Coffee Pot Saved!!

The “supersized” 1927 Coffee Pot measures 18' in diameter. Its condition was badly deteriorated. A willing owner - the Lashley family - donated it to the Lincoln Highway Heritage Corridor. The LHHC charged ahead to secure funding, complete a structures report and feasibility study, identify a nonprofit organization willing to receive it, coordinate the move, and ultimately restore it. It is the little building that has captured the hearts of so many in a big way. Once again, the restored Coffee Pot will serve as a beacon to travelers along the Lincoln Highway. The LHHC also had the Coffee Pot listed on the National Register.

Just as motorists stopped daily during its restoration, many more Lincoln Highway travelers will stop to have their photograph taken in front of one of the last five ‘pots' in the United States. The 100+ Coffee Pot fans who attended the August 6, 2004 dedication were thrilled with the work by Village Restorations of Claysburg. Long before construction even began, a good bit of planning (by Mike Eversmeyer, Architect) was completed. The Southwestern PA Heritage Preservation Commission funded this most important first step.

The Pennsylvania Heritage Areas Program of the PA Department of Conservation and Natural Resources and the PA Historical and Museum Commission both felt saving the Coffee Pot was of paramount importance and awarded generous grants towards its restoration. In addition to federal and state awards, the Community Foundation of the Alleghenies and the Bedford Rotary Sunrise Club provided much-needed funds. Private donations hailed from 13 states.

One of Pennsylvania's premier examples of programmatic architecture along the Lincoln Highway is the Coffee Pot. The shape of the building is what drew the public to the small lunch stand. Built in 1927 by David Koontz, the Coffee Pot remains one of only five coffee/tea pot shapes structures left in the United States, a significant decrease from fifteen. Unfortunately, the Coffee Pot was named to the 2001 list of the Commonwealth's Most Endangered Historic Properties.