Global InformationList of houses in Fairmount Park information
This list contains all of the extant historic houses located in Fairmount Park in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Most of the houses are referred to as mansions due to their size and use as the summer country estates of Philadelphia's affluent citizens in the 18th and 19th centuries. During that period, the city's only developed areas were located several miles away to the southeast along the Delaware River, making the current park areas along the Schuylkill River an ideal refuge from epidemics during the summer months.[1][2] The mansions were built between 1742 (Belmont Mansion) and 1810 (Rockland), in various architectural styles including Colonial Revival, Federal, Georgian, Gothic Revival, Greek Revival, and Palladian, with some in combinations of those styles.
There are 19 extant historic houses of which 16 were constructed within the current boundaries of Fairmount Park, while three of the houses were moved to the park from elsewhere in the city—Cedar Grove Mansion from Frankford, Hatfield House from Nicetown, and Letitia Street House from Old City. All of the 19 houses were designed and used as private residences. The Cliffs Mansion, located in east park, has been left in ruins since a 1986 fire caused by arson. Other historic houses were demolished due to extensive deterioration, vandalism, fire damage or insufficient funds for restoration. Demolished houses are not included in this list.
Three additional historic park buildings were designed like residential houses though they were never intended to be used as private residences: the Ohio House—built by the Ohio delegation for the Centennial Exposition; the Shofuso Japanese House—built in Japan as a museum exhibit for display at MoMA, then relocated to Fairmount Park; and the Smith Memorial Playhouse—designed, and still used, as an indoor play area for children.
This list does not include the historic boathouses on Boathouse Row which were designed as sporting clubhouses rather than residential homes. The historic houses within the adjacent Wissahickon Valley Park are also not included though that park was previously within the Fairmount Park system. Since 2010, all park areas and facilities are administered separately after the merger of the Fairmount Park Commission and the Department of Recreation into the new Philadelphia Parks & Recreation department.[3]
The Fairmount Park Conservancy's Historic Preservation Trust, in collaboration with the city of Philadelphia, offers long-term leasing of some historic houses to civic organizations and businesses.[4] The lessees must commit to rehabilitate and maintain the buildings, without altering their historic architectural features, while allowing public access. The trust offers assistance to prospective lessees in assessing feasibility, identifying financial incentives, and managing rehabilitation and maintenance work.[5]
Note: the general Fairmount Park National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) listing date of February 7, 1972, is entered for all sites with no individual designation record; ~ is entered for Style and Architect when unknown.
| Image | Name | Years (*circa) |
Park district |
Location[6] | Adjacent neighborhood[7] |
NRHP[8][9] | Style | Architect | Notes | Refs |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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Belmont Mansion | 1742–45* | west park, central | 2000 Belmont Mansion Dr 39°59′27″N 75°12′47″W / 39.9909°N 75.2131°W |
Wynnefield | February 7, 1972 | Palladian | William Peters (owner) | museum; events[n 1] | [10] |
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Boelson Cottage | 1678–84 | west park, central | 2110 Martin Luther King Jr. Dr 39°59′23″N 75°12′11″W / 39.9896°N 75.2030°W |
Wynnefield | February 7, 1972 | Dutch, Swedish | ~ | offices[n 2] | [11][12] |
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Cedar Grove Mansion | 1748–50 | west park, south | 1 Cedar Grove Dr 39°58′45″N 75°12′16″W / 39.9792°N 75.2044°W |
Parkside | February 7, 1972 | Federal | ~ | tours[n 3] | [13][14] |
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Chamounix Mansion | 1802, 1853* | west park, north | 3250 Chamounix Dr 40°00′14″N 75°11′47″W / 40.0038°N 75.1963°W |
Wynnefield Heights | April 26, 1972[15] | Federal | ~ | youth hostel[n 4] | [16] |
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The Cliffs Mansion | 1753 | east park, south | 3400 Reservoir Dr 39°58′46″N 75°11′39″W / 39.9794°N 75.1941°W |
Brewerytown | March 16, 1972[17] | Georgian | ~ | ruins[n 5] | [1][18] |
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Hatfield House | 1760*, 1838*, 1850* | east park, south | 3201 W Girard Ave 39°58′33″N 75°11′18″W / 39.9759°N 75.18833°W |
Brewerytown | March 16, 1972[19] | Colonial Revival, Greek Revival | ~ | access unknown[n 6] | [20] |
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Laurel Hill Mansion | 1767*, 1800*, 1846 | east park, north | 7201 Edgeley Dr 39°59′29″N 75°11′42″W / 39.9914°N 75.19497°W |
Strawberry Mansion | March 24, 1972[21] | Georgian, Federal | ~ | tours; events[n 7] | [22] |
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Lemon Hill Mansion | 1800* | east park, south | 1 Lemon Hill Dr 39°58′15″N 75°11′14″W / 39.9707°N 75.1872°W |
Fairmount | February 7, 1972 | Federal | Henry Pratt (owner) | tours[n 8] | [23][24] |
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Letitia Street House | 1713* | west park, south | 3401 Girard Ave 39°58′31″N 75°11′49″W / 39.9754°N 75.196946°W |
Parkside | February 7, 1972 | Georgian | ~ | access unknown[n 9] | [25][26][27] |
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The Lilacs House | 1711*, 1832 | west park, north | 3600 Greenland Dr 39°59′55″N 75°11′47″W / 39.9987°N 75.1965°W |
Wynnefield Heights | February 7, 1972 | ~ | ~ | access unknown[n 10] | [11] |
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Mount Pleasant Mansion | 1761–65*[28] | east park, central | 3800 Mount Pleasant Dr 39°59′00″N 75°11′59″W / 39.9834°N 75.1998°W |
Strawberry Mansion | October 15, 1966[29] | Georgian | Thomas Nevell, apprentice of Edmund Woolley | NHL; tours[n 11] | [30] |
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Ohio House | 1876 | west park, central | 1700 Belmont Ave 39°59′06″N 75°12′58″W / 39.9850°N 75.2162°W |
Wynnefield | February 7, 1972 | Gothic Revival | ~ | café[n 12] | [31][32][33] |
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Ormiston Mansion | 1798 | east park, central | 2000 Reservoir Dr 39°59′19″N 75°11′47″W / 39.9887°N 75.1963°W |
Strawberry Mansion | February 7, 1972 | Georgian | Edward Burd (owner) | occasional tours/events[n 13] | [34] |
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Ridgeland Mansion | 1752–62* | west park, north | 4100 Chamounix Dr 39°59′33″N 75°12′37″W / 39.9926°N 75.2102°W |
Wynnefield Heights | February 7, 1972 | Federal | ~ | events[n 14] | [35][36] |
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Rockland Mansion | 1810* | east park, central | 3810 Mount Pleasant Dr 39°59′09″N 75°11′59″W / 39.9858°N 75.1998°W |
Strawberry Mansion | February 7, 1972 | Federal | ~ | offices[n 15] | [37][38] |
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Sedgeley Porter's House | 1799–1802 | east park, south | 3250 Sedgeley Dr 39°58′28″N 75°11′20″W / 39.9745°N 75.1889°W |
Fairmount | February 7, 1972 | Gothic Revival | Benjamin Henry Latrobe | Outward Bound[n 16] | [39] |
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Shofuso Japanese House | 1953 | west park, south | 4301 Lansdowne Dr 39°58′53″N 75°12′46″W / 39.9814°N 75.2129°W |
Parkside | February 7, 1972 | Shoin-zukuri | Junzō Yoshimura | tours[n 17] | [40] |
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Smith Memorial Playhouse | 1897–99 | east park, central | 3500 Reservoir Dr 39°58′54″N 75°11′44″W / 39.9817°N 75.1956°W |
Strawberry Mansion | ~ | ~ | James H. Windrim | indoor play area[n 18] | [41][42][43] |
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The Solitude Mansion | 1784–85 | west park, south | 3400 W Girard Ave 39°58′21″N 75°11′44″W / 39.9726°N 75.1955°W |
Parkside | February 7, 1972 | Federal | John Penn (owner) | in the zoo[n 19] | [44][45][46] |
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Strawberry Mansion | 1783–89*, 1828* | east park, north | 2450 Strawberry Mansion Dr 39°59′39″N 75°11′26″W / 39.9943°N 75.1906°W |
Strawberry Mansion | February 7, 1972 | Federal, Greek Revival | ~ | tours; events[n 20] | [47] |
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Sweetbriar Mansion | 1797 | west park, south | 3801 Lansdowne Dr 39°58′37″N 75°12′03″W / 39.9770°N 75.2009°W |
Parkside | February 7, 1972 | Federal | ~ | closed[n 21] | [2][49] |
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Woodford Mansion | 1756–58, 1771–72*, 1790* | east park, north | 3400 Woodford Dr 39°59′36″N 75°11′16″W / 39.9932°N 75.1877°W |
Strawberry Mansion | December 24, 1967[50] | Georgian, Palladian | ~ | NHL; tours[n 22] | [51] |
- ^ a b "The Cliffs: Fairmount Park Ruins with a Link to Joseph Wharton". (archive) by Steven Ujifusa. phillyhistory.org. City of Philadelphia. November 9, 2012. Retrieved November 5, 2017. "The Cliffs was...an informal retreat where the Fishers escaped the city's miserable, disease-ridden summers."
- ^ a b "History Of Sweetbriar Mansion". (archive) fairmountparkhistoricsites.org. The Fairmount Park Council for Historic Sites. Retrieved November 5, 2017. "Samuel Breck...built Sweetbriar Mansion in 1797 to escape the Yellow Fever epidemic."
- ^ "Parks & Recreation Department History". (archive) phila.gov. The City of Philadelphia. Retrieved November 5, 2017. "The Fairmount Park Commission, created in 1867, and the Philadelphia Department of Recreation, created in 1951...officially merged on July 1, 2010."
- ^ "History of the Fairmount Park Conservancy and the Fairmount Park Historic Preservation Trust". (archive) myphillypark.org. Fairmount Park Conservancy. Retrieved December 13, 2017.
- ^ "Leasing Program". (archive) fairmountparktrust.org. Fairmount Park Historic Preservation Trust. Retrieved November 5, 2017.
- ^ "Philadelphia Register of Historic Places". (archive) phila.gov. Philadelphia Historical Commission. August 25, 2017. Retrieved November 5, 2017.
- ^ "The Political and Community Service Boundaries of Philadelphia"(archive). page 45. philaplanning.org. Philadelphia City Planning Commission. June 2004. Retrieved November 5, 2017.
- ^ "National Register Information System – Fairmount Park (#72001151)". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. November 2, 2013. Retrieved November 2, 2017.
- ^ "National Register of Historic Places Inventory – Nomination Form". (archive) by George B. Tatum of the Philadelphia Historical Commission. dot7.state.pa.us. National Park Service document via the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania's Cultural Resources Geographic Information System, the Department of Transportation website and the records of the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission. January 11, 1972. Retrieved November 7, 2017.
- ^ "Belmont Mansion history". (archive) belmontmansion.org. American Women's Heritage Society. Retrieved November 5, 2017.
- ^ a b "Fairmount Park Trail Master Plan". issuu.com. Andropogon Associates, Ltd (for the Fairmount Park Commission). December 31, 2000. Retrieved November 5, 2017.
- ^ "Boelsen Cottage, Fairmount Park, Philadelphia, Philadelphia County, Pennsylvania". (archive) loc.gov. National Park Service. Retrieved November 5, 2017. "Note: this National Park Service source lists many name alternatives and differs in three ways from the Fairmount Park Commission's report (the primary source listed in this column and probably the more accurate one): by spelling of last name (Boelsen, rather than Boelson), year of construction (c.1800, rather than 1678–84), and use of the house (possible servant's quarters for Belmont Mansion, instead of the personal home of its owner)."
- ^ "Historic Houses – Cedar Grove". (archive) philamuseum.org. Philadelphia Museum of Art. Retrieved November 5, 2017.
- ^ "Cedar Grove – Written Historical and Descriptive Data Photographs". (archive) loc.gov. Historic American Buildings Survey/Library of Congress. Retrieved November 16, 2017.
- ^ "National Register Information System – Chamounix Mansion (#72001146)". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. November 2, 2013. Retrieved November 6, 2017.
- ^ "A brief history of Chamounix Mansion". (archive) philahostel.org. Hostelling International. Retrieved November 5, 2017.
- ^ "National Register Information System – The Cliffs (#72001147)". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. November 2, 2013. Retrieved November 1, 2017.
- ^ "Colonial Ruins On The 12th Hole". (archive) by Bradley Maule. hiddencityphila.org. Hidden City Philadelphia. September 3, 2013. Retrieved November 5, 2017.
- ^ "National Register Information System – Hatfield House (#72001157)". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. November 2, 2013. Retrieved November 1, 2017.
- ^ "Hatfield House Project Chronology". (archive) philadelphiabuildings.org. The Athenaeum of Philadelphia. Retrieved November 5, 2017.
- ^ "National Register Information System – Randolph House (original name) (#72001169)". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. November 2, 2013. Retrieved November 1, 2017.
- ^ "Property History and Architecture of House". (archive) laurelhillmansion.org. Women for Greater Philadelphia Inc. Retrieved November 5, 2017.
- ^ "200 Years of Splendor in Fairmount Park" (archive). lemonhill.org. Colonial Dames of America and the Friends of Lemon Hill. June 14, 2005. Retrieved November 5, 2017.
- ^ "Lemon Hill & Its Gardens". (archive) by Martha Halpern. antiquesandfineart.com. Antiques and Fine Art. June 2005. Retrieved November 5, 2017.
- ^ "Milestones in Philadelphia Historic Preservation: Letitia Street House". (archive) page 3. preservationalliance.com. Preservation Alliance for Greater Philadelphia. Preservation Matters (newsletter). Winter 2010 edition. Retrieved November 5, 2017.
- ^ "Philly’s oldest historic buildings, mapped". (archive) by Melissa Romero. philly.curbed.com. May 31, 2017. Retrieved November 5, 2017.
- ^ "Letitia House to become Centennial Parkside CDC’s headquarters". (archive) by Catalina Jaramillo. November 15, 2016. planphilly.com. WHYY News. Retrieved November 28, 2017.
- ^ Note: the NRHP record lists 1761–62 while the Art Museum webpage states 1762–65
- ^ "National Register Information System – Mount Pleasant Mansion (#66000685)". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. November 2, 2013. Retrieved November 2, 2017.
- ^ "Historic Houses – Mount Pleasant". (archive) philamuseum.org. Philadelphia Museum of Art. Retrieved November 5, 2017.
- ^ "Ohio House". (archive) fairmountparktrust.org. Fairmount Park Historic Preservation Trust. Retrieved November 5, 2017.
- ^ "The Ohio House – The Fairmount Park Historic District – Philadelphia, PA". (archive) waymarking.com. Groundspeak, Inc. August 5, 2008. Retrieved November 9, 2017.
- ^ "The Centennial Exposition : described and illustrated". by J.S. Ingram. archive.org. pages 637–38. Hubbard Brothers, Philadelphia. Retrieved November 17, 2017.
- ^ "History of Ormiston". (archive) ormistonrhs.org. Royal Heritage Society of the Delaware Valley. Retrieved November 5, 2017.
- ^ "Leasing Success Story: Ridgeland". (archive) fairmountparktrust.org. Fairmount Park Historic Preservation Trust. Retrieved November 5, 2017.
- ^ "Ridgeland (Mount Prospect)". (archive) loc.gov. Historic American Buildings Survey. Library of Congress. Retrieved December 13, 2017.
- ^ "Rockland, Mount Pleasant Drive, Fairmount Park". (archive) Library of Congress. Retrieved November 5, 2017.
- ^ "Rockland Mansion and Fairmount Park". (archive) pcph.memberclicks.net. Psychoanalytic Center of Philadelphia. Retrieved November 5, 2017.
- ^ "Sedgeley (Porter's House)" (archive). fairmountpark.org. Philadelphia Parks & Recreation. Retrieved November 5, 2017.
- ^ "Shofuso Japanese House and Garden". (archive) japanesehouse.org. Japan America Society of Greater Philadelphia. Retrieved November 5, 2017.
- ^ "Smith’s History". (archive) smithplayground.org. Smith Memorial Playground & Playhouse Inc.. Retrieved November 5, 2017.
- ^ "Preservation is Child's Play at Smith Memorial Playground & Playhouse". (archive) by Nick Totten. savingplaces.org. National Trust for Historic Preservation. October 27, 2015. Retrieved November 5, 2017.
- ^ "Smith Memorial Playgrounds in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (PA)". (archive) nonprofitfacts.com. Advameg, Inc. Retrieved November 5, 2017.
- ^ "The Solitude House" (archive). philadelphiazoo.org. Philadelphia Zoo. Retrieved November 5, 2017.
- ^ "John Penn" (archive). philadelphiazoo.org. Philadelphia Zoo. Retrieved November 5, 2017. "John may have been his own architect; preliminary plans for the house were sketched in his hand."
- ^ Solitude data from the Philadelphia Architects and Buildings (PAB) project of the Athenaeum of Philadelphia
- ^ "Historic Strawberry Mansion Timeline". (archive) historicstrawberrymansion.org. The Committee of 1926. Retrieved November 5, 2017.
- ^ Emily Babay (October 19, 2015). "The mansions of Fairmount Park: Historic houses have rich pasts and new uses". philly.com. Philadelphia Media Network (Digital), LLC. Archived from the original on November 7, 2017. Retrieved December 3, 2017.
- ^ "Who built Sweetbriar Mansion in 1797?". (archive) hsp.org. Historical Society of Pennsylvania. Retrieved November 5, 2017.
- ^ "National Register Information System – Woodford Mansion (#67000021)". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. November 2, 2013. Retrieved November 3, 2017.
- ^ "Woodford Mansion". (archive) woodfordmansion.org. The Naomi Wood Trust. Retrieved November 5, 2017.
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