Built some 25 years before H.B. Smith's arrival in Burlington County , the Greek Revival mansion symbolizes in its buildings and gardens the complexity of its most famous owner.
The Shreve brothers came to the village area with a ready made business, which they had begun in 1815. They eventually (1820s) were involved in the Trenton Calico Printing Manufactury which they brought to Shreveville along with other textile related industries.
1831 – July – Jonathan and Samuel Shreve purchase Parkers Mills for $14, 000 for their textile village
1832 to 1845 – Shreves alter height of dam and flow of Rancocas, resulting in legal problems as they attempt to increase power for their enterprise
1840 – They construct a Manor House (the “Mansion”) and three rows of workers houses
1846 – Samuel Semple was brought from Scotland to introduce spool cotton manufacturing at the facility
1847 – Samuel Shreve receives patent for an efficient cast iron stove
1850 – Village operations at their peak: 60 workers houses; 209 workers; 420 residents.
1856 – July 13 – Samuel Shreve dies of apoplexy. Leaves behind his wife and 10 children
1857 – May 13 – Jonathan Shreve died from heart disease
1858 – Property sold to Benjamin Shreve and declines rapidly because of debt related to the decline of the cotton industry (pre Civil War). Becomes a virtual ghost town for approximately 7 years – ready for the arrival of H.B. Smith in 1865
