Gray's Ferry Tavern (also known as Lower Ferry House, Gray's Tavern, Gray's Inn, Gray's Ferry Inn, Gray's Garden, Sans Souci, and Kochersperger's Hotel) was a restaurant and inn that operated in the 18th and 19th centuries in present-day

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

. Set on the west bank of the

Schuylkill River The Schuylkill River ( , ) is a river running northwest to southeast in eastern Pennsylvania. The river was improved by navigations into the Schuylkill Canal, and several of its tributaries drain major parts of Pennsylvania's Coal Region. It fl ...

at the primary crossing for travel to and from points south of Philadelphia, the tavern hosted

George Washington George Washington (February 22, 1732, 1799) was an American military officer, statesman, and Founding Father who served as the first president of the United States from 1789 to 1797. Appointed by the Continental Congress as commander of th ...

and many other famous people of its day.

History

Gray family (1740-95)

The inn was established in the mid-1700s by a George Gray, who had purchased 199 acres of land on both sides of the river in what was then

Blockley Township Blockley Township is a defunct township that was located in Philadelphia County, Pennsylvania. Incorporated in 1704, the township was incorporated into the City of Philadelphia under the 1854 Act of Consolidation. History An irregularly shape ...

(present-day

West Philadelphia West Philadelphia, nicknamed West Philly, is a section of the city of Philadelphia. Alhough there are no officially defined boundaries, it is generally considered to reach from the western shore of the Schuylkill River, to City Avenue to the nort ...

) and

Moyamensing Moyamensing is an area of Philadelphia established as a Moyamensing Township during British colonial rule on the fast land of the Neck, lying between Passyunk Square, Philadelphia, Passyunk and Wicaco. It was Act of Consolidation, 1854, incorpor ...

(present-day

South Philadelphia South Philadelphia, nicknamed South Philly, is the section of Philadelphia bounded by South Street to the north, the Delaware River to the east and south and the Schuylkill River to the west. The land lay near the "Lower Ferry", one of three across the Schuylkill and the primary link between Philadelphia and points south. Gray took over operation of the ferry, which came to be known as Gray's Ferry. In 1740, Gray retired, leaving the business to his sons, George Gray (1725-1800), and Robert Gray. The sons expanded the operations; the inn became known as "Lower Ferry House" or "Gray's Tavern." In June 1775, Washington was the guest of honor at a dinner at the tavern shortly after he was appointed commander-in-chief by Congress. He was joined by

John Adams John Adams (October 30, 1735 – July 4, 1826) was an American statesman, attorney, diplomat, writer, and Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father who served as the second president of the United States from 1797 to 1801. Befor ...

Benjamin Franklin Benjamin Franklin ( April 17, 1790) was an American polymath who was active as a writer, scientist, inventor, statesman, diplomat, printer, publisher, and political philosopher. Encyclopædia Britannica, Wood, 2021 Among the leading inte ...

Thomas Jefferson Thomas Jefferson (April 13, 1743 – July 4, 1826) was an American statesman, diplomat, lawyer, architect, philosopher, and Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father who served as the third president of the United States from 18 ...

John Langdon John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second ...

, and

Benjamin Rush Benjamin Rush (April 19, 1813) was a Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father of the United States who signed the United States Declaration of Independence, and a civic leader in Philadelphia, where he was a physician, politician, ...

. During the

American Revolutionary War The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was a major war of the American Revolution. Widely considered as the war that secured the independence of t ...

, British soldiers took over the inn and surrounding property and erected a series of

pontoon bridges A pontoon bridge (or ponton bridge), also known as a floating bridge, uses floats or shallow-draft boats to support a continuous deck for pedestrian and vehicle travel. The buoyancy of the supports limits the maximum load that they can carry. ...

. The buildings were all but destroyed when they were forced out, but the pontoon bridge survived and was kept in use. Gray rebuilt the house and gardens and returned to business. In the early 1780s, several acres of the landscape around the tavern were reshaped by Samuel Vaughan, a London merchant who owned plantations in Jamaica and who possessed a zeal for designing gardens. Vaughan planted trees and other plants and added winding walkways through groves and arbors and water features. "The place was a veritable fairy scene, with bowers, grottoes, waterfalls, bridges, islands, and a most attractive Inn, with tables set upon the greensward," according to a 1922 history journal. In effect, Vaughan created "American's first public pleasure park." The gardens turned the tavern from merely a travelers' waypoint into a resort spot, easily reached from the city for meals and day trips., p. 69, 244. Kocherspergers Hotel August 1864 Philadelphia

Kocherspergers Hotel August 1864 Philadelphia

In 1787, delegates to the Constitutional Convention eager to escape hot and humid Philadelphia came to the tavern. In his diaries, Washington noted visits on May 18, June 26, July 17, and September 2. At dawn on July 14,

James Madison James Madison Jr. (March 16, 1751June 28, 1836) was an American statesman, diplomat, and Founding Father. He served as the fourth president of the United States from 1809 to 1817. Madison is hailed as the "Father of the Constitution" for hi ...

Manasseh Cutler Manasseh Cutler (May 13, 1742 – July 28, 1823) was an American clergyman involved in the American Revolutionary War. He was influential in the passage of the Northwest Ordinance of 1787 and wrote the section prohibiting slavery in the Nort ...

, and

Alexander Hamilton Alexander Hamilton (January 11, 1755 or 1757July 12, 1804) was an American military officer, statesman, and Founding Father who served as the first United States secretary of the treasury from 1789 to 1795. Born out of wedlock in Charlest ...

and several others rode out from Philadelphia, ate breakfast on the tavern's "high porch overlooking the river", and returned for the day's deliberations. Grays Ferry Inn PW&B flatcars 1870s

In 1793, Dolley Todd — the future

Dolley Madison Dolley Todd Madison (née Payne; May 20, 1768 – July 12, 1849) was the wife of James Madison, the fourth president of the United States from 1809 to 1817. She was noted for holding Washington social functions in which she invited members of bo ...

— and her children took refuge at the inn during an epidemic of

yellow fever Yellow fever is a viral disease of typically short duration. In most cases, symptoms include fever, chills, loss of appetite, nausea, muscle pains – particularly in the back – and headaches. Symptoms typically improve within five days. In ...

. The disease killed her husband, who declined to leave Philadelphia; the following year, she married

Subsequent owners (1795-1800s)

From 1795 to 1803, the inn was run by George Weed. Weed was the assistant quartermaster of the Second Troop of Philadelphia City Cavalry, a volunteer military unit established in 1794 on the model of the

First Troop Philadelphia City Cavalry The First Troop Philadelphia City Cavalry, also known as the First City Troop, is a unit of the Pennsylvania Army National Guard. It is one of the oldest military units in the United States still in active service and is among the most decorat ...

, and the inn (known to some as Weed's Tavern) became a frequent meeting place for the unit's leaders. "The decline of Gray's resort began with the opening, in 1803, of the permanent bridge at Market Street, and after the completion of the famous plowed railway sidings, fell from its high estate," wrote local artist Frank Taylor around 1913. After Weed, the inn passed quickly through several hands: in 1803, to Isaac Tucker; in 1804, to James Coyles, who had run an establishment called the "Indian Queen" on Philadelphia's Fourth Street. In 1805, the inn passed to Curtis Grubb (1781-1847), a 4th-generation member of the

Grubb Family Iron Dynasty The Grubb Family Iron Dynasty was a succession of iron manufacturing enterprises owned and operated by Grubb family members for more than 165 years. Collectively, they were Pennsylvania's leading iron manufacturer between 1840 and 1870. About 1737, ...

. Curtis was the son of Peter Grubb III Jr. (1757-1805) and grandson of Colonel

Curtis Grubb Curtis Grubb (17301789), Patriot and oldest son of Peter and Martha Bates Grubb, was a second-generation member of the Grubb Family Iron Dynasty along with his younger brother Peter Jr. The brothers operated the Cornwall Ironworks, making si ...

(1730-1789), both Revolutionary War officers and iron magnates. Peter had been friends with George Gray since at least the time of the Revolutionary War. At some point, the younger Curtis married Maria Eva Kochersperger, the second daughter of Johann Martin Kochersperger (1752-1822), a native of Rittershoffen, Alsace (at the time part of

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

), who had immigrated around 1770 to Strasburg Township, Lancaster County, near Philadelphia. Johann served as an enlisted soldier in the Revolutionary War; afterward, he moved first to

Northern Liberties Northern Liberties is a neighborhood in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Prior to its incorporation into Philadelphia in 1854, it was among the top 10 largest cities in the U.S. in every census from 1790 to 1850. Boundaries Northern Liberties is loc ...

and then "acquired a vast tract of land near Gray's Ferry on Darby Road." In 1825, the inn was taken over by Maria's older brother, Martin Henry I Kochersperger (1779-1859). Martin renamed the establishment Sans Souci;Kochersperger's Hotel
/ref> it was also known as Kochersperger’s Hotel. Martin was the uncle of Elizabeth Deshong Kochersperger, who in 1838 gave birth to

John Wanamaker John Wanamaker (July 11, 1838December 12, 1922) was an American merchant and religious, civic and political figure, considered by some to be a proponent of advertising and a "pioneer in marketing". He was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, a ...

, the future department-store tycoon. He was also the grandfather of Lieutenant Colonel Charles Kochersperger (1826-1867), who commanded the Union Army's

71st Pennsylvania Infantry The 71st Regiment, Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry (originally raised as the 1st California) was an infantry regiment of the Union Army that participated in the American Civil War. History The 71st Pennsylvania was organized in August 1861 by ...

regiment at the 1864

Battle of the Wilderness The Battle of the Wilderness was fought on May 5–7, 1864, during the American Civil War. It was the first battle of Lieutenant General Ulysses S. Grant's 1864 Virginia Overland Campaign against General Robert E. Lee and the Confederate Arm ...

. In 1848, the inn was kept by a Mr. Olwine. By 1856, a guidebook noted that "Gray's Garden has become a memory."

References

External links

{{commons category, Gray's Ferry Tavern
1924 photo
of "The West Bank of the River, South of Gray's Ferry Bridge: The Front of What was Formerly the Beautiful Gray's Garden."
Biography of Samuel Vaughan

Buildings and structures in Philadelphia 1740 establishments in Pennsylvania History of Philadelphia