Built in 1890 and 1891 by Alice Powell, daughter of Erie founder, The Reverend Richard J. Van Valkenburg, the structure was used mainly as a boarding house for miners and to a lesser extent for travelers. In its prime it had nine sleeping rooms upstairs, a parlor, a long gambling room, a dining room and a kitchen downstairs. Out-house and washing room were located out back. For their rent, miners got a bed, dinner and a box lunch for the mines.

The building went through many ownership changes and was operated as a hotel until 1992 when it became a private residence. The architectural style is late Victorian.