The Mercer Mile The Story Of Dr Henry and 12 similar items

UP FOR SALE: The Mercer Mile. The Story of Dr. Henry Chapmen Mercer and his Concrete Buildings. Pamphlet by The Bucks County Historical Society A little info: On the outskirts of Doylestown, in the heart of Bucks County, Pennsylvania, stand three medieval-looking buildings locally referred to as the "Mercer Mile." Within little more than a mile of each other, they were built by a highly unusual man whose innovative interest in concrete was half a century ahead of his time. Dr. Henry Chapman Mercer was an American "original" whose creative genius is more clearly seen as time goes on. Dr. Mercer's 27-room concrete mansion was designed as a showcase for his pottery, tiles and assorted other treasures. It contains cabinets, bookcases, tables and other pieces of furniture made of concrete. This remarkable home actually enveloped a small 18th century farmhouse, literally encasing it in concrete. The only exposed wood is the floor of the old house (now the kitchen) and the dumbwaiter. Dr. Mercer's notes tell us: "Columns rise from the cellar to housetop through several rooms without symmetrical arrangement. Their forms were made by boards set vertically and held together in circles with rope and wire, or in squares with battens. Each was reinforced with three vertical pipes and wire circles twisted by hand and dropped down the forms about 2 feet apart." The construction of the multi-vaulted and irregularly shaped ceilings is of particular interest. A platform was erected under the proposed ceiling level; earth was piled on it and patted by hand into the desired shape; sand was placed over the soil, and the concrete was then poured. Roof, dormers and skylights are all framed in concrete. Amazingly, even the gutters are cast as an integral part of the roof. Mercer's notes indicate, "A batch consisted of one bag of cement equal to one and two-thirds buckets, three buckets of sand, and six buckets of stone. The waterproof roof, about 5 inches thick, of concrete, lacks patent waterproofing compounds, and all of the galleries and floors rest on vaults rather than beams." This sale is for a PREOWNED book / Magazine/ Pamphlet etc., as shown in the photos--You may note some remnants of your book's past life - an autograph, an inscription, a dog-eared corner, or some yellowed pages, etc.,--the item shown in the pictures is the item you will be getting. What my opinion of condition and yours is may vary your item may be in Mint condition or it may be truly be in acceptable condition---SO AS IS AS SHOWN Please take a look at the pictures for the best description. A photo is as good as a thousand words and is the best description of cosmetic condition. Use your ZOOM TOOL to best see this item! Please look closely at all the photos for condition--Thank you *Vintage and secondhand items may have flaws. Please review item(s), description and picture(s). I do my best to research and describe the items accurately, but I am not an expert on all of the items I sell. Unless specified in the listing, all items are sold AS-IS AS-SEEN in photos* All of My Items Come from a Smoke Free Home and have been cleaned per's standards I do Ship everyday Monday - Friday I do my best to ensure that my photos are as true to color as possible. However, due to inconsistencies of various monitors, lighting sources, digital photography, product color may slightly vary Feel Free to Visit My Store and Browse Through My Other Listings as I am happy to combine shipping for you. Please contact me with any issues prior to leaving negative/neutral feedback or low detail ratings, as I will always do my best to solve any problems that may come up! If you have any further questions, please feel free to message me Any props that are used in the taking of the photos are not included. Only the item/items in the title of the listings are being sold