~story and photos by Bob Gustin
Donna and Phil Wolter had just launched a new chapter in their lives as owners of the Olde Bartley House in Nashville when everything changed on Dec. 2, 2024. Phil died that day from an accident that happened while driving back to Nashville from Evansville on the icy interstate, just two weeks after the couple moved to Brown County.
Phil had spent nearly four years remodeling and refurbishing the historic building with the help of about 100 local craftsmen.
An artist and businessman, he carefully selected the antique dining chairs and reupholstered them as necessary. He oversaw improvements to the building’s foundation, floors, electrical, plumbing and structural systems. He chose handcrafted walnut tabletops and countertops. And he spent hours picking which pieces to display by famed local photographer Frank Hohenberger.
Phil created the logo for the Olde Bartley House, getting it just right after doing 287 drawings of it, Donna said.
He named the coffee and donut shop’s signature pastry, the volant, after the French word for “flight,” a concept which captivated him. The donut is a light, croissant-based Americana treat offered in an array of flavors.
Besides volants and gourmet coffee, the shop offers a variety of sandwiches and other items. A room upstairs from the restaurant is available upon request, and can be rented for special events.
Donna said she was ready to retire and do more volunteer work after moving to Brown County just over a year ago.
Now, with the help of her daughter Danielle Wolter Nolan and general manager Dietrich Gosser, she is more involved in the operation than she imagined she would ever be.
“It’s been a roller-coaster ride for me,” she said. But without Dietrich and Danielle, “we [the coffee shop] wouldn’t be in existence,” Donna said.
The Wolters’ story begins in Evansville, Ind., where both Donna and Phil were born and raised. Phil served in the U. S. Army in Vietnam before earning a degree in art at Southern Indiana University and getting a job at Evansville’s Mesker Park Zoo, where he painted murals and animal habitat landscapes for the zoo’s displays. Then he worked for 14 years as an art therapist for the Evansville State Hospital.
He worked on a haunted house created as a fundraiser for the hospital and went on to own and operate five haunted attractions, including the Old Courthouse Catacombs and the House of Lecter for 35 years. He spent a total of 45 years running haunted houses.
Donna was active in theater productions, attended Indiana University and the University of Evansville, earning a bachelor’s degree in psychology and a master’s degree in counseling. She taught at a modeling school and appeared in television commercials.
For more than 40 years she worked as a counselor at numerous mental health facilities and schools in the Evansville area.
Phil and Donna met at Funky’s, a now-defunct Evansville disco and night club, and were married for 42 years.
The Wolters’ connection to Brown County goes back decades. As children, the families of both Donna and Phil visited the area, enjoying camping and shopping, and Phil dreamed of someday opening a coffee shop.
In 2019, Danielle represented the family at a series of auctions for businesses once owned by Andy Rogers. She won the auction for the Olde Bartley House. Danielle and her wife Kate later leased a building at 185 S. Jefferson St. where they operate Brown County Bikes.
Since Phil’s death, Donna said she has taken on business responsibilities.
“I’ve learned to prioritize and be more flexible because you don’t know from day to day what’s going to pop up,” she said. “I had no choice. I had to learn to do things I never thought I’d have to do.”
The Olde Bartley House was built in 1886 as a private residence and was home for the Bartley family from 1904 to about 1920. Hohenberger lived there from 1948 to 1963, and after that the building was used for a series of retail shops.
The Olde Bartley House coffee shop opened in June of 2024.
Dietrich came into the business with Phil to develop menus and get systems in place. He moved to Brown County in 2015 and previously worked as a chef at the Brown County Inn. Before that, he worked in food services in Madison, Wisc.
As general manager, he oversees day-to-day operations of the shop, trains and supervises a staff of eight people.
Danielle, who has a degree in design from the University of Evansville, is in charge of marketing, social media, designing of retail sections of the shop, and other duties as needed. She has plans to bring more community-centered activities to the Olde Bartley House, including musical concerts and poetry readings. She would also like to collaborate with local artists.
While not all volant flavors are available every day, they are available if requested as special orders a day ahead of pickup.
Coffee comes from Tinker Coffee, specialtygrade roasters in Indianapolis, and milk products come from Family Tyme Creamery, a group of dairy farmers in northern Indiana.
“We want the best of the best because people deserve it,” Dietrich said.
Hohenberger’s presence is everywhere in the shop, from his iconic photos and portraits to a huge old camera on the wall, similar to one Hohenberger used. The house coffee blend is called “Frank’s Ghost House Roast” and another
is named the “The Liar’s Bench,” after one of Hohenberger’s best known photos.
“Frank Hohenberger and his legacy is important…to offer a new community space and go further into the 21st Century while honoring the past,” Dietrich said.
Olde Bartley House Coffee & Donuts is located at 96 S. Van Buren St.in Nashville and its website is oldebartleyhouse.com
