Tredyffrin Easttown Historical Society
History Quarterly Digital Archives

Source: Summer 2007 Volume 44 Number 3, Pages 111, 117

Notes and Comments

Page 111

Easttown Historical Commission

The Board of Supervisors of Easttown Township at its meeting on March 5, 2007 approved an ordinance creating a Historical Commission, “in order to: locate, name, and preserve for posterity significant architectural, natural, and other historical sites within the boundaries of [the] township. ...” The commission, to consist of 5 members, will serve in an advisory capacity in providing historical preservation information to the citizens.

The new commission is charged with, among other things, responsibility for identifying significant sites in Easttown, creating an awareness of the history of the township, serving as an advisory resource for owners involved with rehabilitation, preservation, and or restoration, and preparation of appropriate reports for the Board of Supervisors. It is expected the supervisors will name the commission members shortly.

Chester County Historic Preservation Network (CCHPN)

The CCHPN is an affiliation of local organizations and individuals dedicated to protecting and preserving Chester County's historic resources and landscapes through education, facilitation, and public and private advocacy. At the present time, one of the focal points of its activity is the compilation of a computerized county atlas on which the local inventory of historic resources of each municipality will be plotted.

To celebrate the debut of its new Historical Commission, Easttown hosted the annual Volunteer Recognition Celebration of CCHPN—a picnic—at Easttown's Hilltop House, next to the township municipal building, on June 27, 2007. Visitors toured the historic hamlet of Waterloo Mills, located nearby in the Waterloo Mills Preserve. Over 100 persons from throughout the county attended, and 10 municipalities were honored for completing their historic resource atlases.

Easttown will have as one of its early priorities the initiation of work on its township atlas.

Beverly Sills, Opera Diva

The opera world, and, of course, music lovers and TV fans everywhere, mourn the death of effervescent, Brooklyn-born Beverly Sills on July 2, 2007, at age 78. The Associated Press story of her passing mentions her operatic stage debut in Philadelphia in a bit role in Bizet's “Carmen” in 1947. Unsaid, however, is her July 7, 1947 opening in a two-week stand at the old Berwyn Theater in Franz Lehar's “The Merry Widow” opposite Frank Melton, to much local critical acclaim. The theater still exists on Cassatt Avenue at the railroad station, known today as an office building named Cassatt Crossing.

Page 117 (continued from page 111)

Paoli Hospital Parking Garage

The new 737-space parking garage across from the main entrance at Paoli Hospital opened on schedule February 5, 2007, less than a year after the builders moved the first shovel of dirt. Paving of the new “Loop Road” providing access to the west parking lots has also been completed. The construction now moves to the site of the new Patient Care Building.

Easttown Library News

The library's new director, Alan Silverman, was introduced to the community on December 1, 2006. He was formerly employed as head of technical services at Chester County Library and has first hand knowledge of how the county library system works. Alan is a Rhode Island native. He earned his undergraduate degree from Bucknell University and a master's in political science from the University of Rhode Island.

Dennis P. Leeper, longtime member of the Library's Board of Trustees and the Easttown Library Foundation Board, has been named the winner of the 2006 Pennsylvania Citizens for Better Libraries Lifetime Achievement Award. Denny retired recently from Temple University and now uses his time to be an even more active advocate for libraries.

Local Businesswoman Honored

Zelinda LeBoutillier, chief executive of Waterloo Gardens, the nursery and landscaping business where we all like to shop when things bloom in the spring, was the recipient of this year's Leadership Award of the Exton Chamber of Commerce, presented at its annual awards dinner on January 10, 2007 at the Desmond Hotel. She was honored for her significant business achievements and for her years of dedicated service in the community.

Her parents, James and Anna Paolini, founded Waterloo Gardens in 1942 on Waterloo Road and Lancaster Avenue in Devon, about a block west of the Devon Horse Show grounds. Born in Wind Gap, Pennsylvania, “Jimmy” Paolini served an apprenticeship in the nursery trade in Italy before putting down roots here. His business got its name from Waterloo Road.

In 1959, the Paolinis purchased property near Exton to be used to grow plants for the Devon store. In time, a store was also opened on this Whitford Road property. Zelinda and her late husband, Roberts “Bo” LeBoutillier, who had started working for the Paolinis in 1951, bought the business in 1972. Roberts LeBoutillier died 5 years ago of ALS - Lou Gehrig's disease. Zelinda serves on the board of the ALS Foundation.

Today, Waterloo Gardens has 300 employees, 3 retail operations, a landscaping company, and a plant-growing company. LeBoutillier also runs her own cooking school at the Exton location to teach techniques for entertaining.

Tredyffrin Gains Corporate Headquarters

An 80,000-square-foot office building located at Westlakes in Tredyffrin Township has been selected for the U.S. headquarters of a leading maker of electronic components. Tyco Electronics Corp. will employ about 100 executives at the site. With sales of $12.7 billion, it is the fifth largest publicly traded company in the Philadelphia region as measured by sales. The company, formerly part of Tyco International Ltd., became an independent entity as the result of a corporate spinoff completed recently. TEL, traded on the New York Stock Exchange, is a global provider of engineered electronic components serving customers in 150 countries and employing approximately 99,000 worldwide, including 4,000 in Harrisburg, PA. It is incorporated in Pembroke, Bermuda.

Tredyffrin Easttown Historical Society's most recent meetings

On February 18, 2007 the meeting was “The Ghosts of Duffy's Cut” presented by Dr. William Watson, Chairman, History and Politics Department, Immaculata University and Mr. John H. Ahtes, Lecturer, History and Politics Department, Immaculata University. On March 18, 2007 the meeting was “King of Prussia: Then and Now,” a presentation of photographs by J. Michael Morrison. On April 15, 2007 the meeting was “A Selection of Images from Northern Chester County” by Vincent Martino Jr. The May 20, 2007 meeting was “The Way We Were: Oral Histories from Our Community” with recollections by Mrs. Estelle King Burton, Mr. Albert Cappelli, Mr. George Ford Jr., and Mrs. Mary Robertson Ives, and moderated by Dennis Leeper. All meetings took place at the Easttown Library & Information Center in Berwyn.