A Visit to Landis Valley Village and Farm Museum

Pasture with the 1750s Log Farm house in the background

September 22, 2018 was Smithsonian magazine's Museum Day, when free tickets are offered to various museums in the country. We happened to be in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, that day, so we got tickets to visit the Landis Valley Village and Farm Museum. While most of the buildings date later than the colonial period, the Log Farm section depicts Pennsylvania German life in the 1750s. This post will focus on the Log Farmstead.

The Landis Valley Village and Farm Museum is the largest museum dedicated to the history of the Pennsylvania Germans (or Pennsylvania Dutch, as they're often called, though they're not Dutch at all—the Dutch comes from mispronunciation of Deutsch, the German word for German). The museum depicts Lancaster County farming life during the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries through the village, which includes the many structures listed below, and the museum, which houses a collection of farming implements and other decorative arts pieces. In addition, the museum has an award-winning Heirloom Seed Program (growing plants, field crops, and vegetables that are now disappearing), and offers classes in folk art and driving of horses and oxen. It is in every way a living history museum.

The 1750s Log Farmstead includes a log house (two rooms), a pasture, two barns, a spring house, and a woman's garden:

The Log Farmstead

Log Farmstead kitchen 

Log Farmstead bedroom

Log Farmstead barn

Sheep in the barn

My kids favorite part of the whole village: this (gigantic!) hog was having the time of her life in the mud. According to one of the workers, she also loves to eat pumpkins whole.

Bulls in the pasture

This mare and her foal loved eating the Chinese chestnuts (buckeyes) we found growing nearby.

Inside the spring house

Woman's garden

Other buildings in the village include the original brick farmstead and Grossmutter house (circa 1830), a sexton's house (staffed by a leatherworker), a blacksmith shop (moved to the farm from Gettysburg, circa 1880), a farm machinery and tool barn, the Landis Valley House Hotel (built in 1856), the Maple Grove Schoolhouse (an Amish school built in 1890 about three miles from the museum), a country store (recreated to depict 1900), a firehouse, a tin shop, a tavern (recreated to represent a tavern circa 1800–1820), a gunshop, and some outbuildings.

If you're ever in the Lancaster area and would like to visit, the Landis Valley Village and Farm Museum is open year round. More information is available at www.landisvalleymuseum.org.

Pennsylvania: William Penn's Holy Experiment

The Peaceable Kingdom (Edward Hicks, c. 1834) exemplifies Quaker ideals.

William Penn, Pennsylvania’s founder, was an English Quaker who received the charter to Pennsylvania as the result of a debt owed to his father, Admiral Sir William Penn. The younger Penn, who grew up in English high society, began attending Friends meetings while living on a family estate in Cork, Ireland, and publicly joined the Society of Friends at the age of twenty-two. This soon got him arrested multiple times, as King Charles had placed stringent restrictions against religious groups other than the Anglican church. The Crown especially hated the Quakers, who believed all people (whether royalty or commoner) were created equal.

Despite persecutions, imprisonments, and being disowned by his family, William Penn’s Quaker faith burgeoned, getting him exiled from English society. He eventually ended up in Newgate Prison, and his dying father, who had gained respect for his son’s religious convictions, made peace with him and paid the fine to have him released. Sir Admiral Penn, knowing his son would face even worse persecution after his death, set the conditions for the founding of Pennsylvania. After the admiral’s death, young William Penn proposed to the Crown a partial solution to England’s religious strife: a mass emigration of English Quakers to America. To Penn’s surprise, the king granted him a large charter, giving him a large tract of land west of New Jersey and north of Maryland.

William Penn, a strong believer in religious tolerance and a man all too familiar with religious persecution, set forth to make his land (first called New Wales, then Sylvania, and finally Pennsylvania) a “Holy Experiment”—a haven for persecuted religious minorities. Within fifty years, the commonwealth had a quickly growing city (Philadelphia) and was home to people of several religious backgrounds.

The Society of Friends

Quakers began worshiping (silently, of course) at Upland in 1675. After Penn received his charter, Quakers emigrated in large numbers from England, Ireland, and Wales. They settled primarily in Philadelphia and the surrounding counties, and controlled Pennsylvania’s government until 1756, when their pacifism became unpopular with nonpacifistic Pennsylvanians during the French and Indian War. While Quaker dominance gradually diminished as people of other religious backgrounds made Pennsylvania their home, many Friends Meetings still exist today, often worshiping in the same meetinghouses used three hundred years ago.

The Pennsylvania Germans

Most Pennsylvania Germans belonged to the Lutheran and Reformed churches, but Pennsylvania also drew several smaller groups, primarily the Mennonites, Amish, Dunkers (German Baptist Brethren), Schwenkfelders, and Moravians. A small group of Mennonites and Quakers arrived in Pennsylvania in 1683 and settled Germantown (now part of Philadelphia), and by the 1730s, more Mennonites and the first Amish immigrants had arrived in Pennsylvania. The Schwenkfelders started arriving in 1731, and the Moravians in 1741. These smaller groups, all believers in nonresistance and baptism upon confession of faith in Christ, settled north and west of Philadelphia to farm the land. The Moravians soon became known for their mission work among the Native American tribes.

The Church of England

William Penn’s religious tolerance was so great that he allowed those who belonged to the Church of England, the same group that had persecuted him in England, to come to Pennsylvania. The Anglicans held services in Philadelphia as early as 1695, eventually building Christ Church, still one of Philadelphia’s most notable churches. With the addition of its spire in 1754, Christ Church became the tallest building in North America.

The Catholic Church

The first Catholic congregation was organized in 1720 in Philadelphia, and they built their first chapel in 1733. Pennsylvania had the second largest Catholic population during Colonial times, but their numbers were hardly large. Even in 1757, of Pennsylvania’s 200,000 residents, fewer than 1,400 were recorded as Catholic. This number is substantially higher today, with 28% of Pennsylvanians now characterizing themselves as Catholic.

The Presbyterian Church

The Scotch brought Presbyterianism to Pennsylvania, with the first congregation organized in 1698 in Philadelphia. Scotch-Irish immigration from 1710 till 1775 ushered in around 200,000 people to the Colonies, with most coming to Pennsylvania before spreading west and south. Presbyterians now make up approximately 4% of Pennsylvania’s population.

The Methodist Church

Methodists arrived in Philadelphia later in the colonial period. Their first church, St. George's Church, was built in 1769 and is the oldest Methodist building in America. Methodists now make up around 5% of Pennsylvania’s population.

The Jewish Community

Colonial Pennsylvania had a significant Jewish population. The first Jewish Philadelphian recorded was Jonas Aaron, in 1703, but sources show that Jews were in the area before then. Mikveh Israel, founded by Spanish and Portuguese Jews, was established in the city in 1740.

Nowadays, American states include a myriad of different religions. During Colonial times, however, Pennsylvania stood out. While other colonies restricted members of certain religious groups, William Penn opened Pennsylvania to all who worshiped God. Through this, he helped change the trajectory of an entire country.

Bethlehem: The Beginnings of Pennsylvania's Christmas City

Growing up in southeastern Pennsylvania, I learned at a young age that many of the neighboring town names were also found within the pages of the Bible. To our west sat towns like Akron and Ephrata (spelling changed slightly from the biblical Ephrathah), and to the north sat places with names such as Emmaus and Nazareth. Probably the best-known biblical town name in the state, however, is Bethlehem (now also called “Christmas City”), whose beginnings go back to a Christmas Eve during Colonial times.

Moravian Bethlehem (courtesy of the Moravian Archives)

In 1741, on the banks of the Lehigh River not far from the Monocacy Creek, a small group of Moravian missionaries began clearing the land on five hundred acres they had purchased. They were a missional people who had previously worked among the Mohicans in New York, and planned to now minister to the Lenape tribes in Pennsylvania. On Christmas Eve of that year, Moravian leader Count Nikolaus Ludwig von Zinzendorf christened the town Bethlehem in a stable while the people sang “Jesus, Call Thou Me,” a hymn that includes the lyrics “not Jerusalem, lowly Bethlehem.”

Bethlehem became a thriving Moravian community, with members living in separate quarters depending on their age, gender, and marital status. By 1747, the Moravians had established thirty-five crafts, trades, and industries, supporting themselves and all the missionaries they sent out to work among Native American tribes. They then purchased 5,000 acres four miles north of Bethlehem and began building a second community, Nazareth, and went on to found more missionary communities in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and Maryland. Bethlehem remained their headquarters, and to this day is a stronghold of the Moravian church, although members no longer live communally.

Bethlehem is now widely known for its steel production (Bethlehem Steel was America’s second-largest steel company and largest shipbuilder from 1904 until 2001), music festivals, and very popular Christkindlmarkt, but its historical sites cannot be overlooked. Historic Moravian Bethlehem National Historic Landmark District encompasses fourteen acres in Bethlehem, and includes many buildings that have stood for two hundred and fifty years. Tours, exhibits, and places to visit abound, all celebrating a people whose beliefs—that women and men should have equal rights; that boys and girls should receive the same education; and that everyone should work together for the community’s good, with no prejudices toward gender or ethnicity—would take centuries to become societal norms.

Bethlehem's star (from an undated newspaper article courtesy
of Bethlehem Area Public Library)

Still today, a lit star forged of Bethlehem steel sits high atop South Mountain, shining down on Bethlehem. As a child, I remember looking for it as we returned home at night from my cousins’ house in nearby Allentown, and it still evokes an emotion response to this day. May it forever be a reminder to all of Christ’s birth, at Christmas and every day.

The Colonial Pennsylvania Plantation

The Colonial Pennsylvania Plantation is a historical museum and working farm located in Ridley Creek State Park in Media (Delaware County), Pennsylvania. The plantation, which was a working farm continuously for over three hundred years, differs from many colonial historical sites in that it depicts the life of the common man—the “yeoman,” or farmer—instead of that of a well-known figure, during the 1760s to 1790s.

While the plantation’s original owner is not certainly known, the property was purchased by Joseph Pratt, an English Quaker, in 1720. At that point, the original portion of the farmhouse (built either before 1700 or around 1705) was already standing and the land encompassed 110 to 120 acres. Wheat, usually the winter variety, was Pennsylvania’s primary crop at this time, and farmers in the area also grew rye, corn, and flax, among other things. Crops are still grown on the land today, but the plantation’s location within a state park makes this more difficult, as deer and other animals see the fields as their dinner table. Such animals would have been disposed of in colonial times, but now they are protected by being within the park limits.

The farmhouse with the kitchen garden in the foreground. Some researchers believe the center section is the original house, while others opine that the eastern end was built first. Additions were then added over the next 130 years. Attached to the left side of the house is the still room, which was used for storage. Unfortunately, I couldn't take pictures inside.

The well in front of the house. While it's still in use (note the lever to raise the bucket), the water isn't drinkable.

The Pratt family remained on the property until May 1820, when the original owner's great-grandson sold it at auction. It continued to be a working farm under its new ownership, eventually becoming a tenant farm in the twentieth century. In the 1960s, Pennsylvania bought approximately 2,500 acres to create Ridley Creek State Park, and a local group formed to preserve the old houses within the park. One particular house, part of the Lower Rawle farm, was abandoned but provided the necessities for a farm museum. From 1973 until the present, historians have restored the farmhouse, outbuildings, and land to accurately reflect eighteenth-century farm life. 

Also on the property are a kitchen garden, spring house, still room, stone cabin, wagon barn, stable barn, sheepfold, pigpen, and chicken house, as well as crop fields, a wet meadow, and an orchard. For safety reasons, the animals are kept penned while the farm is open to visitors, but on off hours, most of the animals are released to roam the land freely, as they would have in colonial times. 

In the foreground is the stone cabin, thought to be built in the late 1600s. The steeply pitched roof implies that the roof was originally thatched. This building is now used for craft demonstrations (potter's wheel on the bottom floor and textile making on the top floor.) In the background is the wagon barn, which now houses, among other things, an interesting array of bones found on the property.

The pigpen and sheepfold provide shelter when the animals are not roaming the property.

The pigpen and the stable barn (upper right-hand corner). Somehow, I didn't get good pictures of the stable barn (probably because I was carrying my six-year-old at the time, now that I think about it—see next picture for explanation). The stable houses cows, horses, and more sheep, as well as bunnies and chickens in its yard.

The resident ankle-biters (my poor son may never get over his fear of these feathered fiends friends)—the only farm animals that roam freely all the time. We now know the real reason the plantation interpreters carry a walking stick—geese control. ☺

If you're ever in the area and would like to visit the Colonial Pennsylvania Plantation, it's open on Saturdays and Sunday from April till November. You can find more information at www.colonialplantation.com.

Plain and Simple: A Colonial Quaker Funeral

Horsham Friends Meeting Burying Ground – Horsham, Pennsylvania

Teach me the measure of my days, Thou Maker of my frame;

I would survey life's narrow space, and learn how frail I am.

—Isaac Watts, "Teach Me the Measure of My Days"

Now colonial Friends (Quakers) neither sang nor participated in any type of music, but the words from this hymn played in my mind as I sat down to write this post. Friends may not have sung these words, but they certainly believed them. As a follow-up to my August 2016 post on marriage among Friends during colonial times, today I'm going to look at another ceremony—the funeral, or “memorial service,” as Friends call it.

Colonial Friends were, for the most part, a plain and simple people. They lived lives rife with modesty and practicality, and when death came, it was treated with the same pragmatism. Being followers of Christ, they believed that death was not an end but a beginning, and their funerals were considered celebrations of life. Unlike much of society during this period in history, Friends who had lost loved ones did not participate in the wearing of black clothing and had no prescribed mourning period.

When a Friend died, a memorial service was held, usually at the meeting house he or she attended. (In modern times, Friends funerals are often explained at the beginning of the service, as some attendees may not be familiar with Quaker silent worship. Perhaps this was common in colonial times as well if there were non-Quaker attendees.) Then the service would commence with the most beloved sound of Friends: silence.

Friends would sit in silence as they listened for the “Inner Light” (the voice of God within). If they felt led to speak about the deceased, they would stand and say their piece—often a testimony about his or her good character or an inspiring or funny anecdote about the person. Time would be given for all attendees to speak, should they wish to, then the elders would end the service by standing and shaking hands. In most cases, there was no viewing in the meeting house and no eulogy was given.

Gravestone of Peter Lukens (my 9th-great-grandfather)

Quaker burials were equally as simple. In fact, many Friends during colonial times were buried without gravestones, which were thought by some to be prideful. Other graves were graced with only a small natural stone (usually a fieldstone in southeastern Pennsylvania) or a crescent-shaped gravestone with merely the deceased’s initials or the initials and a year of death. Friends could be buried in private cemeteries on family land or in the cemetery kept by their meeting house. (As an aside, Friends often provided burial plots for those who were prohibited from being buried in other cemeteries or could not afford burial. For this reason, many Friends cemeteries include the graves of slaves, Indians, free blacks, and destitute non-Quakers.) Those buried in the meeting house cemetery were not buried in family sections, but usually in the next available plot.

Plain and simple in life, and plain and simple in death. And for good reason: They knew their treasures lay in heaven.

Plain and Simple: A Colonial Quaker Wedding

Horsham Friends Meeting – Horsham, Pennsylvania

If you’ve lived in the United States for any length of time, chances are you believe that all weddings in this country are officiated—either by a minister, a justice of the peace, or another qualified individual. It’s the law, right? Well . . . no.

Even today, after 360 years in the United States, the Society of Friends (also known as Quakers) has members who still choose the traditional Quaker route to married life. No minister. No bridesmaids or groomsmen. No walking down the aisle to Pachelbel’s Cannon. In fact, much of their ceremony reflects an interminable tenet of Quakerism: silence.

While some Quakers now choose to marry in a ceremony similar to that of other modern-day Americans, many still hold tight to tradition. So what does a traditional Quaker wedding look like? It actually starts about two months (occasionally more) before the actual wedding. Let’s take a trip back to 1750s Pennsylvania and have a look.

Our young Quaker couple—we’ll call them Isaac and Elisabeth—have been close friends all their life. While Quakers believe that friendship, respect, and companionship is a solid foundation on which to build a marriage, Isaac and Elisabeth’s love has grown into much more than friendship. They decide to marry, and to do so, they must follow prescribed steps to be “married under the care of Meeting” (quotation marks implies traditional Quaker speech, much of which has been used for centuries):

•         “Parental consent”: The first step is to obtain consent to marry from both sets of parents. Without parental consent, the Meeting will rarely marry a couple. If the parents are in “agreement” with the marriage, the next step is taken.
•          “Intention to marry”: The couple then writes a letter to their Friends Meeting (or Meetings, if they don’t belong to the same Meeting), declaring their intention to marry.
•          Business meeting: The clerk of the Meeting(s) reads the letter at the next business meeting (Friends hold “meeting for worship with a concern for business” one First Day [Sunday] of each month), and a “clearness committee” (usually two men and two women) is “appointed.”
•          Clearness committee: The committee visits with the couple individually and jointly to ascertain that nothing would interfere with the happiness and permanence of the marriage. (If two Meetings are involved, the overall process can take longer since both Meetings must “investigate” their attendee’s spouse-to-be.) If the committee fears that marriage would not work for one reason or another, it would deny the couple the ability to be married under the care of Meeting. The couple’s options are then to not marry, to work with the Meeting’s elders/overseers/clearness committee until it is agreed that the couple may to marry, or to marry “out of unity” or “contrary to discipline” (meaning be married in a non-Quaker church or by a justice of the peace, etc.—during this time period, the couple would then be disowned by the Meeting*).
•          Business meeting: Assuming the clearness committee (or committees) agreed that the couple should be married, that would be reported to the Meeting at the next meeting for business, which would be the following month. The clerk of Meeting would grant the couple permission to marry, and the committee’s next responsibility would be to “see that the marriage is accomplished.”

Isaac and Elisabeth attend the same Meeting and have been cleared to marry, so the next step is the actual marriage. Traditionally, Quaker marriages were held either on First Day (Sunday) during meeting for worship or during “midweek meeting” (meeting for worship on a Wednesday or Thursday). Invitations would go out, and all would gather in the meeting house on the chosen day. Then the marriage ceremony would take place.

On the day of the wedding, those attending filed into the meeting house and took seats on the benches (during this time period, men and women sat on different sides of the room). Soon the wedding overseers entered the room, and they sat on the facing benches (benches at the front of the room that face the regular benches). Then the couple walked in together, proceeded to the front of the meeting house, and sat on the facing benches. Since Friends believe that each person has a relationship with God and therefore needs no intermediary, no minister marries the couple; they are instead married by God and witnessed by those in attendance.

The wedding would begin with “silent worship,” just like any other meeting for worship. When the couple felt led, they stood and took each other’s hand, simply stated their intentions, and signed the marriage certificate. They would sit down again, and the wedding overseers would read the certificate for all in attendance. Silent worship would continue, and during this time, guests could stand, as they felt led, to speak about the couple or about marriage. After it seemed that everyone who felt led to speak had done so, two of the wedding overseers would shake hands, indicating “the rise of meeting” (meaning that meeting for worship has concluded). Each guest then came forward to sign the marriage certificate.

Isaac and Elisabeth’s marriage has now been accomplished, and that will be reported to the Meeting at the next meeting for business. May they have many years of happiness together!

* Quaker disownment is not the same as Amish shunning. When disowned, Friends could still attend meeting for worship and interact with family and friends. They were just no longer "under the care of Meeting." Disownment was not punishment, but Friends' way of ensuring that those under the care of the Meeting followed rules that contributed to the community's best interests. In most cases, a written apology and changed behavior was all that was necessary to be reinstated in Meeting after disownment.



Bio: Christy Distler lives just outside Horsham, Pennsylvania, which was settled by her ancestors in the early 1700s. She is currently working on a fact-and-fiction novel involving her Quaker family in 1750s Horsham.

City Tavern in Philadelphia by Carrie Fancett Pagels

Arriving at the City Tavern, in Philadelphia, on a recent trip there, I couldn't help but think of my characters Suzanne and Johan in my colonial novel, partially set in Philadelphia. How closely does the current City Tavern resemble the original, for instance? As we walked to the tavern, I admired the colonial items displayed in the curved window (see above.)

I'm betting the original tavern had a lantern hanging on the side of the building. And no sign like the one pictured (but isn't it cute?) This was our second visit to City Tavern, having visited a number of years ago when I was researching Saving the Marquise's Granddaughter (White Rose/Pelican, June 2016). 

We entered the building, which features the beautiful windows shown above. And we were greeted by strains of colonial music!

On the Sunday night of our recent visit we were delighted to be treated to harp music throughout our dinner. It was absolutely heavenly sounding! A welcome surprise after a difficult drive up from Virginia and very relaxing.

I had some fabulous crab cakes with City Tavern's special remoulade sauce, a delicious salad, and enjoyed a raspberry shrub -- all fabulous!  The three of us shared a piece of chocolate mousse cake.

Visitors are encouraged to  visit the other rooms in the tavern, too. The entry hallway shown above and our dining area below.

The original City Tavern was a hotbed of activity. It was eventually torn down. But fortunately for us, it was rebuilt and features colonial era food with the famous chef, Walter Staib. Our server, dressed in colonial-era reproduction clothing, was attentive and knowledgeable about area history.  

If you get a chance, visit City Tavern in historic Philadelphia and enjoy a delightful dining experience! 

Bio: Carrie Fancett Pagels is the Colonial Quills administrator and award-winning author of Christian historical romance. Her latest novel Saving the Marquise's Granddaughter is partially set in mid-18th century Philadelphia.

German Migration to the American Colonies

When my Hochstetler ancestors arrived in Philadelphia aboard the ship Charming Nancy on November 9, 1738, they were part of a great migration of Germans to the American colonies. During the 18th century, more than 100,000 Germans arrived in this country. Among them were Mennonites, Amish, Swiss Brethren, and Pietists, who were the largest group. The Amish, which included my ancestors, and the Mennonites made up only about 5,000 of the German immigrants. Most of them settled in Pennsylvania, while smaller numbers made their homes in New York, Maryland, Virginia, the Carolinas, and Georgia. Together they became the largest non-English-speaking community in colonial North America.

German Peasants' War (1524-25), Lizenzstatus 1539

Why did so many Germans migrate here? During the 16th and 17th centuries, religious and political wars ravaged Germany and much of Europe. Armies trampled farmers’ crops, stole livestock, and put homes to the torch. Famine spread across the land and, along with ruinous taxes levied to pay for the wars and religious disputes resulting from the Reformation, made life intolerable. In addition, rulers determined what church their subjects belonged to, with no regard for personal conscience. The British colonies in North America, especially Pennsylvania under the Penns, offered them not only religious freedom and escape from constant wars, but also economic opportunity in the ability to own land, a right denied religious dissidents in Europe.

Conditions in Europe were bad, but the decision to move to America was not an easy one and required staunch determination and deep personal faith. The ocean crossing was often harrowing and could take as long as 2 months. A diary attributed to Hans Jacob Kauffman lists the deaths of many children and adults during his voyage. Below is Gottlieb Mittelberger’s vivid description of the conditions passengers endured during his passage in 1750.

The ocean crossing

“Children from one to seven years rarely survive the voyage; and many a time parents are compelled to see their children miserably suffer and die from hunger, thirst, and sickness, and then to see them cast into the water. I witnessed such misery in no less than thirty-two children in our ship, all of whom were thrown into the sea. The parents grieve all the more since their children find no resting-place in the earth, but are devoured by the monsters of the sea. It is a notable fact that children, who have not yet had the measles or small-pocks [sic], generally get them on board the ship, and most die of them. Often a father is separated by death from his wife and children, or mothers from their little children, or even both parents from their children; and sometimes whole families die in quick succession; so that often many dead persons lie in the berths beside the living ones, especially when contagious diseases have broken out on board the ship.”

Once they arrived, the troubles of the hard-pressed immigrants were not necessarily over. Many were forced to bind themselves as indentured servants until they could pay off the cost of their passage. In most cases this was voluntary, but sometimes individuals were kidnapped, bundled aboard a ship, and sold to the highest bidder as soon as it reached port in America. Either way, they often found their masters difficult or even abusive.

Others, however, moved to the frontier, where they built homes, communities, and churches. My ancestors were among these, settling along Northkill Creek in Berks County, Pennsylvania, along with other members of their Amish church, where they lived peacefully for many years. But in time they faced another tide of destruction and loss as England went to war with France and her Native allies.

I have been fortunate that many records and oral stories exist about my ancestors who came to this country in 1738. Does your family have information about your own ancestors who came to this country, whether in colonial times or later? If so, share a little bit about their history.

~~~

J. M. Hochstetler is the daughter of Mennonite farmers, an author, editor, and publisher, and a lifelong student of history. Her novel Northkill, Book 1 of the Northkill Amish Series coauthored with bestselling author Bob Hostetler, won ForeWord Magazine’s 2014 INDYFAB Book of the Year Bronze Award for historical fiction. Book 2, The Return, releases in Spring 2017. Her American Patriot Series is the only comprehensive historical fiction series on the American Revolution. One Holy Night, a contemporary retelling of the Christmas story, was the Christian Small Publishers 2009 Book of the Year.

Graeme Park – A Colonial Governor's Estate

Graeme Park, located about twenty miles north of Philadelphia, in Horsham, Pennsylvania, was originally named Fountain Low due to the many springs on the property. The manor house’s construction began in 1722 under the direction of Sir William Keith, the lieutenant provincial governor under Hannah Callowhill Penn (widow of Pennsylvania’s founder, William Penn). The original estate, which became Governor Keith’s summer home to escape the heat and diseases of Philadelphia, included the house, the barn, a “long house” for servants, a malthouse, and other outbuildings.

Unfortunately, Sir William Keith did not exude the honesty and integrity of Pennsylvania’s founder, and in 1726 Hannah Callowhill Penn removed him as governor. Keith remained in the province for two years but then returned to England, probably to escape creditors in the Colonies, leaving behind his wife, Lady Anne Keith.

Lady Ann remained at Fountain Low, though she lived in much less extravagance. She gradually sold off the 1,700+-acre property to pay her husband’s debts, but the estate came back into the family in 1739, when Dr. Thomas Graeme bought Fountain Low and its remaining 834 acres. (Dr. Graeme was the husband of Ann Diggs Graeme, Lady Ann’s daughter by her first husband.) Despite this, Lady Ann returned to Philadelphia and lived in “penury” until she died in 1749, two years after Sir William Keith’s death in a debtor’s prison in England.

Dr. Graeme, a port physician in Philadelphia, renamed the estate Graeme Park and began using it as a summer home for his family. From 1739 until his death in 1772, the estate was a popular vacation of luxury for many British officials and members of Philadelphia’s high society. (An interesting contrast, since Horsham was a primarily Quaker community.)

The Manor House

Upon Dr. Graeme’s death, the estate was granted to his daughter Elizabeth, who was at the time considered the most learned woman in America. Sadly, she experienced many difficulties in life as well due to health issues and her marriage to a Tory by the name of Henry Hugh Fergusson. She lost Graeme Park when it was confiscated as a result of her husband’s convicted treason during the Revolutionary War, but then the property was restored to her in 1781. Financial troubles then led her to eventually sell off Graeme Park, but she stayed in Horsham, where she was much loved by the neighbors, and eventually died in 1801 in the home of Seneca Lukens (one of my ancestors).

The Summer Kitchen and Physic Garden

The estate then remained in the hands of the Penrose family and later the Strawbridge family, until it was bought by Horsham Township in 1997. Fortunately, Graeme Park’s buildings have remained mostly intact since the late eighteenth century. Currently the estate contains the manor house, the barn, a pond and stream, a summer kitchen that was reconstructed by the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission on the original summer kitchen foundation, a physic garden, and walking trails. Photography is discouraged within the manor house, so I couldn’t take inside pictures, but I can describe the interior.

The Barn

The first floor contains Dr. Graeme’s office, the dining room (this room was the kitchen until Dr. Graeme had the summer kitchen built), and the formal parlor, which boasts eighteenth-century paint and many period paintings of the home’s original owners. A staircase (which replaced the original winder staircase) leads to the upper two floors, which include bedchambers (both for the family and some of their staff) and storage rooms. From the third floor, a ladder leads to the roof, and this access was used to douse any roof fires started by embers expelled from the chimneys. Period furniture and décor grace most rooms, and Dr. Graeme’s Port of Philadelphia logbooks are exhibited in the barn along with other educational displays.

Today Graeme Park is a historical site dedicated to continuing the legacy of its owning families and the history of Horsham. It offers educational programs throughout the year, and is also a popular venue for weddings and family photography (as its grounds are truly lovely) and ghost hunts (as long-held local lore claims that Elizabeth Graeme Fergusson still walks the wide-width floorboards of the house and the site’s grounds). Tours are available from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays, and from 12:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. on Sundays.

The Warrior Run Presbyterian Church in Northumberland County, Pennsylvania - by Cynthia Howerter

The colonial historical fiction novel I’m currently writing is set in Northumberland County, Pennsylvania in 1777. Because I want my book to accurately reflect the Scot-Irish Presbyterians who lived in that area during the colonial time period, I have visited a number of local historical sites. Come along with me as we visit the 179-year-old Warrior Run Presbyterian Church and learn about Pennsylvania's Scot-Irish settlers.

By the early 1700s, large numbers of Scot-Irish Presbyterians began emigrating from Northern Ireland to the American Colonies. Many of those who arrived at Philadelphia or several ports in Delaware began moving into Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. In addition to building homes there for themselves, they established Presbyterian churches which remain to this day.

In June, 1769, land in Northumberland County was made available for purchase. Many of the Scot-Irish sold their Lancaster County properties and bought land in this new area - then the unsettled frontier of the colonies. And being a godly people, they brought their Presbyterian faith with them. 

The original Warrior Run Church was built about 1775. It was a log building situated next to where the Warrior Run Creek emptied into the Susquehanna River near present day Watsontown, Pennsylvania. In 1779, British-allied Seneca Indians burned down the log structure during the “Great Runaway” - a terrifying time in central Pennsylvania when settlers ran away from the area to escape marauding Indian war parties.

Once the threat of Indian attacks in Northumberland County had passed, the congregation rebuilt the church, but on land farther away from the creek and the river. This second building, also a log structure, was large enough to hold 300 worshippers. It burned to the ground in 1833, cause unknown.

Two years later, the congregation built the current building just feet away from where the second structure had stood. The congregants meant for their third building to last. Constructed with a limestone foundation and red brick walls, the one-story building is in the Greek Revival style. 

Each of the church’s 13 windows contains 28 individual panes of original glass - a lavish expense when the rural church was built in 1835. As I looked through the windows, I noted the delightful bubbles and waves found in old glass.

The exterior shutters are functional. They were designed to be opened during warm weather to help cool the sanctuary and closed during winter to help keep the building warm.

The floor of the four-columned front portico is made from bricks laid in the herringbone pattern and edged with limestone blocks. 

Because limestone is plentiful in this section of Northumberland County, it was used as a base for the church’s foundation and porch.  

On Sunday mornings, the congregants entered the large church via the two front doors.

The interiors of the old Presbyterian churches are austere. Because Presbyterians wanted to focus on worshipping God, their sanctuaries were devoid of "decorations" that could distract the people sitting in the pews.   

Notice the lack of lighting inside the sanctuary. The Warrior Run Church never had electricity—or heat—installed. While the church is still used for special occasions, services are mostly held during the daytime in warmer months.

During the early 1800s, many members of rural Presbyterian churches actually paid rent in order to have their own pews. One of my Scot-Irish ancestors, Colonel John Kelly - a Revolutionary War officer from Northumberland County, rented Pew 33 in the nearby Buffalo Crossroads Presbyterian Church.

The main characters in my novel are Scot-Irish Presbyterians who purchased land in Northumberland County after leaving their home in Lancaster County. Their lives on the Pennsylvania frontier were fraught with danger. At times, it was difficult to distinguish a friend from an enemy. In such a sparsely populated area, the lines between right and wrong, good and evil could easily have been blurred. When the Indians massacred their families and friends, no settler would have been criticized had they decided to quit and leave. But along with their unwavering Presbyterian faith, the determination to succeed that had accompanied their fathers from Scotland to Northern Ireland had traveled with the sons across the Atlantic. These new Americans brought that same persevering spirit with them when they moved into Pennsylvania's wilderness -  and when they chose to fight for American independence from Britain. During that dangerous and frightening era, the Scot-Irish Presbyterians set an exemplary example for us to follow in today's unsettling times.

As we leave Warrior Run Presbyterian Church, please look in the background of the final photograph for a glimpse of the adjacent cemetery. My August article for Colonial Quills will discuss how I found the names for the characters in my novel by walking through this cemetery.

All Photographs ©2014 Cynthia Howerter 

Award-winning author Cynthia Howerter loves using her training in education, research, writing, and speaking to teach and inspire others about a time in America that was anything but boring. A member of the Daughters of the American revolution (DAR), Cynthia believes history should be alive and personal.

Visit Cynthia's website: Cynthia Howerter - all things historical