Home

Navigation

---

 Search the entire site:
 

Search: 

A SUBSTANTIAL STONE DWELLING

        Many Philadelphians sought to emulate the English country estate tradition by constructing brick and stone formal houses in the countryside. Attorney John Moland had one such house on a plantation in the Northern Liberties, just above the current center city.  In 1741 he purchased undeveloped land in Warwick Township along the Little Neshaminy Creek and adjacent to the York Road connecting bustling Philadelphia with the smaller New York City.  A two-story  home was built circa 1750 using fieldstone quarried from further up Kerr's, also known as Carr's, Hill.  A vernacular kitchen with a loft was attached to these formal quarters. 

        In 1777, the widow of John Moland and a daughter still lived in this substantial dwelling.  General Washington chose the Moland House as his headquarters while awaiting military intelligence on British naval and troop movements.  Eleven thousand Continental and militia soldiers encamped on the farms straddling the Little Neshaminy. 

        In this section we plan to use photographs and discussion to present the architectural features of the exterior and interior of this historic building.  Is the Moland House a vernacular Colonial, early American Georgian, or a transition architectural style?  We will present the information, you decide. 

        But for now, the pages in this section are still under construction. 

 

* * * * *  HELP US PRESERVE  * * * * * 

        Preservation requires addressing more than the appearance of a property. You need to correct unseen threats to the House’s existence. There are three water abatement projects which need donated funding, materials or services. 

        (1) The current sump pump system moves water from the south portion of the formal quarter’s cellar for release at ground level. A gravity-feed water abatement system would direct water from a French drain inside the south cellar through pipes to exterior drainage pits for gradual release below grade. This would eliminate one dependence on electrical service, considerably reduce the humidity which a dehumidifier must handle for interior climate control, and help lower a major operating cost in addition to aiding preservation. 

        (2) The northwest corner of the cellar has a related water problem. Downspouts release rainwater at ground level, but it collects in the window wells and seeps into the House’s cellar. Underground drainage pipes could move the water from the bottom of the window wells for release well away from the House. The bottom of the window wells would be covered with rubble stone to prevent the pipes from being clogged by leaves and other natural debris. 

        (3) The 1940s annex basement also needs an interior French drain with gravity-feed piping releasing water below grade. 

        These projects help ensure the integrity of the Moland House foundation for the long run. Please consider funding or donating the services and materials necessary to accomplish these vital infrastructure measures. For more information, please let us know how and when to contact you at (215) 918-1754or help@moland.org .

 

        As most of us are too well aware, the grounds around a house need regular, periodic care if they are not to revert to a tangled wilderness. The Moland House could use your tender care in grounds keeping and  maintenance. Leaves, sticks, other natural debris, and litter needs to be picked up and placed in trash receptacles for disposal. The debris from restorative construction needs to be collected, canned, and moved for disposal. You can enjoy some exercise in the fresh air at no charge by volunteering your time at (215) 918-1754or help@moland.org Thank you. .

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

      

_{* * * * *}  EXPLORE yOUR PAST  _{* * * * *}

Visit       Learn about GEORGIAN ARCHITECTURE using Philadelphia examples.
            www.nps.gov/archive/inde/Franklin_Court/Pages/archgeorge.html 
             
            Look the word up in an architecture glossary.
            *  http://ah.bfn.org/a/DCTNRY/vocab.html
            *  http://www.westwinddesign.com/glossdes.htm

            PA ARCHitecture & archaeology at www.arch.state.pa.us/.
You can search by county, township, key word in name, architectural style, etc. Click on “View details” for a property.      Click on “visit NR form” to see the accepted application to the National Register of Historic Places. Read Sections 7 & 8. Some contain floor plans. Most have Geological Survey maps of the property’s location.

Read     James Deetz, In Small Things Forgotten, NYC: Anchor Press, 1777 & 1996.
            Chapter 5 – I Would Have the House Stronge in Timber.

            Richard J. Webster, Chapter 9 – Architecture,
            in Randall M. Miller & William Pencak (editors), Pennsylvania: A history of the Commonwealth, Harrisburg, PA: PA Historical & Museum Commission, 2002.
            Part II: Ways to Pennsylvania’s Past.

            Hugh Morrison, Early American Architecture: From the first colonial settlements to the National period, NYC: Dover Publications, 1952 by Oxford University Press. 
            Chapter 1 – The Colonial Styles. 
            Chapter 9 – The Emergence of Georgian. 
            Chapter 10 – The Georgian Style. 
            Chapter 16 –Georgian Architecture in the Middle Colonies. 

 

            Our local browsers can search the Bucks County Library System from home. 

 

 http://ibistro2.buckslib.org/uhtbin/cgisirsi/x/0/57/49?user_id=DYWEB

     

 

---