Tredyffrin Easttown Historical Society
History Quarterly Digital Archives

Source: Spring 2006 Volume 43 Number 2, Page 42

FROM THE EDITOR

Page 42

The lead article in this issue is Herb Fry's look at Private Schools in Easttown Township between 1865 and 1965. Many of them were located in former large summer estates built when the Pennsylvania Railroad provided a means for wealthy Philadelphians to escape the heat of the city. With the introduction of the Model T Ford in 1908 and improved roads, wealthy people could go farther to the ocean and the mountains and began to give up their large private estates. Another article co-authored by Mr. Fry gives the history of the Matthews Ford Company in Paoli which had its beginnings in 1916 in Berwyn. It tells of one of the earliest automobile dealerships in this area—one that probably helped contribute to the downfall of the summer estates.

The other two feature articles in this issue tell us about farming and textile production in colonial times. Mike Bertram examines the farm and household items auctioned at a November 20, 1766 vendue—or estate sale—of Thomas John, a colonial farmer and carpenter who lived in Tredyffrin. He gives us the prices and many fine photographs of the individual household objects and tools sold at the vendue. Kathy King's article, “Real Colonial Women Don't Weave Cloth,” is a detailed look at the textile industries in Britain and this area between 1700 and 1780 and includes many interesting details about fiber processing and the economics and politics and myths of spinning and weaving.

The front cover and the “Then... & Now” feature are about the General Warren Inn in Malvern and the associated Warren Shops where blacksmiths and wheelwrights provided local services for horses and carriages.

Please join us. Our last regular meeting before the summer break is a June 18th Port Kennedy walkabout that will visit many of the locations described in the Port Kennedy article in the Winter 2006 Quarterly. For further information about this meeting contact the President or the Program Chair.

Authors retain copyright of their contributions.
The Club does not accept responsibility for the accuracy of the information in the articles.

TREDYFFRIN EASTTOWN HISTORY QUARTERLY
Volume 43, Number 2 – Spring 2006

FRONT COVER: From Old Roads Out Of Philadelphia by John T. Faris. 1917. Photograph By Henry C. Howland

The General Warren Inn was established in 1745 as the Admiral Vernon Tavern on Old Lancaster Road east of Malvern and was a gathering place for the British during the Revolutionary War. By 1800 it was a major stage-coach stop on the Lancaster Turnpike. The “Then... & Now” on the last page of this issue features blacksmiths and wheelwrights of the nearby Warren Shops. Today the General Warren Inn, still at its original location, is a 4-star restaurant.

BACK COVER: Large butter print for imprinting butter. Photographed at the Mercer Museum, Doylestown by Mike Bertram, July 2005. From his article, “Thomas Jones, Colonial Farmer and Carpenter,” in this issue.