Dobler House Restoration and Remodel The Dobler House was the summer home to A.F. Dobler and family. He built this home in 1894. It is a Queen Anne Victorian.
My husband and I purchased it in 2002 in the hopes of bringing new life to this classic home for years to come.
07/11/2025
A heartfelt thank you to Al Noble, who played a role in preserving this home years ago, for visiting us today and generously returning some of the original hardware from the house.
Over the years we’ve had a few locals come with items and stories. It’s always so nice to meet people that were involved with the Dobler house and saving it from being torn down
We can’t wait to clean them up and give them a proper place in the home once again!
12/12/2024
Unfortunately after over 120 years, the carriage house has succumbed to the immense amount of snow.
We are devastated. This was an amazing piece of history. We do not know yet if we will be able to save it. Due it it’s shear size, it would cost 100 times what we may get from insurance. We will do our best to try to save it.
The effects are still being noticed for homes on, and even off, land.
02/20/2021
After living here almost 20 years I can tell you we’ve never experienced any real haunting.
We’ve had many people tell us the house is haunted and I always laugh and say, “they must like us because they leave us alone.”
They only thing that I can recall being slightly supernatural is the story of Mr. Bones. We moved into the Dobler house when our son was only 1. Around the time he was transitioning into his toddler bed I would go in his room at night to tuck him in. He would often mention Mr Bones. He said he saw a character that looked like a skeleton that would come in his room. He never would talk to him. He just said he would be there. This went on for a few months and then he just stopped talking about him.
So we’ll see is Mr Bones is still hanging around and if he has any friends too.
Tune in tomorrow on the Eerie Unknown FB page around 9pm for a live stream of our ghost hunt.
Join us LIVE tomorrow night as we investigate... the Dobler Mansion in Fairview Township.
Built in 1894 this was the summer home for A.F Dobler, a wealthy brewerie owner from Albany NY. Later on it was government owned and served as a tuberculosis hospital.
For many years the homeowners have wondered if they live alone or if they have unknown company. They are ready to find out and has given Eerie Unknown all access!
We will be the first paranormal group to investigate this popular historic Erie County home.
For more historical information "like" the Dobler House on Facebook
12/28/2019
Another project completed! Even though the house is on the market we have continued to do small projects here and there.
This is the original 125 year old quarter sawn oak floors refinished with new carpet installed in the dining room.
The center of the floor is soft wide plank pine which was damaged by linoleum being glued to it years ago. We installed a beautiful berber carpet over the pine.
It gives us great joy to see this house transform with each new project that gets completed.
01/15/2019
A special treat for all you Dobler House fans. Here’s an article reprinted from the Cosmopolite in 1890’s. A reporter had the opportunity to walk through the house and describe what he saw. As you read it, you feel as if you are there with him.
01/13/2019
The sunset views from every room
01/12/2019
WOW! I just wanted to say thank you for all the love and support being shared on Facebook.
My husband and I really love reading the comments and seeing how many shares are being sent out. Please continue to share this so that we can finder a new owner soon.
Ever since we purchased this home I've felt like we were just the curators and that this house was still part of a community. We've put a lot of love into this house and recently finished the Master Bedroom renovation ( last week). As you can see, there are still repairs that need done but once finished, this will be a showplace and probably one of the most beautiful home in West County.
I would also like to credit the former owners for being the ones courageous enough to start this renovation back in 1990. If you don't know the history, this house had sat with a huge hole in the roof from a fire in 1979 until it was repaired by volunteers in the late 80's. The county didn't have the resources to repair the roof so it just sat there open to the elements.
As of today, we are the 4th owners of this 124 year old gem: The Doblers, the county, and The Laughlins. We have been here for the last 16 years.
We would like nothing more than someone with the love of old homes to be the next curator to continue the renovations. Whether it be a single family or to start a new business ( how cool would it be to start a microbrewery here?) It is currently zoned A-1.
Please continue to share your comments and love with us and everyone reading this page. Thank you 💓
02/17/2018
My favorite tree here. The Gingko.
When Mr. Dobler had visitors stay with him the customary thing to do was bring a small seedling as a gift.
There are over 19 different trees on and around the property. American Elm, Black Walnut, English Oak, Horse Chesnut and others.
What a neat idea.
02/15/2018
No, it is not haunted. Unless of course, they've been hiding from us for 16 years.
02/15/2018
Current state of the home. Ready for new owners to love it as much as we do.
02/02/2018
Updated kitchen in historic home. We used a mix of new and old finishes. Slate floors, soapstone counters all the way from Canada 🇨🇦 and stainless appliances with glass/slate backsplash. How’d we do?
Be the first to know and let us send you an email when Dobler House posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.
The Dobler House was the summer home to A.F. Dobler and his family. Known for his brewery in Albany NY, Dobler Brewing Company, he purchased the land surrounding the house to grow his barley and oats for his beer. The property encompassed over 300 acres of land and over 33 buildings including the land across the street that is currently Pleasant Ridge Park. In fact there is still an original building at the park that can be seen in the historic photos we’ve posted. The house was designed by Ernest Hoffman of Albany, NY and completed in 1894. It is classified as a Queen Anne Victorian.
Mr. Dobler appreciated luxurious items and when it came to designing and furnishing his new home he spared nothing. He had special bluestone brought in from New York to build the foundation. He hired a decorating company to complete the interior with the finest of things. He has a painter fresco each room to personalize the home. Even the black walnut built-in bookcase has hand carved designs of wheat, oats, and barley as symbols of his occupation as a brewer. The best description of this house can be found in the Cosmopolite article written in the 1890’s when a local reporter walked through the house and described what he saw.
The Dobler House was occupied by Mr. Dobler, his wife and 2 children as well as a niece for about 16 years. Mr. Dobler passed away in 1912 and the house and all of the contents were left to his son, John, Jr. John and his wife live in the home until the 1920 when the house was sold to the county poor board. Over the years the county has used the home for many different purposes. It was once a TB hospital, nurses residence, and even administrator’s offices.
Over time the house was in need of attention to maintain it’s glory but the county did not have the resources to maintain it so they locked it up and used it for storage in the 1970’s. Unfortunately, the house was broken into in 1979 and a fire ensued in the ice house which sits behind the kitchen. There was a dumb waiter in the kitchen and that acted like a chimney for the fire. The fire burned straight up to the roof in stead of spreading to the other rooms.
Ironically, the A.F. Dobler Hose company responded to the fire and were able to put it out in a relatively timely manner but not before they used 20,000 gallons of water. The fire caused so much damage to the roof that they called it “beyond repair” and wanted to tear it down. Fortunately, the house being 3 courses of brick with a large bluestone foundation, would have costs them a lot of money just to get rid of it so they were open to letting the community come together to try to save it. The West County Preservation group was formed to start repairs on the roof. The local Jaycees also got involve with helping and raising money for repairs. The roof repairs had started and cleanup was well on its way for this once staple home in the community. Unfortunately, politics got in the way and they were no longer able to continue the restoration. Once again the house fell to the demise of the weather and lack of resources. It sat from 1980-1990 with a roof that had not been completed.
In 1990, a local contractor, Brian Laughlin and his family came forward and offered to repair the house. An agreement was met and he was able to start to dry out the house and rid it of the rodents that had called it home for the past 10 years. The family was finally able to move into the home in 1994 after extension repairs and renovations were done to make the home habitable again. In 2000, they listed the house for sale. Because the house was far from being completed, it became a challenge to find the right buyer but finally in the fall of 2002 our family saw the potential.
We purchased the home and have been there for the past 16 years. I credit my husband for the challenge of fixing what needed to be fixed and repairing what needed repaired. The list is long of the projects we’ve completed in the past 16 years. All done by us (mostly my husband). Except for Mace the mason that came in to repoint the entire back of the house. Now that our family is grown, we are ready to move on and pass this beauty to the next deserving owner. It needs someone that understands the impact this home has had to the community, someone that can appreciate the way they used to built these old homes (to last) and someone who will continue the restoration.
