330 Homes Spring 2021

d r e a m h o u s e

Barder lived there until he died in 1957, the Burkhalters moved in dur ing 1961 and it fell into dis repair following financial struggles. After restoring it and converting it to office space for Braun & Steidl, Schreckenberger and Habel bought out the firm in 2002 and became own ers of the estate in 2007. They recently sold the firm, so their offices moved in February 2020. Now, this historic gem is on the mar ket for residential or com mercial use, and it's listed by Keller Williams agent Karen Hillman. The mansion was a turning point for the two — it was their first of many notewor thy historical restorations.

They began the Barder restoration in 1987 by devising clever ways to use historical quirks to do major updates, such as using original piping from the coal Biggs Boiler to replace the electrical. “Because the guy owned a boiler company, all the wiring was in a black pipe like they used in boilers. We used that to pull new wire. The whole house was rewired, including the chandeliers,” explains Schreckenberger. “The house had a central vac uum cleaner system. 1919 — that’s pretty advanced. We used the conduit that was the vacuum system to run data cables.” While they were working, Barder’s grandchildren

saw a Braun & Steidl lawn sign and stopped in, offer ing to lease them an origi nal dining set and buffet they had kept. The firm gladly took the furniture, which perfectly matches the oak-paneled walls with decorative Grinling Gibbons-esque reliefs. “It is a commission designed specifically for this room,” says Schreckenberger. They found five leaves for expanding the table. Barder and his wife were among the city’s lead ing citizens, according to Pahlau’s application, and hosted lavish parties. Rooms were equipped with a still-working intercom

system — similar to the one at Stan Hywet Hall & Gardens. When the Barders wanted to move the party to another room, they could simply step down on a call button hid den in the floor and ser vants could direct guests. Numerous staffers lived in the service wing accessed by a back staircase com plete with a butler’s pantry, a kitchen containing an original Kelvinator refrig erator that was converted from an icebox, a two-bed room apartment above the garage where the chauffeur and his wife stayed and a second-floor maid’s apart ment. They also worked in the basement laundry room

3 4 | 3 3 O H OM E S s p r i n g 2 0 2 1