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Havertown is a residential suburban unincorporated community in
Havertown is a residential suburban unincorporated community in Haverford Township
Haverford Township is a home rule municipality township in Delaware County, Pennsylvania.Delaware County, Pennsylvania. It is located approximately 9 miles west of the center of Philadelphia. Havertown's ZIP Code is 19083 and "Havertown" is a postal address. The name "Havertown" was coined by the U.S. Post Office and came into use on January 1, 1946. Before then, each constituent community was known by its local name: Bon Air, Brookline, Penfield, Beechwood, Llanerch, Manoa, Oakmont, Coopertown, and Ardmore. Under
Historic roads
The Haverford Road is one of the earliest roads laid out by civil ordinance. Dates for its layout and completion vary from 1687 to 1703. Darby Road, known earlier as Coopertown Road, dates from 1687. Records show its extension to Radnor, the "principal market for corn," ordered in 1696. Mill Road, at one time called Dickinson Mill Road, may be one of the earliest roads of popular use. Its zig-zag pattern illustrates the indirect path required by horse and cart going up or down hill. Eagle Road, which takes its present name from the Spread Eagle Tavern, c.1814, led Quaker settlers to the Haverford Meeting House.
The railroads and planned communities
Prior to the First World War Haverford was a township of extensive farms. Property maps in 1862 indicate that the landowners were descendants of the same families that arrived with William Penn: among them, the Lawrences, the Ellises, the Humphreys and the Lewises. In 1895 the Philadelphia and West Chester Traction Company began service between 69th Street and West Chester with a major junction at Llanerch. By 1902 the maps indicated a significant change in land ownership. Most of the old family names no longer appeared. In that same year on May 29, the trolley line opened the branch from Llanerch to Ardmore. Llanerch first appeared as a small community with numbered streets. Darby Road was called Coopertown Road. A commercial rail line, now removed, served Boyle Fuel, Lobb Lumber and the Swell Bubble Gum factory up until the 1960s (see map).
Brookline, while not the first planned community, was the most fully executed. The Mueller Atlas of Delaware County, 1909, shows the initial layout for Brookline. At that time Darby Road between Eagle Road and Llanerch was called Haverford Road.
Some construction began around that year, but it was not until after the First World War that the Manor Real Estate Company, a subsidiary of the railroads, set out a plan for a housing development that offered every service, amenity and community need: "Brookline Manor" (see map). As in the 1909 plan, there is an arrangement of regular streets divided by a broad boulevard. The boulevard intersected at a "T" juncture with the major township thoroughfare, Darby Road. The Boulevard would be home to commercial, religious and educational services. At the upper end of the Boulevard, mercantile stores provided shoe makers, tap rooms, florists, bakery, barbers, a five and ten store, the Quaker Store, the A&P grocery store and the Boulevard movie theater. Along the length of the Boulevard the community found their religious houses of worship: the Methodist Church, Saint Faith Episcopal Church, Church of the Annunciation of the Blessed Virgin Mary, and Temple Lutheran. On Earlington Road, to the side of the Boulevard's far end, the Brookline School (1913) met educational needs.
Just west of the intersection of the Boulevard with Darby Road was the Brookline Fire Company (1916). Just beyond on Darby Road were the Brookline Library (1938) and the Haverford High School (1923). In the early days the Brookline County Club and the Brookline airport were situated just behind Haverford High School. Back at the intersection of Brookline Boulevard and Darby Road, at the corner of Manoa Road were the police station on the west side and Shearer's greenhouse and nursery on the east side.
The railroad company attended to their needs to sell tickets as well as to that of Brookline Manor for transportation. The Red Arrow Trolley line #103 ran from Ardmore down Darby Road, then on to West Chester Pike to 69th and Market Streets, thus offering commuters quick access to the city. The tracks which divided Darby Road were lined with fences of early blooming red roses. A bus line ran from Ardmore to 69th and Market by way of Brookline Boulevard and Earlington Road. The junction of the two lines was at the intersection of Darby Road and Brookline Boulevard. At the far end of Brookline Boulevard commuters found the services of the P&W, The Philadelphia and Western high-speed line, an electric train system that even today is one of the most rapid. With trolley lines at one end, the P&W at the other, and a bus that ran between the two, transportation to Philadelphia could not have been more convenient. The electric trolley lines were dismantled in 1966 in favor of gasoline operated buses.
The concept for the Haverford Music Festival was introduced by the Haverford Township Civic Council (HTCC), a private, non-profit organization that funds historic, environmental, business, and community initiatives in Haverford Township. Inspired by the Philadelphia Folk Festival, Bethlehem Musikfest and other music festivals in the area, the all-day, family-oriented Haverford Music Festival has taken place annually in the Oakmont Business District of Havertown since 2011. In 2012, the festival attracted more than 15,000 people, who enjoyed over 30 bands on three stages. HTCC benefits from festival proceeds and uses to fund community-based programs within Haverford Township. Proceeds from the 2011 Music Festival were given to the Haverford Partnership for Economic Development for Oakmont Business District Beautification.
Havertown is served by the
The Havertown Superfund site was caused by the National Wood Preservers wood treatment facility, which was in operation from 1947 to 1991. Chemicals used to treat wood and waste products were dumped into a well on the property. These chemicals fed directly into Naylor's Run Creek and eventually into the Delaware River, for which the creek is a tributary. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ranked the site the eighth worst cleanup project in the United States and initiated remediation efforts in 1976. The site was added to the
William Penn
William Penn ( – ) was an English writer and religious thinker belonging to the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers), and founder of the Province of Pennsylvania, a North American colony of England. He was an early advocate of democracy a ...
's land divisions these communities were part of the Welsh Tract and comprised the area known as Harford, a Welsh contraction of Haverford.
History
Haverford Township
Haverford Township is a home rule municipality township in Delaware County, Pennsylvania.William Penn
William Penn ( – ) was an English writer and religious thinker belonging to the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers), and founder of the Province of Pennsylvania, a North American colony of England. He was an early advocate of democracy a ...
. The settlers named their new home after Haverfordwest (''Hwlffordd''), Wales, UK. The township is home to many historic sites. The Grange Estate
The Grange Estate, also known as Maen-Coch and Clifton Hall, is a historic mansion built by Henry Lewis Jr. (1671–1730) in Havertown, Pennsylvania, near Philadelphia, in Delaware County, Pennsylvania. Parts of a c. 1700 residence may be incorpo ...
entertained the Revolutionary War figures 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 General Lafayette. Nitre Hall, along Karakung (Cobb's) Creek, supplied the United States with over 800,000 pounds of gunpowder during the War of 1812. Leedom Hall was the probable home of William Howell, the founder of Haverford Mills, which date from 1688. Other Havertown sites listed on the National Register of Historic Places include the Federal School and Lawrence Cabin. Coopertown appears as early as 1848 as the first community, and the earliest post office is found at the Spread Eagle Tavern at the junction of the present Eagle and Manoa Roads. The Haverford Township Historical Society maintains a "survey" of historic resources notable to the township.
Historic roads
The Haverford Road is one of the earliest roads laid out by civil ordinance. Dates for its layout and completion vary from 1687 to 1703. Darby Road, known earlier as Coopertown Road, dates from 1687. Records show its extension to Radnor, the "principal market for corn," ordered in 1696. Mill Road, at one time called Dickinson Mill Road, may be one of the earliest roads of popular use. Its zig-zag pattern illustrates the indirect path required by horse and cart going up or down hill. Eagle Road, which takes its present name from the Spread Eagle Tavern, c.1814, led Quaker settlers to the Haverford Meeting House.
The railroads and planned communities
Prior to the First World War Haverford was a township of extensive farms. Property maps in 1862 indicate that the landowners were descendants of the same families that arrived with William Penn: among them, the Lawrences, the Ellises, the Humphreys and the Lewises. In 1895 the Philadelphia and West Chester Traction Company began service between 69th Street and West Chester with a major junction at Llanerch. By 1902 the maps indicated a significant change in land ownership. Most of the old family names no longer appeared. In that same year on May 29, the trolley line opened the branch from Llanerch to Ardmore. Llanerch first appeared as a small community with numbered streets. Darby Road was called Coopertown Road. A commercial rail line, now removed, served Boyle Fuel, Lobb Lumber and the Swell Bubble Gum factory up until the 1960s (see map).
Llanerch
Llanerch, situated at the intersection of West Chester Pike and Darby Road, was the first planned community of Haverford Township. Like many other suburban communities, Llanerch was the child of the railroad companies. The railroad built houses for commuters who bought tickets for the rail lines. In 1897 the community was composed of twelve houses and Saint Andrew's Church. These were all designed by Philadelphia architect Frank Allison Hayes (1866–1930). Llanerch's first school followed in 1905. The present school structure, no longer functioning as a school and converted to an apartment complex, dates from 1913.Brookline
Brookline, while not the first planned community, was the most fully executed. The Mueller Atlas of Delaware County, 1909, shows the initial layout for Brookline. At that time Darby Road between Eagle Road and Llanerch was called Haverford Road.
Some construction began around that year, but it was not until after the First World War that the Manor Real Estate Company, a subsidiary of the railroads, set out a plan for a housing development that offered every service, amenity and community need: "Brookline Manor" (see map). As in the 1909 plan, there is an arrangement of regular streets divided by a broad boulevard. The boulevard intersected at a "T" juncture with the major township thoroughfare, Darby Road. The Boulevard would be home to commercial, religious and educational services. At the upper end of the Boulevard, mercantile stores provided shoe makers, tap rooms, florists, bakery, barbers, a five and ten store, the Quaker Store, the A&P grocery store and the Boulevard movie theater. Along the length of the Boulevard the community found their religious houses of worship: the Methodist Church, Saint Faith Episcopal Church, Church of the Annunciation of the Blessed Virgin Mary, and Temple Lutheran. On Earlington Road, to the side of the Boulevard's far end, the Brookline School (1913) met educational needs.
Just west of the intersection of the Boulevard with Darby Road was the Brookline Fire Company (1916). Just beyond on Darby Road were the Brookline Library (1938) and the Haverford High School (1923). In the early days the Brookline County Club and the Brookline airport were situated just behind Haverford High School. Back at the intersection of Brookline Boulevard and Darby Road, at the corner of Manoa Road were the police station on the west side and Shearer's greenhouse and nursery on the east side.
The railroad company attended to their needs to sell tickets as well as to that of Brookline Manor for transportation. The Red Arrow Trolley line #103 ran from Ardmore down Darby Road, then on to West Chester Pike to 69th and Market Streets, thus offering commuters quick access to the city. The tracks which divided Darby Road were lined with fences of early blooming red roses. A bus line ran from Ardmore to 69th and Market by way of Brookline Boulevard and Earlington Road. The junction of the two lines was at the intersection of Darby Road and Brookline Boulevard. At the far end of Brookline Boulevard commuters found the services of the P&W, The Philadelphia and Western high-speed line, an electric train system that even today is one of the most rapid. With trolley lines at one end, the P&W at the other, and a bus that ran between the two, transportation to Philadelphia could not have been more convenient. The electric trolley lines were dismantled in 1966 in favor of gasoline operated buses.
The Irish in Havertown
The arrival of the Irish in Haverford Township occurred in three phases: the 19th-century mill era, the early 20th-century railroad communities, and the post-World War II suburban housing tracts. Born in Ireland in 1779, Dennis Kelly arrived in Philadelphia in 1806. After several years of manual labor he became the prosperous owner of the complex of mills along Karakung Creek. He and his mills attracted the first Irish Catholics to the otherwise Protestant community. 1860 census records attest to the Irish presence and their occupations in the mills. In 1822, mindful of duty to community and faith, Kelly bought and donated land opposite the Friends' Meeting House on the hilltop above the mills for the construction of the first Catholic church. The second and more significant arrival of the Irish came with the planned community of Brookline, c.1925, and portions of Manoa and Oakmont. In 1927 the Church of the Annunciation and the Church of the Sacred Heart together with their schools assured Catholics seeking life in the suburbs of a religious home. The third and largest phase of the Irish move came with the large brick house tract developments of Beechwood, Chatham Park and Manoa. Today, according to the 2000 US Census, Haverford Twp. ranks in the top 60 of census-recognized municipalities nationwide in percentage of population with Irish ancestry.Bubble Gum
Havertown is the birthplace ofSwell Bubble Gum
The Philadelphia Chewing Gum Corporation was a Pennsylvania corporation formed on August 12, 1947, to manufacture candy, chewing gum, and specialty confectionery products. The company was also notable for its American Football Cards when in 19 ...
, founded in 1947, which closed in late 2004 and was demolished in 2011. In 2013, the site became the home of the new Haverford Area YMCA.
Arts and culture
Haverford Music Festival
The concept for the Haverford Music Festival was introduced by the Haverford Township Civic Council (HTCC), a private, non-profit organization that funds historic, environmental, business, and community initiatives in Haverford Township. Inspired by the Philadelphia Folk Festival, Bethlehem Musikfest and other music festivals in the area, the all-day, family-oriented Haverford Music Festival has taken place annually in the Oakmont Business District of Havertown since 2011. In 2012, the festival attracted more than 15,000 people, who enjoyed over 30 bands on three stages. HTCC benefits from festival proceeds and uses to fund community-based programs within Haverford Township. Proceeds from the 2011 Music Festival were given to the Haverford Partnership for Economic Development for Oakmont Business District Beautification.
Parks and recreation
Havertown is home to over 30 outdoor parks and playing fields. The town also provides other recreation facilities, including the Haverford Township Free Library, and the Haverford Township Skatium, a multi-use ice rink for Havertown residents. Parks in Havertown include Llanerch Park, Karakung Field/Drive, Chatham Glen, the Grange Field, and Haverford Reserve/Freedom Playground.Education
Havertown is served by the School District of Haverford Township
The School District of Haverford Township is a school district in Haverford Township, Delaware County, Pennsylvania, United States. It was created in 1944.
The district serves all parts of the township, including Havertown. The current superint ...
, which has one high school, one middle school, and five elementary schools. A newly refurbished elementary school, Chestnutwold Elementary, re-opened its doors in early September 2008. It replaced Oakmont Elementary, which became home to the district offices. In 2009, Manoa Elementary School moved from Manoa Road to the intersection of Manoa and Eagle Roads, taking part of the field that had been there for many years. In 2021, Lynnewood Elementary opened its doors to the newly refurbished school. The Haverford High School sports teams are called the "Fords," and they have a Model T Ford
The Ford Model T is an automobile that was produced by Ford Motor Company from October 1, 1908, to May 26, 1927. It is generally regarded as the first affordable automobile, which made car travel available to middle-class Americans. The relat ...
as mascot.
Cardinal John Foley Regional School is the area's Catholic school. It formed in 2012 from a merger of Annunciation B.V.M. and St. Denis Catholic schools.
Infrastructure
Police and fire
The town is protected by the Haverford Township Police Department and five volunteer fire companies that make up the Haverford Township Bureau of Fire.Environmental remediation
The Havertown Superfund site was caused by the National Wood Preservers wood treatment facility, which was in operation from 1947 to 1991. Chemicals used to treat wood and waste products were dumped into a well on the property. These chemicals fed directly into Naylor's Run Creek and eventually into the Delaware River, for which the creek is a tributary. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ranked the site the eighth worst cleanup project in the United States and initiated remediation efforts in 1976. The site was added to the National Priorities List
The National Priorities List (NPL) is the priority list of hazardous waste sites in the United States eligible for long-term remedial investigation and remedial action (cleanup) financed under the federal Superfund program. Environmental Protectio ...
in 1983 and designated as a Superfund
Superfund is a United States federal environmental remediation program established by the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980 (CERCLA). The program is administered by the United States Environmental Pro ...
cleanup site in early 1990s. The EPA transferred control of the site to the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection in 2013. Although approximately 26,000 people live within a mile of the site, there are no known users of the groundwater within a one-mile radius of the site. The nearby population is on the public water supply.
The site was deemed to be "short-term protective of human health and the environment" in the sixth five-year report conducted by the EPA in 2020. A self storage facility and a YMCA
YMCA, sometimes regionally called the Y, is a worldwide youth organization based in Geneva, Switzerland, with more than 64 million beneficiaries in 120 countries. It was founded on 6 June 1844 by George Williams in London, originally ...
facility were built over parts of the remediated site. Treatment of contaminated groundwater and monitoring of the site are ongoing.
Notable people
* Howard Benson, two-time Grammy nominated producer * Jan Berenstain, one of the creators of theBerenstain Bears
The ''Berenstain Bears'' is a children's literature franchise created by the late Stan and Jan Berenstain and continued by their son, Mike Berenstain, who assumed partial authorship in 2002, and full authorship in 2012 following Jan's death. ...
, briefly attended Manoa school in the late 1920s until the Depression compelled the family to return to Philadelphia; her autobiography mentions a broken collarbone from a tussle in the Manoa School playground.
* Leo Burt, anti-war activist, still at-large; on FBI Most Wanted List
The FBI Ten Most Wanted Fugitives is a most wanted list maintained by the United States's Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). The list arose from a conversation held in late 1949 between J. Edgar Hoover, Director of the FBI, and William K ...
in connection with 1970 Sterling Hall bombing
The Sterling Hall bombing occurred on the University of Wisconsin–Madison campus on August 24, 1970, and was committed by four men as an action against the university's research connections with the U.S. military during the Vietnam War. It resu ...
at University of Wisconsin campus
* Jerry Crawford, former Major League Baseball umpire
* Joey Crawford, NBA referee
* Marguerite de Angeli, award-winning children's book author who lived in Manoa in 1930s
* Tim Donaghy, former NBA referee, game fixer
* Kyle Eckel, NFL player, two-time MVP of Army-Navy game
* John Facenda
John Thomas Ralph Augustine James Facenda ( ; August 8, 1913September 26, 1984) was an American broadcaster and sports announcer. He was a fixture on Philadelphia radio and television for decades, and achieved national fame as a narrator for N ...
, Philadelphia newscaster and narrator for NFL Films
* Rick Fisher, two-time Tony Award winner for lighting
* Stephen Freind
Stephen F. Freind (born April 22, 1944) is an American politician from Pennsylvania who served as a Republican member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives for the 166th district from 1976 until 1993. He unsuccessfully challenged Arlen ...
, Republican representative in Pennsylvania General Assembly
* Alex G
Alexander Giannascoli (born February 3, 1993), better known by his stage names Alex G or, formerly, (Sandy) Alex G, is an American musician, producer, and singer-songwriter. He started his career with DIY self-releases on Bandcamp and began build ...
, singer-songwriter
* Frank Gasparro
Frank Gasparro (August 26, 1909 – September 29, 2001) was the tenth Chief Engraver of the United States Mint, holding this position from February 23, 1965, to January 16, 1981. Before that, he was Assistant Engraver. He designed both sides of t ...
, Chief Engraver of the US Mint
* Julie Gold
Julie Gold (born February 3, 1956) is an American singer-songwriter. She is best known for her musical composition " From a Distance," which became a hit for Bette Midler and won a Grammy Award for Song of the Year in 1991.
"From a Distance" h ...
, composer & Grammy Song of the Year Award winner, 1991, "From a Distance"
* Brendan Hansen
Brendan Joseph Hansen (born August 15, 1981) is an American former competition swimmer who specialized in breaststroke events. Hansen is a six-time Olympic medalist, and is also a former world record-holder in both the 100-meter and 200-meter ...
, four-time Olympic medalist
* Joshua Humphreys, shipbuilder
* Ross Katz Ross or ROSS may refer to:
People
* Clan Ross, a Highland Scottish clan
* Ross (name), including a list of people with the surname or given name Ross, as well as the meaning
* Earl of Ross, a peerage of Scotland
Places
* RoSS, the Republic of Sout ...
, film producer
* Billy King, former GM of NBA's Philadelphia 76ers
The Philadelphia 76ers, colloquially known as the Sixers, are an American professional basketball team based in the Philadelphia metropolitan area. The 76ers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eas ...
* John LeClair
John Clark LeClair (born July 5, 1969) is an American former professional ice hockey player who played 16 seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL) with the Montreal Canadiens, Philadelphia Flyers, and Pittsburgh Penguins. With the Flyers, LeC ...
, played for NHL's Philadelphia Flyers
The Philadelphia Flyers are a professional ice hockey team based in Philadelphia. The Flyers compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference. The team plays its home games in Wel ...
* Joe Lunardi
Joseph Lunardi is an American college basketball analyst for ESPN.
He was born in Philadelphia, attended Saint Joseph's Preparatory School in Philadelphia, as well as Damien High School in CA, and is a Saint Joseph's University alumnus. Lunardi c ...
, ESPN
ESPN (originally an initialism for Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by ESPN Inc., owned jointly by The Walt Disney Company (80%) and Hearst Communications (20%). The co ...
bracketologist
* Glen Macnow
Glen Harry Macnow (born April 23, 1955) is a Philadelphia, Pennsylvania sports talk radio host on 94 WIP.
Background
Macnow was born in New York City on April 23, 1955, and raised in Buffalo, New York. He went to Boston University (with WIP co ...
, Philadelphia radio personality
* Marcus McElhenney, coxswain, 2008 Beijing Olympics
The 2008 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXIX Olympiad () and also known as Beijing 2008 (), were an international multisport event held from 8 to 24 August 2008, in Beijing, China. A total of 10,942 athletes from 204 Nat ...
bronze medalist
* Mary Lou Metzger
Mary Lou Metzger (born November 13, 1950) is an American singer and dancer best known as a cast member on ''The Lawrence Welk Show''.
Metzger was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, the only child of Ernie and Helen Metzger. The family moved to Ha ...
, singer and dancer on ''Lawrence Welk Show
''The Lawrence Welk Show'' is an American televised musical variety show hosted by big band leader Lawrence Welk. The series aired locally in Los Angeles for four years, from 1951 to 1955, then nationally for another 16 years on ABC from 1955 t ...
''
* Ryan Mulhern, former Washington Capitals
The Washington Capitals (colloquially known as the Caps) are a professional ice hockey team based in Washington, D.C. The team competes in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference, a ...
hockey player
* David Ricketts, composer, guitarist, producer for A&M Records
* Robin Roberts, Phillies pitcher, Hall of Famer, resided in Manoa
* James Rolfe, ''Angry Video Game Nerd
''The Angry Video Game Nerd'' (abbreviated as ''AVGN'') is an American retrogaming review comedy web series created by and starring James Rolfe. The series centers on Rolfe's titular skit character, often simply shortened to "the Nerd" (sometim ...
''
* Michael Sembello
Michael Andrew Sembello (born April 17, 1954) is an American singer, guitarist, keyboardist, songwriter, composer and producer from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
Sembello was nominated for an Academy Award and a Golden Globe for his 1983 song " ...
, composer, guitarist, wrote "Maniac" for ''Flashdance'' film soundtrack
* Jean Shiley-Newhouse, 1932 Olympic gold medalist
* Mike Tollin
Michael Tollin is an American film and television producer/director who served as executive producer of the Emmy award-winning ''The Last Dance'', a 10-part documentary series on Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls dynasty. The series received ...
, film producer and director
* Sam Venuto
Samuel Laurence Venuto (November 2, 1927 – July 7, 2014) was an American football running back in the National Football League. He played professionally for the Washington Redskins.
Biography
Venuto was born in Havertown, Pennsylvania, an ...
, former running back in National Football League
* Tom Verica, actor
* Mark Yudof, president of University of California
See also
* Welsh TractReferences
External links
* {{authority control Haverford Township, Pennsylvania Irish-American neighborhoods Irish-American history Irish-American culture Unincorporated communities in Delaware County, Pennsylvania Philadelphia Main Line Unincorporated communities in Pennsylvania Populated places established in 1681 1681 establishments in Pennsylvania