Category: Chapter Programs

T. Roney Williamson and Oakbourne

May 15, 2015 /

2015-06-11 Oakbourne Mansion SAR_4954cropped
Thursday, June 11, Reception at 5:30 p.m., Talk at 6:30 p.m.
Oakbourne Park, 1014 S. Concord Rd, West Chester, PA

In 1882 James C. Smith of Philadelphia purchased 143 acres of land in Westtown Township, Chester County with an existing granite mansion. By 1884 the Smiths had enlarged and refurbished the mansion to replace their original summer house and named it “Oakbourne.”  The Queen Anne renovations are attributed to West Chester architect T. Roney Williamson (1852-1896).  Mr. Smith died in 1893 and willed the property to the Philadelphia Protestant Episcopal City Mission with the stipulation that it be used as a retreat for sick and convalescent white women, 23 years of age or older.  For more than 70 years the James C. Smith Memorial Home was opened to guests.  As many as 25 to 30 women convalesced there at any given time. By 1971, however, increasing operational costs forced the home to close its doors.  In 1974 Westtown Township purchased the land for use as a township park.

Our speaker, Jane E. Dorchester, is a historic preservationist, lecturer, local and architectural historian, and writer who has been working in the preservation field since 1983.  She has lectured on a wide variety of history–oriented topics, including “How To Research Your Historic Property,” “What Is Serpentine,” “Section 106 Review,” and “Gothic Revival, Second Empire, and Queen Anne Architectural Styles in Chester County.”

Join us for wine and refreshments at 5:30 p.m. to explore the exterior of this amazing house while the sun is out.  We’ll gather inside at 6:30 p.m. to hear about Oakbourne’s architect and his other work in the area.

$10.00 for Phila SAH members,
$15.00 for all others, payable on site.
Registration required by Sunday, June 7, at info@philachaptersah.org

Thanks to the Westtown Township Historical Commission for hosting this program.

There is no public transportation to Oakbourne, but we may be able to arrange a ride or a pick up at the Media or Paoli Regional Rail stations.  Please email info@philasah.org if you need a way to get to the program.

HARRISON’S FOLLY

February 27, 2015 /

2015-03-30 Harrison's Folly
co-sponsored with The Oliver Evans Chapter, Society for Industrial Archeology

by Patty McCarthy, Friends of Northeast Philadelphia History

Monday, March 30
5:30 Wine/Beer & Cheese, 6:30 Program
Registration required at oliverevanssia@outlook.com

Cost: $10 for those who register in advance, $15 for non-registered, Payable at the door.

Fairmount Water Works Interpretive Center, 640 Waterworks Dr.
Since the Art Museum and Restaurant are closed, you can park on the circle around the Seahorse Fountain, closer to FWWIC.

“Some persons care little or nothing for the past. Musty records and old things have no charm for them.” Joseph Harrison Jr., The Locomotive Engineer and Philadelphia’s Share In Its Early Improvements, 1872

Joseph Harrison Jr. (1810-1874), engineer, inventor, art collector, writer and one-time major property owner in Northeast Philadelphia, was not a person who cared “little or nothing for the past.”  The quote above is the opening passage of his 1872 history of the early development of the locomotive, a history in which Harrison himself played a significant role [as creator of the Harrison Safety Boiler]. In 2013, a collection of photographs came to light offering previously unknown views of Harrison’s unusual mid-19th-century estate stretching from Holmesburg to Torresdale along the Delaware River.  The photos were taken in 1901 by the Philadelphia Water Department to document its demolition of the estate for construction of the new Torresdale Water Treatment Plant on the site.  The images are part of an album that includes mechanical drawings and other technical materials on the plant’s construction.  In the 1950s, a superintendent at the plant rescued the album from a junk pile and gave it to his son-in-law Henry Kalinowski, also a superintendent at the plant.  The album eventually passed into the possession of Kalinowski’s daughter Vivian Haggerty, who is a neighbor of local historian Pat Worthington Stopper.  Stopper arranged for the album’s donation to the Friends of Northeast Philadelphia History.  As revealed in the photos, “Harrison’s Folly,” as the estate came to be known, was an interesting and unusual property. The same could be said for the man who built it.  Join Patty McCarthy to learn about this fascinating slice of Philly history.(Text adapted from Northeast Times, August 27, 2014)

Looking Backward, Looking Forward: A Comparison of The Athenaeum’s 19th and  21st Century Architectural Competitions

January 22, 2015 /
2015-02-04 Competitions Athenaeum

Image courtesy of: Athenaeum of Philadelphia

Wednesday, February 4, 2015 (snow date Feb. 11) at 6:00 p.m. The Athenaeum of Philadelphia, 219 S. 6th Street

Curator of Architecture Bruce Laverty will compare the 19th century competition to design the Athenaeum’s current building with the conceptual Looking Forward: Re-Imagining The Athenaeum of Philadelphia competition, the results of which make up the current exhibition at the Athenaeum.  For gallery hours and more information about Looking Forward visit www.philaathenaeum.org/current.html

Co-Sponsored by ICAA Philadelphia and Philadelphia SAH.  ICAA, SAH and Athenaeum Members Free.  RSVP to events@philaathenaeum.org or 215-925-2688.  All Others $10.00, online payments at www.philaathenaeum.org/programs.html