Tredyffrin Easttown Historical Society
History Quarterly Digital Archives

Source: July 1989 Volume 27 Number 3, Pages 118–120

Notes and Comments

• Open Land Conservancy Fifty Years Old
• Original Altar Windown Installed in Berwyn Methodist Church
• Tredyffrin Library Undergoing Renovation

Page 118

Open Land Conservancy Fifty Years Old

This year the Open Land Conservancy of Chester County marks its 50th anniversary. It is one of the oldest nature preserves in the country, and the owner of more than 200 acres of land in Tredyffrin Township.

It was incorporated in 1939 as the Chester County Horticultural Society, with Howard Okie as its first president. In 1974 the name was changed to the Chester County Open Land Conservancy, and ten years later it became the Open Land Conservancy of Chester County.

The conservancy was originally established to accept a 63-acre tract of land donated by Miss Lydia S. M. Robinson as a gift to the people of Chester County. The tract lies on either side of North Valley Road, south of the Trenton Cut-Off. It is known as the Airdrie Forest Preserve, and is a natural habitat for a variety of plants, birds, and animal life. While some native woodland plants, such as trailing arbutus, hepaticas, trilium, have been planted in the preserve, for the most part it has been left in its natural state; when dead trees fall from natural causes, for example, they are simply left, as Mitsie Toland, president of the Conservancy, has observed, "to return nutrients to the soil and serve as seed beds for new plant growth".

In addition to the Airdrie Forest Preserve, as the "valley" in Tredyffrin became developed over the years, the Conservancy has received four other tracts of land for preservation as open space.

Page 119

The first of these was a nine-acre tract in the flood plain of Valley Creek, between Wisteria Drive and North Valley Road, the gift of Robert and Virginia Orr Maes in 1975. It is known as the Orr Nature Preserve. Because of the many berry bushes there it attracts a number of birds and is a popular site for bird-watchers.

Adjacent to it to the south is the Valley Creek Preserve. Part of the old Robert Scott farm, it was given to the Conservancy by Pohlig Builders when they developed the property in 1987 under a "cluster" development plan.

In 1979 the Cool Valley Preserve was established through a donation of some 26 acres by the First Valley Forge Corporation as it constructed the Shadow Oaks development in the western section of Tredyffrin Township. An additional 6.8 acres along Valley Creek was also donated by Mrs. Henry Kaltenthaler, in memory of her late husband -- Kaltenthaler, translated into English, means Cool Valley--giving the preserve a total of a little more than 33 acres.

The second largest holding of the Open Land Conservancy of Chester County is the George Lorimer Nature Preserve. It contains 70 acres; the first 54 were given to the Conservancy in 1980 by Graeme and Sarah Lorimer in memory of their son, and the remaining 16 acres were donated four years later by Mrs. Lorimer. The preserve includes an extensive trail system for hiking and cross-country skiing.

In addition to these properties in Tredyffrin Township, in 1941 the Conservancy was also given a small tract of 1.7 acres in East Bradford township by Mr. and Mrs. John Abernathy. It is known as the Abernathy Forest Preserve.

With the cooperation of several property owners in Tredyffrin and Easttown townships, conservation easements have also been established on an additional 80 acres of land.

In the course of a year, the five preserves have an estimated 5000 visitors. But in addition to accepting gifts of land to be kept in their natural state and managed as nature preserves, the Conservancy also, as one observer described it, "maintains a watchful eye for erosion of development sites, and for projects that can affect the purity of streams and the water supply. It works closely with developers in the planning stages of a project, and with other organizations and township boards, serves as a watchdog to insure the compliance of existing ordinances and laws." The Open Land Conservancy of Chester County is also affiliated with the Land Trust Exchange, a national organization.

Original Altar Windown Installed in Berwyn Methodist Church

The altar window from the original Berwyn Methodist Church, built in 1887 on what was then Church Avenue [now Main Avenue] has been restored and installed in the present church building on Waterloo Avenue, in memory of the Rev. Robert K. Turner. He was pastor of the church from 1968 to 1984.

Page 120

The circular stained glass window was removed from the old church building [now the Footlighters Theater] when the property was sold to the Trinity Presbyterian Church in 1958, following the move of the Methodist Church to its present location. In removing the window, the circular frame was broken in several places, but all the pieces were saved and kept in storage for thirty years.

Last year a restoration project was begun. After the frame had been repaired by an expert craftsman- carpenter, Glen Owens, the window was rebuilt at the Willett Glass Studios in Philaelphia.

Dedication services for the re-installation of the window were held at the church in April.

Tredyffrin Library Undergoing Renovation

A major renovation project is underway at the Tredyffrin Library on upper Gulph Road in Strafford. When it is completed, the 2500 square feet storage area on the lower level will be transformed into a new Children's Department. A separate outside entrance for the new section will also be added, as well as an elevator to the lower level to provide easy access to the downstairs for the handicapped and for older people.

Once the Children's Department is established in its new location, parts of the adult collection will be moved into its old quarters. The periodical reading room will also be expanded, and the reference section will be enlarged to provide more room for the collection and new equipment.

Construction work is expected to take about nine months, during which time there will inevitably be some inconvenience. The work is divided into four phases, and during each phase a different area of the library will be affected. During construction, some books will temporarily be moved into one of the meeting rooms, and library hours will also be altered to accommodate the construction schedule. A part of the parking lot will also be reserved for the contractors on the project.

Commenting on the renovations, Marian Stevens, director of the library, observed, "A transformed Tredyffrin Public Library should emerge sometime in 1990 -- less crowded, more convenient, and ready to provide our patrons with better service in the new decade."