See? Preservation does happen once in a blue moon and so does adaptive reuse.
This property is on Swedesford in East Whiteland and has the Battle of the Clouds historic marker out front.
I have zero clue who is doing it or what is happening exactly. They deserve a big thank you for caring enough to take on an adaptive reuse in lieu of a tear down.
Barn again. 😊
This small barn, I think, is on the property that once was the White Horse Tavern. Larger barn has
name stone in upper eve- this barn and property was owned in the early and mid 1800’s by my ancestor Adam Reitenbaugh. Another barn along Swedsford road has been turned into offices as has the barn directly on the White Horse Tavern property. So glad that buildings are being preserved and repurposed, rather than being torn down. Doris Reitenbaugh Wills
Doris, I would love to hear any family stories you have about Adam and his father. I currently own the property and am intensely interested in documenting its history.
Would love to be in touch. Drove by with my brother and our spouses today, Frid 13th but no on around left contact info with contractor for your HVAC, etc. work or see contact form that I have to fill out for this blog site. Doris educator2@aol.com We do not live in area but are here for weekend
Perhaps there is hope…
Well, what a pleasant surprise! Perhaps I can shed some light since my wife and I bought the White Horse Tavern in December of 2017. It is indeed adaptive reuse of the property.
My wife and daughter are artists, and I have been an entrepreneur most of my life, with a serious interest in Photography. The pole barn on the property will become an art studio. The stone barn is becoming a photography studio.
Our stone barn is often confused with that larger barn cum office space built by Adam Reitenbaugh on the property next to us (which was originally part of the White Horse property). As far as I can tell my stone barn was built between 1715 and 1790–there is a date in the main portion of the barn that looks like 1790, which would also coincide with the addition to the main tavern house, but some of the mortar looks closer to the 1715 portion of the main house. There was also a build-out addition to the stone barn added in 1810 (assuming a date carved into the stone wasn’t random).
By making it a photography studio, I am able to preserve and leave exposed the stone walls of the barn inside and outside. The ceiling (which was a replacement done in 1977 and not original) will be insulated and covered inside with appropriate period looking wood, and barn floors will be added. Most of the barn will look like it originally did.
I’ve already had a lot of work done on the building but got ripped off by a contractor. When I discovered the poor work and damage it might do long-term, I made the painful decision to rip it out and start over with folks that know better. A pleasant surprise in the last week, while connecting sewer pipes from the barns to the septic on the property we uncovered a cistern from 1830 or before with beautiful stonework. A big, deep, and beautiful structure underneath a rotten wood deck.
Thank you for how you jumped to a positive conclusion when seeing the work, rather than a negative one. I wish certain committees in the township would be open about their agenda, but that’s a conversation for another time.
Also, thank you for this blog. I have often discovered things I did not know about our neighborhood history. Keep it up!
Hi William- I have been watching and it’s OBVIOUS you are restoring the barn etc and I am thrilled to see it.
People don’t get true adaptive reuse and given how the area has changed the property can’t live in a bubble. I am so happy by what you are doing and I wish more people would do what you are doing!