Historic Twenty Mile House faces the end of the line

DEERFIELD TOWNSHIP - After 191 years, it looks like the end of the line for the historic Twenty Mile House.

The last of the fixtures – from the grand wooden fireplace mantle down to the sinks and toilets – were sold in an online auction, and soon it will be demolished, the auctioneer said.

A gas station and convenience store are planned for the site, Deerfield Township Administrator Bill Becker confirmed.

“I’m just heartbroken,” said Kim Grant, one of the nearby residents who organized more than two years ago to try to preserve to building. “The history of that building is unbelievable.”

Built in 1822, about 20 miles northeast of Cincinnati, the Twenty Mile House served as a stagecoach stop and even a temporary seat of government, Grant said.

“When Jeremiah Morrow was governor of Ohio (1822-30), there was no governor’s mansion, so he had an office there and held meetings there,” Grant said. “Our research showed it may also have been part of the Underground Railroad, but we’re not sure of that.

“It’s such a treasure. It’s really, really a shame that this is happening,” she said.

Plans submitted by Peabody Development of Lebanon call for a Big Mike’s Gas N Go and a convenience store, Becker said. He said he didn’t know when construction will start.

The Twenty Mile House, at the corner of Columbia Road and Ohio 3/U.S. 22, has housed several restaurants in contemporary times, but it has been vacant for more than two years. The current owner, Jeff Black, bought it in 2004.

“He poured a lot of money into the place, but it didn’t work out,” Grant said.

Black tried to sell the property to Speedway for a gas station and convenience store, but Speedway nixed the deal in 2011 when Warren County Commissioners wouldn’t approve the company's request to build a driveway off Columbia Road.

Grant said her group had been seeking a buyer who would preserve the property.

“We were working with someone who was interested in purchasing it. Since we’re non-profit, we were hoping they would donate it. I guess that won’t happen now,” she said.

“I’ve lived in this area for 20 years and that building has defined our community. When people ask where I live, I say, ‘I live by Twenty Mile House.’ I just hate to see that building go.”

The online auction, conducted by Fast Track Auction Sales, ended at 9:30 p.m. Monday. It can be found at http://www.fasttrackauction.net/cgi-bin/mnlist.cgi?fasttrack1213/category/ALL