility of something being left behind in the Irish-Townsend House. Even though there may be no direct links to the past, aside from the care and love that both the Irish and the Townsend families had for the property and building alike, there seems to be lingering sensations and feelings which some may associate with the supernatural or past stories. Most tend to believe that paranormal activity is associated with more negative energies, tragedies, and death. However, that does not seem to be the case here, rather the energies and activity tend to stem more from love and happiness. 

 

 

When volunteers have been working long hours they have reported phantom footsteps pacing the second floor and even sometimes the quick pitter-patter of children running. They have repeatedly chased these unnatural noises to no avail; no one else was nearby inside or outside nor was anyone scheduled to be on site.

 

Cold spots and mists have been said to be experienced moving about the property but as the random passerby approaches these oddities, they disappear, leaving those who encounter these oddities more questions than answers. This has been heavily recorded outside near the stone wall with mists almost walking alongside it and the stairwell leading to the second floor with cold spots disappearing at the top of the staircase.

 

 

While paranormal investigations are not sought after, there have been some teams who have spent time here and witnessed their devices showing cold spots, spikes in their sensors, and even flashlights turning on and off. Others have actually seen full body shadow figures in the attic area even though this apparition has never been caught on camera. Communication and identities appear to be few and far in between ultimately not leading to anything of substance or significance but they have been led to believe that someone is there trying to reach out and at least make their existence be known.

 

Our hope is simply to dig deeper, use past investigations as guidance, and try to communicate with anyone that is willing to speak with us and tell us their stories which we will happily pass along and share with the New Brighton Historical Society and anyone else who may be interested in our progress and results.