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A grand 19th-century mansion in West Virginia, once the home of a prominent banker, businessman and former mayor, is being offered for sale for the first time since it was built nearly 150 years ago.
Known as the Chancellor House, the 5,827-square-foot property at 904 Juliana Street in Parkersburg has remained in the same family for five generations. It is now listed for $695,000, according to Realtor.com and the current property listing. Built in 1878 by William Nelson Chancellor for his wife, Ellen Charles King, and their family, the Second Empire-style mansion reflects the wealth Chancellor accumulated through banking, oil, real estate and other business ventures.
The Greater Parkersburg Convention & Visitors Bureau identifies him as a two-term mayor of Parkersburg and a prominent local developer.
A home built for a prominent Parkersburg family
Chancellor was not simply a homeowner with grand ambitions. He played a significant role in the development of late-19th-century Parkersburg. He helped organize the First National Bank in 1863 and was involved in the city’s railroad, navigation and oil industries. He also developed several notable local buildings, including the Blennerhassett Hotel and Trinity Episcopal Church.
The Chancellor Hotel, another of his projects, stood in Parkersburg until the 1970s.The house itself was designed by Cincinnati architect A.C. Nash and constructed as a substantial brick mansion. Local historical records describe it as a 15-room house, while the current real-estate listing counts 16 rooms. The listing gives the total living area as 5,827 square feet.
64 windows, walnut woodwork and a tower overlooking the river
The scale of the property is immediately apparent from its architectural details.
The mansion has 64 windows, high ceilings and extensive walnut woodwork in its drawing room, library, dining room and main hallway. Elaborate plaster brackets, medallions and cornices survive throughout the interiors, alongside paneled double doors and pocket doors.A sweeping walnut staircase leads to the third floor, while another staircase reaches the home’s tower, which offers views toward the Ohio River.
The property also retains a mansard-roofed coach house at the rear. The listing describes a private walled garden and the coach house as a functional garage and workspace, giving the property an unusual combination of historic architecture and usable modern space.
From gas chandeliers to a modern kitchen
When the Chancellor House was constructed, electricity and indoor plumbing were not yet standard features in American homes. The house was originally illuminated by gas fixtures, while water initially came from a well on the property.
According to the family’s account published by Realtor.com, full plumbing was installed around 1910–1912, with electricity added later.Many historic details have survived, but the house has also evolved with its occupants. The kitchen has been updated with modern appliances, countertops and recessed lighting, while at least one bathroom features a contemporary walk-in shower.
Five generations called it home
Perhaps the most remarkable part of the property’s history is not its architecture, but its continuity.
Five successive generations of the Chancellor family lived in the mansion. Catherine Brown, a descendant of the family, spent most of her life there and was the fifth generation to own the house, according to Realtor.com. After nearly 150 years under the same family ownership, the mansion is now looking for its next chapter.For prospective buyers, the $695,000 asking price offers more than 5,800 square feet of living space. It also comes with a rare piece of Parkersburg history, a Victorian-era home that has remained a family residence since the year it was built. And after five generations, the Chancellor House is finally ready to belong to someone new.
