The land on which this home was built was owned in 1879 by Harrison Hopper who was a Captain in the Union Army during the Civil War. He also was a son of John A. Hopper (1804-1878), a prominent citizen who was proprietor of the Hopper Hotel near the Lockhouse.

In 1920, the land was sold by Court Trustees to John P. “Jack” Beckman (1878-1952) and his wife, Cora Spencer Beckman. Cora had previously been married to Clayton V. Kaylor who had been killed in a 1907 accident at the age of 28 at the Mulberry Street Bridge in Harrisburg while working. He left Cora with an infant son, Thomas “Buddy” Kaylor, and a pregnant widow. However, Margaret related later that he had not even known that Cora was pregnant then. Cora gave birth to Margaret Kaylor in 1908 and she subsequently married Jack Beckman.

After purchasing this land in 1920 it is believed that Jack and Cora Beckman built this home with the use of a Sears Roebuck Model Home Kit that (according to a later owner) was shipped to them on a barge via the Chesapeake and Delaware Canal. Sears Model Home Kits contained around 25 tons of materials, more than 30,000 parts, 750 lbs of nails, along with a 75-page instruction book that were shipped directly to the purchaser. The 370 different designs were only offered in Sears mail order catalogs between 1908 and 1940. Sears houses built after 1916 have stamped lumber elements that could be found in attics or basements. Between 1908 and 1940 Sears sold about 75,000 homes with 370 different designs by mail order in all 48 states, with several in Havre de Grace.

Just a few years later, the Beckman’s daughter, Margaret Anne Kaylor (1908-2010) met Donald Louis Mergler (1908-2007) and they wanted to get married. Donald was a jockey (he rode his first race at Pimlico when he was 15) who grew up in a family very involved in horse racing with brothers as jockeys and his father, Francis X. “Frank” Mergler (1872-1921), as a trainer.

In a Harford County Living Treasures interview with Margaret and Donald in 2001 they said that although they wanted to get married in the Methodist Church, they were not allowed to. The church said that because Donald had a “gambling background” as a jockey, the “discipline of the church” wouldn’t allow it. Undaunted with young love, they got married in this house in 1926 with their families.

From when they married in 1926 to 1934 the couple said they had to “live out of suitcases” because Donald traveled the horse-racing circuit. His work took them to tracks in Baltimore, New York, Toronto, and Florida, moving about every 30 days. They had a daughter, Barbara, in 1930 and in 1938 they moved back to Havre de Grace and into this home with the Beckmans. Donald continued to work in the horse industry in various capacities and Margaret worked at the Aberdeen Proving Ground and they both were active in activities of the Methodist Church. In 1944 they decided they needed three bedrooms and moved to a house at Lewis and South Washington Streets. Their daughter was growing up, they said, and needed more space. Barbara later married Charles Wooten and gave them seven grandchildren before dying in 1993.

Their moving out prompted the Beckmans to sell this home in 1945 to G. Randall Mitchell and his wife, Gladys P. Mitchell. In 1947, the Mitchells added their daughter’s name (Dorothy V. Mitchell) to the deed. At some point, this home, which has a basement, was converted into three apartments; the date is not known. Dorothy V. Mitchell married Leland G. French and after divorcing him was married to Frank Walters. Dorothy Walters in 1964 deeded this home to her mother, Gladys P. Mitchell, who had been widowed by the 1951 death of Randall Mitchell.

For the years between 1964 and 1996 Gladys P. Mitchell had established a Life Estate naming several children and grandchildren as beneficiaries (with last names such as Mitchell, French, and Walters). In 1996, however, remaining heirs with those names sold this house and property to Karen Fenner through their attorneys.

Karen Fenner is the widow of the late Franklin V. Fenner, who had died the previous year and was known by many locals as the founder of the company, Fence by Fenner. After purchasing this property Karen completed a renovation of this home during which she returned it to being a single family home instead of being divided into three apartments. This appears to be an investment property for Karen, who continues to own it.

County Records
Built 1935, 1320 sq ft with 200 ft basement, 2 baths, 9000 sq ft lot.