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Historic Binghamton Walking Tour with the Phelps Mansion Museum
Item 15 of 15
Designed by architect Isaac G. Perry, the Phelps Mansion was built in 1870 by John Stewart Wells. It was built to be the home of Sherman D. Phelps, a local businessman, banker and one-time Mayor of the City of Binghamton.

Phelps Mansion Museum

Phelps Mansion Museum

Phelps Mansion Museum

Phelps Mansion Museum

Designed by architect Isaac G. Perry, the Phelps Mansion was built in 1870 by John Stewart Wells. It was built to be the home of Sherman D. Phelps, a local businessman, banker and one-time Mayor of the City of Binghamton.

The interior is finished with various types of rare maple, walnut, mahagony, oak, and American walnut, and contains hand-chased cast bronze chandeliers, carved mirror frames, etched glass door panels, and patterned brass door knobs and hinges.

It is an elegant example, both on the exterior and on the elaborately finished interior, of the Second Empire style in architecture.

In 1905 it was acquired by a civic organization known as the Monday Afternoon Club for use as its clubhouse. In 1986, ownership was transferred to the Phelps Mansion Foundation.

Restoration work has been done on the understructure of the ballroom, solarium, and hallway floors. The outer stone work, brick and concrete have been renovated. In 2002 the original mansard roof which had been removed in 1941, was replicated and erected, restoring the mansion’s architectural integrity.

The building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1973 and has been designated a landmark by the Binghamton Commission on Architecture and Urban Design.