__NOTOC__ Mount Pleasant is a historic

mansion A mansion is a large dwelling house. The word itself derives through Old French from the Latin word ''mansio'' "dwelling", an abstract noun derived from the verb ''manere'' "to dwell". The English word '' manse'' originally defined a property l ...

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, ...

, atop cliffs overlooking 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 ...

. It was built about 1761–62 in what was then the countryside outside the city by John Macpherson and his wife Margaret. Macpherson was a

privateer A privateer is a private person or ship that engages in maritime warfare under a commission of war. Since robbery under arms was a common aspect of seaborne trade, until the early 19th century all merchant ships carried arms. A sovereign or deleg ...

, or perhaps a

pirate Piracy is an act of robbery or criminal violence by ship or boat-borne attackers upon another ship or a coastal area, typically with the goal of stealing cargo and other valuable goods. Those who conduct acts of piracy are called pirates, v ...

, who had had "an arm twice shot off" according to

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 ...

. He named the house "

Clunie Clunie is a small settlement in Perthshire, Scotland, west of Blairgowrie. It lies on the western shore of the Loch of Clunie. History Near the village on a small hill are the foundations of an early defensive settlement. The fortificati ...

" after the ancient seat of his family's clan in Scotland. The builder-architect was Thomas Nevell (17211797), an apprentice of

Edmund Woolley Edmund Woolley (16951771) was an English-born American architect and master carpenter, best known for building Independence Hall in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Biography Woolley was born in England around 1695, and emigrated to th ...

, who built

Independence Hall Independence Hall is a historic civic building in Philadelphia, where both the United States Declaration of Independence and the United States Constitution were debated and adopted by America's Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Fa ...

. The house is administered by the

Philadelphia Museum of Art The Philadelphia Museum of Art (PMoA) is an art museum originally chartered in 1876 for the Centennial Exposition in Philadelphia. The main museum building was completed in 1928 on Fairmount, a hill located at the northwest end of the Benjamin Fr ...

Fairmount Park Fairmount Park is the largest municipal park in Philadelphia and the historic name for a group of parks located throughout the city. Fairmount Park consists of two park sections named East Park and West Park, divided by the Schuylkill River, with ...

. It was declared a

National Historic Landmark A National Historic Landmark (NHL) is a building, district, object, site, or structure that is officially recognized by the United States government for its outstanding historical significance. Only some 2,500 (~3%) of over 90,000 places listed ...

in 1974. and Mount Pleasant, Fairmount Park, wide view of land side

Architecture and history

The Georgian mansion has an entrance topped by a

pediment Pediments are gables, usually of a triangular shape. Pediments are placed above the horizontal structure of the lintel, or entablature, if supported by columns. Pediments can contain an overdoor and are usually topped by hood moulds. A pedimen ...

supported by

Doric columns The Doric order was one of the three orders of ancient Greek and later Roman architecture; the other two canonical orders were the Ionic and the Corinthian. The Doric is most easily recognized by the simple circular capitals at the top of col ...

. A balustrade crowns the roof which also has prominent dormers and two large chimneys. Two small symmetrical pavilions flank the main house, an office and a summer kitchen. All are adorned with brick quoins. John Adams visited the mansion in 1775 and called it "the most elegant seat in Pennsylvania." The interiors contain the original paneling with ornamental carving, and still show the "elegance of the lifestyle of colonial elites," as well as souvenirs of Macpherson's life and times and period furniture by craftsmen such as Martin Jugiez. The furniture is from the collections of the Philadelphia Museum of Art.Mount Pleasant
Philadelphia Museum of Art. Accessed May 22, 2012. Mount Pleasant was also home to

Benedict Arnold Benedict Arnold ( Brandt (1994), p. 4June 14, 1801) was an American military officer who served during the Revolutionary War. He fought with distinction for the American Continental Army and rose to the rank of major general before defect ...

and his wife

Peggy Shippen Margaret "Peggy" Shippen (July 11, 1760 – August 24, 1804) was the highest-paid spy in the American Revolution, and was the second wife of General Benedict Arnold. Shippen was born into a prominent Philadelphia family with Loyalist tendencies. ...

. Arnold purchased the mansion on March 22, 1779, for his new bride, and specifically made the property over to her, although, due to the high price of the estate and Benedicts deteriorating funds, he had to sell it, thus the couple never got a chance to move in. In 1792, the mansion was purchased by Jonathan Williams, first superintendent of

West Point The United States Military Academy (USMA), also known Metonymy, metonymically as West Point or simply as Army, is a United States service academies, United States service academy in West Point, New York. It was originally established as a f ...

and grandnephew of

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 ...

. He lived there intermittently until his death in 1815, and his children sold the estate to Fairmount Park. The structure was restored in 1926 by the Philadelphia Museum of Art.

Gallery

File:Captain John Macpherson (1726 - 1792) by anonymous (circa 1772-1792).jpg, Captain John Macpherson (1726–1792) File:Mt P aerial HABS 206299pu.jpg, Historic American Buildings Survey, aerial view, looking west, 2003 File:The Ladies' home journal (1948) (14765158364).jpg, Parlor, 1948 File:Mt P HABS interior 137157pu.jpg, Historic American Buildings Survey, main hall and stairway, 1960 File:Mt P 2nd floor HABS 137161pu.jpg, Historic American Buildings Survey, second floor hallway, 1960

References

External links

Philadelphia Museum of Art: Fairmount Park Houses
– visiting information
Philadelphia Museum of Art:
Saving a Colonial Masterpiece: Mount Pleasant Restored
Historic American Buildings Survey
including 44 photographs and 32 measured drawings
Description of Mount Pleasant
at the Historical Society of Philadelphia {{DEFAULTSORT:Mount Pleasant (Mansion) Houses on the National Register of Historic Places in Philadelphia National Historic Landmarks in Pennsylvania Historic house museums in Philadelphia Philadelphia Register of Historic Places Houses completed in 1762 Georgian architecture in Pennsylvania Houses in Fairmount Park East Fairmount Park

Architecture and history

Gallery

See also

References

External links