About the Mansion
The mansion was built by Levi Deal, a timber and coal baron at the turn of the century. Levi was one of 16 children born in Grove City PA. He commissioned the mansion to be built in 1896 and 4 years later he and his family (wife, 3 daughters and 1 son) moved in. They lived in the mansion for 17 years before returning to Grove City.
What is most notable about the mansion is the architectural style itself, which is Victorian Chateauesque; the last and most opulent of the Victorian era. The Chateauesque style is meant to dominate, and brandish the owner’s wealth and power. This style of home was reserved for the very wealthy and was not often seen in the United States outside of New York’s Park Avenue. The Biltmore Estate in Asheville, NC is the most famous Chateauesque home in the US.
Completed in 1900, the 15-room house featured a ballroom on the top floor, reception hall, parlors, drawing rooms, a dining room, and library all trimmed in light, native hardwoods, including birch, sycamore, oak, and sugar maple. The very latest in kitchen design and technology were included and intended to “make rapid and satisfactory dispatch of work along this line”. It was said that one would never tire of feasting their eyes upon views of the Casselman Valley and Allegheny mountains from “this elegant point of observation”. Finally, the large leaded glass windows, transoms and doors illuminate the rooms with sparkle and magic all throughout the year.
About the Innkeeper
Deborah Fisher, of Atlanta, was content with her job in marketing, but she still wanted to own her own business. Fisher realized that goal in February 2017, when she became the new proprietor of the Levi Deal Mansion in Meyersdale.
She took the first step toward this goal when visiting Ligonier with a friend. "This friend suggested that I buy a bed-and-breakfast," Fisher said. "I decided, why not?"
Fisher discovered the Levi Deal Mansion in September 2016 while on a road trip from Virginia to New York, during which she toured a number of bed-and-breakfast locations. The Levi Deal Mansion immediately caught her eye!
"It was head and shoulders above the rest," Fisher said. "It had a unique charm. Many bed-and-breakfasts are Victorian; some of them are overdone. The Levi Deal Mansion had a mix of Victorian charm and contemporary flair."
The Newton Falls, Ohio, native graduated Hiram College in Ohio and then Kent State University, where she earned bachelor's degrees in English and English education.
After graduating from Kent State in 1986, she moved to Atlanta, where she worked in marketing and advertising for the next 30 years. Fisher brings that expertise in marketing to her current job.
Deborah and her mother Connie live on the premises.