George B. Shober was born September 7, 1795, on the homestead at Kissel Hill, then called New Haven, in Warwick Township. As a child, George received an ordinary education and acquired a knowledge of farm labor. Having decided to also learn a trade, he chose that of a stone-cutter. In those days a stone-cutter had a similar income earning to doctors and lawyers. He married Mary, daughter of Peter Buch, also of Warwick, and had one son, Augustus W. Shober, in 1827. Although George made a comfortable living as a stone-cutter and was active in business and politics, he much preferred the agricultural life and retired in 1855 until he died in 1877.

As the only son of a prominent local man, Augustus inherited a considerable amount of money for the time and built his first home at 9 Owl Hill Road in 1867 adjacent to his father 1853 home. Working as a storekeeper, Augustus married Elizabeth Shreiner in 1855 and had two daughters—Ellen Mary who died at the age of 5 and Elizabeth who died three months after birth. Augustus was very active in business and the Moravian church. In 1881, he built his 18 room retirement mansion located on N. Broad street Lititz, and was described at the time as “the most desirable residence in the borough.” Augustus died March 21, 1906, and the mansion was razed in 1956 along with other homes of similar style known as “Cottage Row,” and is now the site for the Lititz Mutual Insurance Company. George Shober’s home was razed in 2011.

Revitalizing the last remaining home of the Shober family as an antique and vintage shop, has been a labor of love. Not only do we feel privileged to be part of Lititz’s rich history, we look forward to preserving it for locals and visitors alike to visit and take a trip back in time.