DeVilbiss Mansion

On November 25 2008, I toured this beautiful OLD home, The DeVilbiss Mansion, as a possibleBed and Breakfast Inn. This was the 1st place I'd EVER toured with the idea of making it into a Bed and Breakfast Inn. This has been a dream of mine since 2000.  This is an all brick and stone home, of over 9200 square feet, built in 1902. There is a Carriage House at the rear of the property which is approximately another 2500 square feet, between it's 2 floors.  They sit on an iron fence-enclosed 1/2 acre corner lot.  It is NOW priced... at $399,000 reduced a bit.  As you walk up onto the large porch... with wood-ceilings, you notice the massive pillars and ornamentation. When you arrive at the front door, you are greeted by beautiful LEADED glass doors. You enter the 1st set of doors, into a vestibule, then through another set of leaded glass doors, you are dazzled by the opulent foyer.The DeVilbiss Mansion3015 Collingwood AvenueToledo, Ohio

The last picture in the collage above - over on the right, is the Coach House...and the following photo was taken outside the Coach House.

There are original light fixtures in almost ALL of the home, including this huge, crystal chandelier. The photo in the center of the bottom row shows the wall treatment in the vestibule, that covers about 3/4's of the height of the walls.

These are 2 of the 1st floor rooms. The first is the Parlor and the 2nd is shown as a Dining Room, however...I would use this as a 2nd Parlor, since there is a beautiful Dining Room, right around the corner.

The two mosaics above, show the Stunning Dining Room, which has a barrel-vaulted ceiling, beautiful built-ins and original lighting. It leads through the stained glass windows/door to a sunporch. You also see the walk-through Pantry (where the microwave and sink are, too) which leads to the Kitchen. The Kitchen would need to be completely re-done, as it does not provide adequate workspace on the counters and everything is badly dated. While there is enough space in the kitchen, it is not being used to it's full potential. It's as though the Kitchen in this home was an after-thought...so small and downright UGLY! LOL!!

These two mosaics show all of the Bedrooms, Den and Hallway on the 2nd floor. There are 7 Bedrooms, a dedicated Office and 6 full Baths + 2 half Baths in this home. This home also boasts a total of 7 fireplaces! The doors in the upper left corner of the 2nd mosaic, lead to a covered porch, off the Den.

This is the 3rd Floor Ballroom and Kitchenette. The ballroom is 55 feet long and 28 feet wide, with a bench-seat sitting area at one end. It has 2 lovely fireplaces, 1 at each end. See Tom leaning against the 1 fireplace? The lights pictured are just one of many original fixtures in the ballroom. The wall-treatment shown, covers the lower two-thirds of the walls. The cathedral ceiling is about 18 feet tall. The curved door leads to a small 3rd floor porch. The dumb waiter comes all the way up to the Ballroom Kitchenette from the Basement...Kitchen and 2nd floor.

These pictures show you some of the Stained Glass Windows.

Here you see the 2 Maids Bedrooms on the 3rd floor, with their Bathroom. The beautiful treatment on the wall enhances the Service Stairs down the far side of the home.

This is a glimpse of the Gentelman's Smoking Room, with wooden benches and fireplace...located in the Basement!! You also see the Dumb Waiter on each floor, along with some beautiful woodwork and trim around a door.

These are just some of the Bathrooms on the 1st and 2nd floor of the home (1st 6 photos), with the shower room, bathroom and laundry room found in the Basement. This is the end of our tour - no photos of the Carriage House, because we didn't get to see it. We have been dreaming of how we could make this into our Bed and Breakfast Inn. It is just a lovely home...with alot of potential...but also a TON of work would need to be done in order to make it into a lovely B&B. Tom and I are still thinking about it...and looking around for other potential properties, too! We haven't made a decision yet. I hope you enjoyed the photo tour of this gorgeous home.

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...UPDATE...

Tom and I have continued to check on this beautiful home...The DeVilbiss Mansion.  And a while back, we found that the house was no longer for sale - at least there wasn't any For Sale sign out front.  So, after doing some digging, I found something very interesting. This home went into Foreclosure. Then it went up for auction.  Here is the information I found.

(the Devilbiss Mansion is the Large Brick house on the left, across from the Church)

Description provided by Trulia

This property is an REO (Real Estate Owned). This is the final step in the foreclosure process. Ownership has reverted to the lender. This 7229 square foot property has 7 bedroom(s) and 6 bath(s). The estimated sale price is $131000.  Please consult all relevant title documents prior to purchase.

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  Can you imagine that? 

  This house went into foreclosure and to auction for $131,000!!  I haven't found any info on what it actually brought at auction...but WOW!!   I'd LOVE to see what the new owners did to the interior!