Tredyffrin Easttown Historical Society
History Quarterly Digital Archives


Source: July 2000 Volume 38 Number 3, Pages 113–114


Notes and Comments

Page 113

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Berwyn Walk III

It "rained on our parade" but a good time was had by all. Berwyn Walk III, scheduled for Thursday evening June 29, 2000, was greeted by a fast­moving thunder shower at the 6:00 p.m. starting time, but hardy tour guides were on hand to escort the first tour out forty-five minutes later.

Berwyn-Devon Business and Professional Association and Tredyffrin East­town History Club joined forces once again to participate in the 6th Annual Town Tours & Village Walks summer series organized by the Chester County Parks and Recreation Department, promoted by the Chester County Conference & Visitors Bureau. Even on an unpromising night, a surprisingly large and enthusiastic crowd participated in the event.

This year's tour route through the village of Berwyn led from the East­town Library parking lot over First, Bridge, Berwyn, Knox and Lancaster Avenues to the bridge at the train station. Crossing the bridge, visitors walked north on Cassatt, then east on Kromer, down Station Avenue and back over the bridge for a refreshment break at the station. The walkers regrouped in front of the Bank, and proceeded up Lancaster to Waterloo and back to the starting point on First Avenue at the library.

New stops on the tour this year were the Red Cross Building on Bridge Avenue (being renovated as the new headquarters of Surrey Services) and a look at the history of the Thomas Aiken tract which was developed in the 1880s and 1890s into what is today the section of Berwyn between Waterloo, Bridge, Lancaster and First Avenues.

Page 114

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Route 30 Road Work

The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation recently announced a two-year, $5 million project to improve Route 30 between Route 252 in Paoli and Old Eagle School road in Strafford, a distance of 4.07 miles. The first phase will start September 1 when Philadelphia Suburban Water Company begins to lay 12,000 feet of water main to replace a 90-year­old cement main in the road bed. Early next year PennDOT will commence reconstruction of the road way itself.

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Where Were You?

The History Club was only one year old on January 16, 1 938. Proof positive that the Big Band Era had arrived was the Benny Goodman concert booked into Carnegie Hall on that date. A recent newspaper music column titled "On Disc: The Holy Grail of Jazz Concerts" reviewed a new CD containing the music performed. It's still good listening.

The column brought forth a "Letter to the Editor" from a reader who attended the concert, mailed from Naples, Florida, a good retirement location. She mentioned, "The only popular music that had been permitted in the sacred confines had been Paul Whiteman's band. But the King of Swing's explosion since the Palomar Ballroom appearance in Los Angeles in 1936 (she was there also) had persuaded Carnegie Hall's management that it might be okay with the ghosts of Mozart and Beethoven to give the strange new sound an airing." The New York Times music critic, "tried to analyze the riffs and the contrapuntal back and forth of saxes, but he couldn't explain the magic." Benny's band that night, among other greats, included Gene Krupa, Harry James and Count Basie.

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Clearing the Record

The editor wishes to clarify two points reported in the April 1997 issue of the Quarterly (Vol. 35, No. 2) relating to recollections by Anne Kirkpatrick of her life in Strafford. The first is a reference to the "stepping stone quarry". The quarry provided the stone for Mr. Mecke's addition to Anne's parent's house at Croton and Knox Roads, and was across the street along Croton Road. Another quarry on Radnor Street Road, some distance away, is also shown on maps of the era. A second point is the reference to a Shirley Temple movie. The "Shirley Temple" was a fruit juice cocktail served at lunch to youngsters at the Princeton Club. A movie, perhaps, was viewed later.

 
 

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