On the green space where the new Dwight E. Wagner Welcome Center will soon be erected, there once stood a gracious three-story Victorian home. The house was built in 1880, and — along with Fern Cliffe — was one of the first two houses on College Hill, both of which were completed before Old Main (1881). This home was the residence of Geneva's eighth president, Dr. Henry H. George, and stood across College Avenue from Old Main for over 100 years.
Henry Hosack George graduated from Geneva College in Northwood, OH, in 1853, and was a member of the faculty for various years shortly thereafter. In 1872, George became the first alumnus of the College to serve as president, retaining that post until 1890. It was in 1879, under Dr. George’s leadership, that trustees began to explore the possibility of relocating the school, a move supported by Dr. George. He and J. L. McCartney, owner of Fern Cliffe, were the only two faculty members to make the move with the College to Beaver Falls, PA. William M. Glasgow, early Geneva historian, credits President George as the one responsible for much of the prosperity of the College in the closing decades of the nineteenth century. In 1907, William Henry George, the son of H. H. George, followed in his father’s footsteps, becoming Geneva’s tenth president at age 29. After his resignation in 1916, W. Henry George served in the Ambulance Corps in France and Italy in World War I and was awarded the Italian War Cross for bravery under fire.
Sometime around 1915, a fire destroyed the third floor of the George house; by that time, R. M. Downie had built his home two houses north. (The Downie house was purchased for the College with funds raised by alumni in 1926 and known since then as “Alumni Hall.”) It is not clear just when the George house was purchased by the Wylie family, but Dr. H. H. Wylie joined the faculty in 1910. He and his wife Georgiana were long-time, influential members of Geneva’s faculty. Dr. H.H. Wylie died in 1923, but Dr. Georgiana continued teaching until her retirement in 1961. In the 1970s, the College purchased the house from the Wylie family, and from that time on, it was known as “Wylie House,” being used at various times as a residence for women or men students. The house was razed by the College in 1992.
Dr. Henry H. George was the last president of Geneva College in Northwood, OH, and the first president of Geneva College in Beaver Falls, PA. How fitting that the new Welcome Center will stand on the very spot where President George built his home when Geneva came to Beaver Falls, and where other faculty members and students also lived for so many years!
This article originally appeared in The Cabinet, April 4, 2024.
By Kae Kirkwood '83, Geneva College Archival Librarian
Header image: On the left, a photo of the Dwight E. Wagner Welcome Center construction site in September 2025. On the right, a photo of the same spot from 1979, picturing the houses (from left to right) of Foster, Mitchell, Wylie, Kennedy, and Alumni Hall.
Opinions expressed in the Geneva Blog are those of its contributors and do not necessarily represent the opinions or official position of the College. The Geneva Blog is a place for faculty and contributing writers to express points of view, academic insights, and contribute to national conversations to spark thought, conversation, and the pursuit of truth, in line with our philosophy as a Christian, liberal arts institution.
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