The land of this whole block on the west side of Union Avenue was sold to George Taylor Lyon (a member of the firm of A. & G. T. Lyon & Co.) in 1875. After his 1891 death, his heirs sold this property in 1901 to Lena Hopkins Crothers, wife of Dr. Augustus C. Crothers. Lena Crothers was an architect who designed and built this home for them in 1902. Dr. Crothers was the brother of the Austin Lane Crothers who served as Maryland Governor from 1908-1912 and was the physician for the B&O Railroad. The brothers had grown up in Cecil County on the family’s 150-acre farm and while the Governor continued to live in Cecil County, Dr. Crothers made his home in Havre de Grace.

In 1927 an ownership dispute that arose between John C. Crothers and Omar D. Crothers reached the Circuit Court, which appointed Trustees to sell the property. It was bought by G. Bartol Silver (1900-1972) and Ida L. Silver in 1928 and they retained ownership until 1966. They raised two children in this house; Charles Bartol Silver II, and Ethel Silver Crocker. George Bartol was the son of Charles Bartol Silver (1867-1947) and a partner in Silver, Spencer & Company, perhaps the largest salt fish packers in the East. George also became Commodore of the Havre de Grace Yacht Club, and was president of the First National Bank & Trust Company from 1948 to 1971. His father had bought the Spencer-Silver Mansion nearby and lived there.

The Silvers sold this home in 1966 to Dr. Edward C. Loo (1926-2015) and his wife, Shirley M. Loo. They, however, sold this property within a year to The Memorial Baptist Church of Havre de Grace, Inc. At that time, the church was run by Pastor Tyler May who had begun the church in a building on Revolution Street, but after adding a large addition to the rear of this building the pastor moved his church to this location. Gunther Pauley and Donna Cornett Hullett remember attending church services here. By 1975, however, Dr. Larry Lilly was leading the church and sold this building as its President. The church does not appear to have continued in Havre de Grace and in November 1975 The Indianapolis Star carried an announcement that Dr. Larry Lilly had been named pastor of First Baptist Church in Avon, Indiana.

The new buyers of this property in 1975 were Robert A. “Bob” Kempsell and Fannie Sue Kempsell who lived here for about 16 years before selling it to Gary Anthony Cecchine and Margaret “Peggy” Cecchine in 1991. Gary was a graduate of the U.S. Military Academy and served in Vietnam from 1966 to 1967 for which he received a Bronze Star, an Army commendation award, and a Combat Infantryman Badge. He and Peggy were both investment representatives for Edward Jones Investments for many years.

In 2010, the Cecchines sold this property to Rory G. and Deborah L. White and relocated for their retirement. Rory, a U.S. Military Academy graduate, is also a financial advisor with the Edward Jones Investments team. Rory serves as a board member of the Harford County Boys & Girls Clubs and is a former president of the Havre de Grace Rotary. The Whites live elsewhere and continue to own this property.

County Records
Built 1935. 4720 sq ft office building, 11,658 sq ft lot.