Pennypacker Mills is a

Colonial Revival The Colonial Revival architectural style seeks to revive elements of American colonial architecture. The beginnings of the Colonial Revival style are often attributed to the Centennial Exhibition of 1876, which reawakened Americans to the archit ...

mansion surrounded by of farmland located in Perkiomen Township near Schwenksville,

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, ...

on the shore of the

Perkiomen Creek Perkiomen Creek is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map accessed April 1, 2011 tributary of the Schuylkill River in Berks, Lehigh and Montgomery counties, Pennsylvania.Gertler, Edw ...

, approximately northwest of

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 ...

. Originally built around 1720 by Hans Jost Hite, it was purchased in 1747 by Peter Pennebacker, and remained privately owned by Pennypackers for eight generations. In 1976, the house was added to the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...

. 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 ...

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 ...

used Pennypacker Mills in the fall of 1777 as a headquarters prior to the

Battle of Germantown The Battle of Germantown was a major engagement in the Philadelphia campaign of the American Revolutionary War. It was fought on October 4, 1777, at Germantown, Pennsylvania, between the British Army led by Sir William Howe, and the American Con ...

, and also as a field hospital for injured soldiers after the battle. Pennypacker Mills 2 Montco PA

Pennsylvania governor Samuel Pennypacker made the Mills his summer home in the early 1900s, and lived there for much of his term in office (1903–1907). After his term, he lived at the Mills year-round until his death in 1916. He was an avid collector of antiques and manuscripts, and many of these can still be found on display at the Mills, along with letters and orders written by George Washington. Pennypacker Mills Dining Room

Pennypacker Mills is open to the public for tours Tuesday - Saturday from 10:00 am – 4:00 pm and Sunday 1:00 - 4:00 pm with the last daily tour at 3:30 pm. Admission is free. It also hosts special events such as

Civil War A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...

reenactments on a regular basis.

References

External links

Pennypacker Mills
visitors website

including detailed history of Samuel and the Mills
Montgomery County website
including a photographic tour of Pennypacker Mills. Houses on the National Register of Historic Places in Pennsylvania Pennsylvania culture Historic house museums in Pennsylvania Museums in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania Houses in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania Parks in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania National Register of Historic Places in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania Historic House Museums of the Pennsylvania Germans {{Pennsylvania-museum-stub