Syracuse, N.Y. — The Victorian home at the corner of McBride and Willow streets on the city's North Side has plenty of history behind it.

Built in 1892, the residence was later home to Edward Schoeneck, a founder of Syracuse's Bond, Schoeneck and King law firm. He also served as the city's mayor and a New York lieutenant governor.

The home was originally surrounded by farmland, said Jerome Rene Wilett, the house's current owner. After Schoeneck's death in 1951, the property eventually fell into disrepair.

When Wilett first saw it in the 1970s, it was run down, to say the least. Woodwork had been stolen and windows shattered.

But Wilett saw the home's potential. He would frequently drive by the property on the way to a nearby restaurant shortly after moving to the area.

Wilett bought the home in the 1980s, restored it and has been running his clinical psychology practice from the house's first and second floors. He and his wife Sheila live on the third floor, in an attic renovated into an apartment.

They're selling now because Wilett is retiring.

"It's time to let it go," he said. "It's just too big and too much, but I'm going to miss it. I won't miss climbing the three flights of stairs."

Wilett was able to restore the home using some of the original materials that had been lost over the years. He found parts of the home's oak staircase at an antique shop in Syracuse.

Floors throughout the home all have unique patterns. The design on the floor inside a small coat closet, for example, isn't found anywhere else in the house.

Ceilings throughout the first and second floors feature original plaster designs and moldings.

The house is a catalog home, Wilett said. Its original owners ordered it through a mailing sent out by architect George Franklin Barber, whose homes are now found around the country.

After ordering, all of the materials to build the house, from concrete to timber to floors, arrived by train.

"They sent you everything in a boxcar, including the design," Wilett said. "You had to go and build it yourself."

THE DETAILS:

Address: 500 N. McBride St., Syracuse, N.Y. 13202

Price: $249,000

Size: 5,397 square feet

Lot size: 0.16 acres

Monthly Mortgage: $967.16 (based on this week's national average rate of 4.14 percent by Freddie Mac for a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage with a 20 percent down payment. Fees and points are not included.)

Taxes: $4,776

Built: 1892

School District: Syracuse

First floor: Wilett uses the space for his psychology practice. The home's former parlor, with a round, Keck glass window and stained glass accents, is now a reception area. The former parlor is also the only room in the home with cherry woodwork. Woodwork elsewhere is oak. The old dining room, kitchen and butler's pantry are now office space. The former study is now Wilett's office, complete with plaster designs on the ceiling and crown molding.

Second floor: The space formerly held five bedrooms, now used as offices and a guest suite. One of the former bedrooms has its own porch, and the suite has its own sitting room with a full bathroom nearby. The house has a total of six bedrooms, two full bathrooms and two half bathrooms. The home could be converted back to residential use on the first and second floors or continue to be used for business purposes.

Third floor: The space contains an apartment with bedroom, full kitchen and full bathroom. There's a living room area nestled by a small bank of windows and an office in the home's turret. A porch off the third floor offers views of the city. The apartment's walls and ceiling are covered with tongue-and-groove panels.

Agents: Edlyn Polito and Stephen Saleski

Berkshire Hathaway CNY Realty

7575 Buckley Road, North Syracuse, N.Y. 13212

Phone: 315-243-6517

Email: Eddie@EddiePolito.com

Website: www.bhhscnyrealty.com

To nominate a listing for House of the Week send an email to home@syracuse.com. Contact Kevin Tampone at ktampone@syracuse.com or (315) 454-2112 and follow him on Twitter @ktampone.

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