Historical Palmer - The Village of Seip
Built in 1760, the Seipsville Hotel, aka (Seip’s Hotel) / (Seip’s Tavern), is an historic inn and tavern located in Palmer
Township, Northampton County, Pennsylvania. It is one of the oldest pre-revolutionary buildings in the Lehigh Valley.
The Seipsville Hotel is an attractive 2½ story field stone building with an adjoining 1½-story spring house. It has 2 gable
chimneys and a gable roof. The building is of mortise and tenon construction. (No nails)
During its colorful history, the inn served as a US Post Office, Town Hall, tavern, voting place, stage coach stop,
community meeting center and Host Inn. In the year 1760, Patriarch Peter Seip built the Seipsville Inn on the corner of
Old Nazareth Road and Park Avenue and still stands strong 260+ years later. It was around this tavern/hotel that there grew
a village to be called Seip. Three of those original fieldstone buildings remain standing. It is here that in May of 1857, the
historic decision was made to incorporate the community of Palmer Township. It was named after the Pennsylvania
Surveyor General George Palmer.
After many decades of disregard, the rich colonial beauty of the Inn fell into disrepair. It wasn’t until the year 1977
when our story began. Mr. Elpedio “Pete”Pettinelli, a school teacher living in Alpha, NJ and his family appreciated the
natural beauty and charm of the Inn and therefore painstakingly began the restoration of the entire building.
The beginning stage was the removal of wall paper, plaster, and a “mud” which was a mixture of horsehair and straw,
common in earlier building construction and similar to a stucco. This “mud” covered much of the stone walls,
ceiling beams and wood surfaces. Each joint around each stone was replaced with mortar by hand.
The second stage was reinforcing and re-engineering a sagging building by lifting up the 43’ solid hand-hewn oak
beams 3” and followed by the sandblasting and sealing of every stone and piece of wood located in the entire building.
In 1977, during 4 years of renovations, restorations, and expansions the Seipsville Hotel was added to the National
Register of Historic Places. Truly, the final result showcases an unmatched charm and beauty. Unfortunately, Elpedio
would pass away 12 weeks before he saw the Seipsville Grand Opening.
Highlights
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8 fireplaces (one of which is a “larger-than-life” walk-in tiered with an oak mantle easily accommodating at least 2 copper cauldrons of the type found in Pennsylvania Dutch cooking)
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Deep window wells, random width oak floor boards and unusual examples of sculptured door entries
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A springhouse redone as a private dining room of 10-12 people
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A natural spring emptying into the basement providing 36,000 gallons of spring water daily originally used to cool beer
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A center staircase whose plank Ballistrade appear to be of Dutch influence
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One piece of the original bar and the orighinal 9’ door have been restored and viewable
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6 hotel rooms required in 1760; now they have been restored and are available as Air BnB rentals on a nightly basis
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Patio installed under 30’x30’ tent for al fresco outside dining
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Original outdoor porch (now enclosed) served to board horses on a weary traveler’s path to Philadelphia and Lancaster
The Story of Elpedio’s Ristorante
After Elpedio’s untimely passing, our restaurant opened its doors in 1981. Over the last 40+ years, many changes have
occured and we ultimately decided the best way to honor our father’s dream is to incorporate an Old World concept of fine
Italian cuisine dating back to our original roots, with Italian family recipes passed down over generations. Elpedio was a
family man with a passionate goal to present great tasting Italian food and wine. He always felt dining was important to be
with the ones you love and enjoy each other’s company along with excellent house-made food.
With that decision, we transformed The Pub at Seipsville into Elpedio’s Ristorante - Your neighborhood Italian kitchen
where you’ll find a variety of classic and modernized Italian dishes made from scratch with high-quality ingredients by our
exceptionally-talented cooks and served fresh. After completing current renovations, Elpedio’s Ristorante officially opened
Sunday May 1, 2022. Elpedio’s four sons Louis, Peter, Dino, and Dero strive to bring their combined passion for great food
and wine to each of our customers every day.
At Elpedio’s Ristorante, we take pride in serving fresh, delicious Italian meals in an environment that feels like home.
Our scratch kitchen crafts every dish using only the finest ingredients to ensure the highest quality, because you deserve it.
“The Four Jersey Brothers” wish to take this opportunity to invite you, your family, and your friends to come try our
creative menu and wine list as this was the vision of our father, Elpedio, and it lives on through his sons to this day.