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    Lower Merion and Narberth
    Lower Merion and Narberth
    Lower Merion and Narberth
    Ebook170 pages56 minutes

    Lower Merion and Narberth

    By The Lower Merion Historical Society

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    First settled in 1682 by William Penn s coterie of Welsh Quakers, the Lower Merion area has since undergone several transformations: from farmland, to the home of Philadelphia s industrial elite, to built-out suburb. Besides the development of the unique and impressive Main Line mansions for which the area is famous, Lower Merion and Narberth have been the scene of dramatic railroad rivalries and advances for the middle class. Lower Merion and Narberth focuses on the era of the most intense development, between 1900 and 1950, when the character of each individual neighborhood was coming into its own.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherArcadia Publishing
    Release dateOct 4, 2010
    ISBN9781439638804
    Lower Merion and Narberth
    Author

    The Lower Merion Historical Society

    The Lower Merion Historical Society is an all-volunteer organization dedicated to �Preserving Our Past for the Future.� For more than 60 years, they have accomplished this by stewardship of local history, education of the community, preservation of historic resources, and outreach to promote awareness of the cultural heritage of the Township of Lower Merion and the Borough of Narberth.

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      Book preview

      Lower Merion and Narberth - The Lower Merion Historical Society

      family.

      INTRODUCTION

      A Pennsylvania Railroad marketing piece persuasively described Lower Merion as follows: Its atmosphere is pure; it is thoroughly drained by numerous streams; its soil is fertile; and it is in a striking degree picturesque. Nature—the great landscape gardener—has carved and molded it into rolling hills and placid vales, and so studded it with trees and interlaced it with crystal rivulets that the picture everywhere is lovely to look upon. Yet, surprisingly, in distance and in time, much of Lower Merion is closer to center city Philadelphia than many Philadelphia neighborhoods. This favorable location has been a major factor in the growth of Lower Merion as a premier suburban residential area. Indeed, in many ways, the story of Lower Merion can be viewed as a microcosm in which the processes of the industrial revolution and suburbanization in America played out.

      For many, Lower Merion evokes an image of the prestigious Main Line with its large estates and castles. But there was another side to Lower Merion—equally important were its factories, mills, and industrial facilities, which spurred innovation and economic development. For over 200 years, Lower Merion was one of the region’s foremost agricultural and industrial powerhouses and produced everything from paper and textiles to railroad axles and lumber. This book focuses on the era of the most intense development, between 1900 and 1950, when the character of each neighborhood was coming into its own. Each chapter is organized according to geography: we start with the furthest east site and move west from one neighborhood to the next. We chose to focus on how the other 90 percent lived, so to speak, a history of the working class of the area—how they traveled, where they worked, what they did for fun, where they worshipped. It is easy for those of us lucky enough to live here now to forget about the simple histories of those who came before us, whose lives were spent traversing dirt roads, socializing at taverns, and filling their lungs with the soot expelled from railroad engines.

      What many also don’t know is that the Philadelphia Main Line is also one of the most culturally rich regions in the country. First settled in 1682 by William Penn’s coterie of Welsh Quakers, the area has since undergone several transformations—from farmland, to industrial center, to home of some of Philadelphia’s elite, to built-out suburb. Lower Merion and Narberth have been the set on which dramatic railroad rivalries were played out, while also witnessing the rise of the middle class.

      There are many different kinds of history. We decided to develop this book as the history of the area and the history of the postcard, told in parallel. Before the advent of the telephone, postcards and letters were the main means of communication, and over time, used as souvenirs. In 1898, the U.S. Congress passed legislation to allow private firms to print cards, beginning the era of the private mailing card. Instead of government stamps on the front, photographs, engravings, and other images were used, giving them an added appeal. Up until 1907, it was not permitted by law to write anything but the address on the backs of these cards; personal messages had to be scrawled across the artwork. As a result, these cards are referred to as undivided backs, meaning they did not have a line going down the center of the back—a demarcation used later to separate the address from the personal message. Whether it has a divided back and where it was printed (until 1915, most postcards were still printed in Germany, whose printing methods were the best in the world) are two of the easier ways to date a postcard to a specific time period. The start of the century brought the first of the real photo postcards (postcards that were real photographs and printed on film stock paper), as well as the divided back, harkening the beginning of the so-called golden age of postcards. It is said that the publishing of printed postcards during this time period doubled every six months. Postcard collecting had become a national pastime.

      In addition to the images, another intriguing piece of social history are the mundane, little snippets passed down from correspondents—the postcard messages. We have taken the liberty of incorporating some of the personal messages describing local landmarks and such found on the backs and fronts of our postcards. In their own squirrelly handwriting with misspellings, some were added as a last-minute annotation to the postcard image, others merely sending a well wish or a notice of comings and goings. It adds a fleeting connection to the buildings and people that no longer exist. And then there’s our personal favorite: a small line, confined to the corner of a postcard of St. Mary’s Episcopal Church—almost as though it was meant to be whispered in one’s ear—unsigned, saying simply, Yes, dear. I know I’m handsome.

      The Lower Merion Historical Society is an all-volunteer organization dedicated to preserving the town’s past for the future. For over 60 years, they have accomplished this by stewardship of local history, education of the community, preservation of historic resources, and outreach to promote awareness of the cultural heritage of the township of Lower Merion and the borough of Narberth. Society volunteers and partners are continuously striving to highlight history as a means of giving context to the occurrences of today. Although our claim to fame is our extensive atlas, burial records, and rare document collections, we are far more than just a library. The society’s many accomplishments include preserving the mile markers that map the region’s relationship

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