House rental in Coatesville, Pennsylvania - Beautiful 3 Bedroom Hidden Paradise in Amish Country - Property 240368

History: The Bellaire Farm was granted to the Hoffman Family (then spelled “Hoofman”) as part of the original William Penn Land Grant in 1681. (Note portrait of William Penn just inside the front door). The Schoolhouse is the last remaining corner of the farm still in the family. It served as a one room schoolhouse for most of the 19th century and was then quarried for rock during the first half of the 20th century. The original schoolmaster’s desk is against the wall to the left just before you walk out into the sun room. Sometime in the 1940s, Francis Hoffman replanted the property and used it as a weekend retreat for him and his friends to smoke cigars and play poker. It has been used as a private residence ever since his death in 1970.

If you are adventurous, you can walk up into the woods to the right as you come in the main gate to find the original “dynamite house” – a small stone house used to contain the dynamite charges during the quarry era. The original “Blasting Machine” is on the floor in the sun room. The house burned down in 2001 and the remaining stone structure was rebuilt in the residence you see today. The artifacts you see on the walls and all around are from Paul Hoffman Sr.’s travels around the world. He went everywhere and did everything.

Other Activities: Rock Climbing