by DKP
MPF Conservation is working to discover the original paint colors for the Hanley Farm exterior and for the foyer. While there, we also are assisting in a plan to preserve the stencils in the parlor.
However, it is also a wonderful historical farm with original furnishings, wallpaper, carpets, and accouterments — lovely! I walked the rooms one day snapping pics for fun: below are some wonderful objects. Let’s take a walk!
The entry into the foyer is through the porch or portico which holds the balcony off the second floor landing. Farm hands and family with daily use came through the back porch and kitchen where they could drop their dirty boots: reminds me of my grandparent’s ranch.
If you entered through the front door, what was once the office is to the left. It seems that in the later years, the office was also the place where elderly family members slept and possibly died, when they could no longer go up the stairs.
The parlor is to the right. It seems one of the sisters was a collector of furniture and other items, and so the house is rich with beautiful pieces. The parlor is where the lively stencils line the top of the walls, decorate the ceiling corners, and circle the central ceiling fixture.
The wood and the details in the house are special; we first see this in the foyer.
Eastern hardwoods were difficult to obtain because of shipping, and costly as well. Faux painting was fashionable at this time, and the faux painting in the house is stunning.

Formal staircase leading to the second phase of the house, including the master bedroom. The damage is relatively new.
The staircase goes to the second floor, which houses the original master bedroom, and what was once three smaller children’s bedrooms. The landing is quite large, and could have been used as a sitting room.
The master bedroom is very pretty, and the carpet and wallpapers are in good condition.
The Hanley sisters remodeled the three small bedrooms into one room, which I will call the second bedroom, though there are a couple more bedrooms in the back of which I did not take pictures.
The farm is available for tours: visit their website for contact information. Private tours are available if scheduled in advance. There is a minimum cost and a maximum number of individuals that can tour at any one time.
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Brought back many sweet memories of spending time alone in this house cleaning. The upstairs foyer where the dresser is with the Hanley ladies photos was a special spot…when I was done cleaning and placing objects I would stop at those photos and ask the “girls” if I had done everything correctly. I missed seeing a photo of the screen porch…that was my absolute favorite spot and I alway enjoyed cleaning it when I worked there.
So, Suzanne, what I want to know is if they answered you! Kate
Yes, actually. I had a deep respectful relationship with Mary…I read all of her oral histories that had been done and also read extensively her files about the beginning of SOHS and the applications etc to the state and non-profit learning that she did and then later when she was ready to gift the house.I read her will and then the Arbor group recommendation for the trees/plants on the property. I felt I understood how they felt about the house and it’s contents and it was well lived and enjoyed, so I was respectful that I was in “their ” home and wanted to be as true to how they would keep it as possible. Many feelings of peace up there in the foyer…and the screen porch.