{{Short description|Historic house in Pennsylvania, United States}} {{Use American English|date=July 2025}} {{Use mdy dates|date=February 2025}} {{Infobox NRHP | name = Zane Grey House | nrhp_type = | image = Zane Grey House, Lackawaxen, PA.jpg | image_size = | alt = A green and white house with peaked roofs and awnings | caption = East elevation and north profile, 2008 | location = [[Lackawaxen Township, Pike County, Pennsylvania|Lackawaxen Township]], [[Pike County, Pennsylvania|Pike County]], [[Pennsylvania]] | coordinates = {{coord|41|29|8|N|74|59|16|W|display=inline,title}} | locmapin = Pennsylvania#USA | mapframe = yes | mapframe-marker = building | mapframe-zoom = 12 |mapframe-caption = Interactive map showing the location of Zane Grey House | map_width = 280 | area = | built = 1905<ref name="NRHP nom">{{cite report|type=none|url=https://catalog.archives.gov/id/71996056 |title=National Register of Historic Places Registration: Pennsylvania SP Grey, Zane, House|publisher=National Archives and Records Administration |author= Nancy Carrs Roach|date= October 15, 1982| access-date=January 8, 2026 }} ({{NationalArchivesNote}})</ref> | architect = Romer C. Grey | architecture = | added = May 6, 1983 | increase = April 29, 2011<ref name="weekly">{{Cite web |title=Weekly List of Actions Taken on Properties: 4/25/11 through 4/29/11 |date=May 6, 2011 |publisher=National Park Service |url=https://www.nps.gov/subjects/nationalregister/upload/weekly-list-2011-national-register-of-historic-places.pdf |access-date=May 8, 2011}}</ref> | refnum = 83002283<ref name="focus">{{Cite web |url=http://nrhp.focus.nps.gov/ |title=NPS Focus |work=National Register of Historic Places |publisher=National Park Service |access-date=May 8, 2011 |archive-date=July 25, 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080725123211/http://nrhp.focus.nps.gov/ |url-status=dead }}</ref> | increase_refnum = 11000231<ref name="weekly"/> }}
The '''Zane Grey Museum''' in [[Lackawaxen Township, Pike County, Pennsylvania|Lackawaxen Township]], Pennsylvania, United States, is a former residence of the author [[Zane Grey]] and is now maintained as a museum and operated by the [[National Park Service]] (NPS). It is located on the upper [[Delaware River]] and is on the [[National Register of Historic Places]]. It contains many photographs, artworks, books, furnishings, and other objects of interest associated with Grey and his family.
The house was built in two sections, both from designs by Grey. The first was in 1905 by Zane Grey's brother, [[Reddy Grey|Romer Carl "Reddy" Grey]]; the second seven years later by a neighbor, to serve as a writing studio and library after the success of ''[[Riders of the Purple Sage]]''. Grey and his wife moved to California so he could work on screenplays in 1918, but Lackawaxen and the house remained one of his favorite places for the rest of his life. It was added to the Register in 1983.
==Building==
The house is along Scenic Drive, a short road along the [[Delaware River]] north of [[Roebling's Delaware Aqueduct]], an early suspension bridge which still carries vehicle and foot traffic across the river between Pennsylvania and New York. Along the riverfront to the north, it is {{Convert|300|ft}} to the Delaware's confluence with the [[Lackawaxen River]], the largest tributary of the Upper Delaware in Pennsylvania, resulting in slightly choppier water in front of the house. The grassy, maintained ground slopes gently from [[Pennsylvania Route 590]] to the west toward the river, giving the house's east (front) a view across to undeveloped woods on the New York side in [[Minisink Ford, New York|Minisink Ford]].<ref name="NRHP nom" />
In front of the house, the slope exposes the northern corner more than the southern one. There is a small unpaved parking lot, sign for the museum and state historical marker as well. The house is to the north of a cluster of other buildings in the neighborhood, most notably the former [[Delaware and Hudson Canal Company Office|D&H Canal Co. Office]], now a [[bed and breakfast]].<ref name="NRHP nom" />
The two-story [[clapboard (architecture)|clapboard]]-sided [[framing (construction)|frame]] structure rises from an exposed [[bluestone]] [[foundation (architecture)|foundation]]. It is three [[bay (architecture)|bays]] long by six wide, in an L-shaped plan. The older, east–west–oriented block of the house has a square [[hip roof|hipped roof]] with two large [[pediment]]ed [[dormer window]]s with dentilled lintels on the east and south sides, with a smaller jerkin-roofed dormer complementing the eastern one. The newer wing designed by Grey and built by his brother has a rectangular hipped roof of gentler [[roof pitch|pitch]] with three small jerkined dormers. Both roofs are surfaced with diamond-shaped [[roof shingle|shingles]] of white [[asbestos]] cement and pierced by a single brick chimney per wing.<ref name="NRHP nom" />
A single wraparound porch with flat roof, [[balustrade]] and [[bracket (architecture)|bracketed]] columns runs the length of the south and east elevations, combining two previously separate porches, one of which had lost its original roof in the floods of 1955. White wooden posts mark the house's corners, and the second-story windows have [[awning]]s.<ref name="NRHP nom" />
Inside, the floor plans reflect the two sections' separate construction. The earlier one has a square plan, the later one a rectangular. Many original finishes and decorations remain. Opposite the original front door at the southeast corner is a brick fireplace trimmed with unglazed [[architectural terracotta|terra cotta]], including [[egg and dart|egg-and-dart]] molding. A T-plan staircase has its original decorative balustrade and [[newel]] posts.<ref name="NRHP nom" />
The northeast door is the main entrance to the newer wing. It opens onto a living space that runs the length and half the width of the addition. Opposite the door is its fireplace, likewise of brick and topped with a [[bevel]]ed mirror to a height of {{Convert|7|ft}}. Behind it the library includes many original trim, particularly a {{Convert|2|ft|4|in|adj=on}} deep painted [[frieze]] depicting [[kachina]] dolls, reflecting Grey's interests in the [[Southwestern United States|Southwest]]. These rooms, and Grey's upstairs [[studio]], house most of the museum exhibits and visitor interest today.<ref name="NRHP nom" />
==History==
A native of [[Zanesville, Ohio]], Grey had established a dental practice in New York City in 1896 but soon grew dissatisfied with the field. He dabbled in semi-professional baseball and wrote his first stories and novels. They were not successful, but by 1905 he had decided to leave dentistry for writing. They had begun the process of building the first part of the house, the southern wing, after seeing the site on a fishing trip that year, and later they moved their families into it.<ref name="NRHP nom" />
Grey continued to write [[western (genre)|westerns]], and took two extended research trips to the Southwest over the next several years. He worked, at the time, in a [[bungalow]] near the house that is no longer extant. These resulted in ''Heritage of the Desert'' in 1911 and ''[[Riders of the Purple Sage]]'' the following year, his bestselling novel. With the proceeds from the latter work, he designed the study wing. It was built by a neighbor, Gottlieb Kuhn, in 1912.<ref name="NRHP nom" />
He continued writing novels there for six more years until the nascent film industry beckoned. He and his wife moved to [[Altadena, California]], where they eventually purchased [[Zane Grey Estate|an estate]] as he became even more commercially successful as a film producer as well. He remained in California until his 1939 death, but retained the Lackawaxen house for visits east.<ref name="NPS Bulletin">{{Cite web |title=Zane Grey Museum |date=February 28, 2006 |url=http://www.nps.gov/upde/planyourvisit/upload/zanegreysitebulletin_feb06.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061015000714/http://www.nps.gov/upde/planyourvisit/upload/zanegreysitebulletin_feb06.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-date=October 15, 2006 |publisher=National Park Service |access-date=November 18, 2009}}</ref> Both he and his wife are buried in Union Cemetery, not far from the house.<ref name="NRHP nom" />
In 1945, Grey's widow sold the house to a friend, who operated it as an inn for 25 years. During that time, in 1955, the building suffered some serious flood damage, tearing off the roof of the first front porch. In 1973, they converted it into the museum, which they sold to the Park Service in 1989.<ref name="NRHP nom" /><ref name="NPS Bulletin" />
[[Eastern United States flooding of June 2006|Flooding in June 2006]] left {{Convert|6|to|8|ft}} of water in the basement. The Park Service was able to get the collection to safety, but it was necessary to thoroughly [[dehumidifier|dehumidify]] the space before reopening the museum.<ref name="2006 floods">{{Cite web |title=Parks Continue Recovery From Flooding |url=https://www.nps.gov/aboutus/news/index.htm?type=Incidents&id=2681 |publisher=National Park Service |date=July 5, 2006 |work=NPS Digest |access-date=November 18, 2009}}</ref>
==Gallery== {{Gallery |title=Historical photographs of the Zane Grey House, 1933 |width= |height= |align=center |File:PERSPECTIVE FROM EAST - Zane Grey House, West side of Scenic Drive, Lackawaxen, Pike County, PA HABS PA,52-LACK,3-7.tif|Exterior, west facade |File:PERSPECTIVE FROM NORTHWEST - Zane Grey House, West side of Scenic Drive, Lackawaxen, Pike County, PA HABS PA,52-LACK,3-3.tif|Exterior, northwest facade |File:PERSPECTIVE FROM SOUTHEAST - Zane Grey House, West side of Scenic Drive, Lackawaxen, Pike County, PA HABS PA,52-LACK,3-6.tif|Exterior, southeast facade |File:FIRST FLOOR, ENTRANCE FOYER - Zane Grey House, West side of Scenic Drive, Lackawaxen, Pike County, PA HABS PA,52-LACK,3-8.tif|First floor, entrance foyer |File:FIRST FLOOR, STUDY, NORTHEAST CORNER LOOKING SOUTH - Zane Grey House, West side of Scenic Drive, Lackawaxen, Pike County, PA HABS PA,52-LACK,3-11.tif|First floor, study (facing south) |File:FIRST FLOOR, VIEW INTO STUDY FROM NORTHWEST CORNER - Zane Grey House, West side of Scenic Drive, Lackawaxen, Pike County, PA HABS PA,52-LACK,3-14.tif|First floor, study (facing southeast) |File:FIRST FLOOR, VIEW INTO STUDY LOOKING WEST - Zane Grey House, West side of Scenic Drive, Lackawaxen, Pike County, PA HABS PA,52-LACK,3-13.tif|First floor, study (facing west) |File:FIRST FLOOR, STUDY, SOUTHWEST CORNER - Zane Grey House, West side of Scenic Drive, Lackawaxen, Pike County, PA HABS PA,52-LACK,3-15.tif|First floor, study (facing northeast) |File:FIRST FLOOR, FRONT PARLOR, FIREPLACE - Zane Grey House, West side of Scenic Drive, Lackawaxen, Pike County, PA HABS PA,52-LACK,3-10.tif|First floor, front parlor |File:FIRST FLOOR, KITCHEN - Zane Grey House, West side of Scenic Drive, Lackawaxen, Pike County, PA HABS PA,52-LACK,3-16.tif|First floor, kitchen |File:ATTIC, LOOKING SOUTHEAST - Zane Grey House, West side of Scenic Drive, Lackawaxen, Pike County, PA HABS PA,52-LACK,3-18.tif|Attic }}
==See also== *[[National Register of Historic Places listings in Pike County, Pennsylvania]] *[[Upper Delaware Scenic and Recreational River]] *[[Zane Grey Estate]] *[[Zane Grey Cabin]]
==References== {{Reflist}}
==External links==
{{Commons category|Zane Grey Museum}} *[https://www.nps.gov/upde/planyourvisit/hours.htm Zane Grey Museum] – National Park Service *{{HABS |survey=PA-5371 |id=pa1790 |title=Zane Grey House, West side of Scenic Drive, Lackawaxen, Pike County, PA |photos=18 |dwgs=9 |data=30 |cap=1}}
{{Zane Grey}} {{National Register of Historic Places in Pennsylvania}}
{{authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Grey, Zane, Museum}} [[Category:1973 establishments in Pennsylvania]] [[Category:Biographical museums in Pennsylvania]] [[Category:Delaware River]] [[Category:Historic house museums in Pennsylvania]] [[Category:Houses in Pike County, Pennsylvania]] [[Category:Houses on the National Register of Historic Places in Pennsylvania]] [[Category:Historic American Buildings Survey in Pennsylvania]] [[Category:Literary museums in the United States]] [[Category:Museums established in 1973]] [[Category:Museums in Pike County, Pennsylvania]] [[Category:National Register of Historic Places in Pike County, Pennsylvania]] [[Category:Homes of American writers|Grey, Zane]] [[Category:Zane Grey]]