It was Happy Days Farm. It was part of a Penn Land grant. It was a historic resource. It was beautiful and until not that long ago, a working farm with terrific tenant farmers who cared about the land. Vanguard the financial giant had come to own it.
Now as of fall of 2023 another developer is in control. Portman Holdings of Atlanta is busy steamrolling it all down for some kind of 1.9 million-square-foot industrial complex. So is that developer speak for lots of warehouses?
We drove past what was Happy Days Farm today and it’s so sad and a waste. Chester County is disappearing one bad development at a time. Soon it will all be bulldozed and a county historically known once for farms, open space, bucolic vistas and lovely country architecture and more will be gone.
My wish for 2024? That Chester County residents will rise up and start saving what’s left of Chester County; will make saving Chester County an ELECTION issue. It’s a Presidential election year. Just a thought.
You remember for years if you’ve been following my blog that I was concerned about what we know as Indian Run Farm or Ashbridge house in Exton. It literally sat shrink, wrapped in plastic for years.
I was honestly afraid it’s not so long that it would never be restored. I’m pleased to say it has been. It’s more of a modern interpretation than the old farmhouse at once was inside but it’s still has its pieces of the past and I think it works. I still do not like the new development that was built around it because that’s not my jam and there’s too much of that Cran plant stuff everywhere but I think the old gal doesn’t look bad now and here are some interior pictures a friend of mine took:
Below, this are the posts I wrote over the years about this place, because I really was afraid it was going to either rot or get torn down. I will admit, I am beyond pleasantly surprised, and I’m very happy I just wish they were less townhouse apartment things around it.
⚠️Correction: I wanted to get this video out there, and it has been a federally listed historic resource since the early 1980s not the 1960s⚠️
The Joseph Price House. 401 Clover Mill in Exton, West Whiteland Township, Chester County. The corner of Clover Mill Road and S. Whitford Road. Historically rotting since we can safely say 1988 when the current owners acquired the property.
I actually know people who tried in recent years to purchase the historic house to save it but present owners can never seem to sell, can they? Do they think they will get millions of dollars more than property is worth? And if I am honest, part of what I fear with this property is not only the house, completely falling apart to the point where it can’t be saved, but the possibility of this property ending up in some weird tax sale, and someone unscrupulous getting the property and then just tearing down a legit and registered historic house.
I have made a black-and-white photo of this house in its current state the banner for this website and the Chester County Ramblings social media channels. The reason I did that in June is because I think it’s beautiful and needs to be saved, and I keep hoping if people keep seeing the house, it will provoke conversations, and folks will ask questions, send me old photos and history. Recently, someone did. Their dad was born in the house in 1926.
South side of Joseph Price House 1926.
I took exterior shots with a zoom lens from across the road earlier this year in June. I did not trespass. The house as previously mentioned is in grave peril.
I had questioned before if the house was secure. At one point it did have a caretaker but after what I saw through the lens of my camera I do not see how it is possible for anyone to live in that house safely or legally. But I suppose anything is possible?
Interior Joseph Price House, date and photographer unknown. BUT believed to be only a few years old.
However a couple of years ago I was sent a couple interior photos of recent vintage. I do NOT know how they were obtained. I also don’t know who sent them to me and I have searched to find the old message and it is long gone. I have never posted these images but I think it is time. Maybe it will of help to motivate West Whiteland to get the owners to properly secure the structure or even help someone, anyone to get a conservation/preservation buyer? I figure the current owners have to be getting up there in age? I also found a random and old court docket with the owners on it, have no idea what it was about does anyone?
Anyway this house is glorious and if Loch Aerie in neighboring East Whiteland could be saved and repurposed with a new life, why not this place too?
#thisplacematters #history #historichouses
I mean are there ANY reporters TV or print media with the gumption to cover this? It’s not a human bleeding and dying, it’s just a house. A historically noted house. We can’t save everything but we should save some things, right?
Save the Joseph Price House in Exton. But please don’t trespass there, it is still someone else’s property.
I just posted about the Oaklands Estate Tenant Farm House after driving by a couple of days ago. I said in that post, I feared it would just be torn down. I didn’t know. Now I know that it’s actually true I am going to say that out loud.
A bit after I posted my post, some of the family that used to live in that beautiful farmhouse posted some photos. Of a pool refurbished in 2021 and things like that. The house had huge beautiful gardens and a wonderful library in the house. It was a home, a much loved home.
The refurbished pool around 2021
1-28-1950 .. looking down Whitford Rd towards the house
1-28-1950 in front of the barn looking west on Rt 30
Some McIlvaine family members were living on site until they had to leave after the sale. They have been kind enough to give me these photos to show all of you.
Our farm sign selling milk. I still have all the Oakland’s farm milk containers. My granddad started selling turkeys too.
I get that a car dealership probably doesn’t care about an old farmhouse but we in Chester County should care about our old farmhouses, and I want the memories to survive through photos. The descriptions on the photos have been provided by a family member and I would like to thank Shane McIlvaine in for sharing his precious memories. And these are precious memories for these people.
My Grandad in the middle with his brothers at a farm show in the 50’s – Shane McIlvaine
But when estates have to be settled and there are a bunch of relatives involved, properties sometimes have to be sold. And given the absolute insanity of the real estate market and how developers on a quest to play PAC MAN and gobble up land all over, it makes it hard for individuals to compete to try to save these properties, let alone family members who want to hang on to familial homesteads and be able to afford to buy out other family members.
Shane McIlvaine : “ this was closing day last spring… My final picture at the house. Couldn’t believe they still wanted to buy it since it had 4ft of water in the basement. I have pictures of the property in all its stages dating back to 1707 and kept all the old farm equipment. Storing it across Rt30 at the main house and barn (Oakland’s farm). We still sell honey here!”
So when someone else asked Shane McIlvaine about the situation, we all learned some interesting information and the reality of the damage overdevelopment does over time:
“I moved out last year when we sold it to Exton Nissan. The chimney never caught on fire…it was an electrical fire from a poor stucco job exposing a wire…Even though I had just recently refinished the pool, the property was slowly sinking into the wetlands because of surrounding development. It needed hundreds of thousands in repairs. Decided it was time to go when yellow jackets were discovered within the entire back wall of the home. In the 70’s it never flooded and it had a useable pasture for farm animals.…Brand new pool put in 2021. It does make me a bit sad since it had been in the family since the 1700’s. My grandmother lived in the guest house and was the owner. When she recently passed her estate was divided, and I couldn’t afford to buy everyone out of their share of the acreage.”
Property around the farm house 1950s
The house and/or the spring house is sinking slowly into wetlands because of surrounding development. That old phrase you hear about water seeking it’s own level strikes me as apropos in a sad way. This is a real cost of over-development, which sadly is somethings the West Whiteland corridor has plenty of. Water no longer has anywhere to go because of all of the development. And with climate change and increasingly obnoxious weather patterns, where we never had flooding, we have flooding.
And if there was more open space, water would have a place to go. They can engineer stormwater basins and whatnot all they want, but it doesn’t really replace old fashioned open space with room for water to go.
Back to death of a farmhouse….
So Shane McIlvaine is the nephew of former State Representative Barbara McIlvaine Smith who was also Vice President of West Chester Borough Council once upon a time. Shane’s father was her older brother. His dad passed away in 2012, so his aunt became the Executrix.
Other information: Shane McIlvaine has the original deed, William Penn land grant paperwork, and some pictures of the farm workers from long ago.
Let that sink in: this is yet another property that was a William Penn land grant being destroyed for development. (Yes, that is my opinion that too much land, too many farmhouses, farms, open space, etc are being destroyed.) Lloyd Farm in Caln is also crumbling by the minute, was a William Penn land grant. Our history of Chester County, of Pennsylvania, of this very country is lbeing destroyed and for what?
1-28-1950 ..corner of Whitford Rd & Rt 30 looking down at that house
If you look at other countries like the one we spring from originally, England, they value their heritage. In this country, it’s super sad but we do not. Not all of us, but too many decision makers for sure in Harrisburg, for example.
So maybe, just maybe if state representatives and state senators could get off their collective political asses in Harrisburg and do their jobs, which includes updating the Municipalities Planning Code comprehensively to protect the constituency they are supposed to serve as opposed to special interests, that would be awesome. And it’s not all of the state representatives and state senators, but there are so many that are in with all sorts of obvious that they forget whom they’re there to serve.
So hypothetically, speaking, maybe if the Municipalities Planning Code had been updated, there might not be so much development in West Whiteland, and this farmhouse and William Penn Land grant remainder would be worth maybe saving?
We all need to do better. We can’t keep standing idly by as our very history disappears.
Here in Chester County we keep losing what makes this county special. Farms, land, open space, history. We loose it with every devil of a development project we don’t really need – you know like that warehouse development project being discussed at present in Uwchlan Township? Or any of the apartment and townhouse developments we don’t actually need more of in a county once known for farms and open space. It’s all bullshit being shoved at residents as the latest and greatest until it’s not. And it’s not.
I don’t think any bells can be unrung here with this historic farmhouse that’s part of a historic William Penn land grant. That actually upsets me. To follow in screenshots is all the West Whiteland stuff talking about the demolition execution timeline.
One last comment from Shane McIlvaine about all of this development. It makes me sad. He literally has been someone in a farming family who has grown up watching farms disappear. Imagine what he has seen. Chester County has lost so much. When will it stop?
“ It is sad. In the early 90’s when my Grandad and his brothers sold the 300 or so acres between Whitford and Rt100 (becoming Waterloo Blvd and a bunch of condos), I knew it was all downhill for Exton as peaceful farmland. A few yrs later Waterloo gardens sold to a developer when the matriarch of the Le’Bouttlier family passed and that property had to be split between siblings. So will go every other last chunk of Chester County land. Honey Brook is the next target for developers. Our other family farm called Springton Manor towards that direction was sold as well but partially preserved luckily.”
Ashbridge House/Indian Run Farm Exton at Main Street Bozzuto Photo
I had someone reach out to me very recently, who was a descendent of the Newlin family who once lived at Ashbridge house on Indian Run Farm in Exton/West Whiteland. His name is Nick Schade and he has shared some photos that I will share at the bottom of what this used to be but now a few words about what it has become.
This was one of the broken down old beautiful Chester County farm houses I have been obsessed with over the past few years. This was the one that when you went into Main Street, looked like it was shrink wrapped in plastic so it could be shipped somewhere like a package I don’t know how else to describe it. I have been writing about this place for a few years, the last time in 2020.
Ashbridge House at Indian Run Farm circa 2017-2020
I will be completely honest, and I never thought that this would ever be restored. But it has been. This next photo is another one from Bozzuto who was the developer.
Bozzuto photo
Now I am not going to be a hypocrite, and change my tune and say I love the development around the farmhouse, because I most assuredly do not. First of all, I think there are too many apartment complexes being built out here and we don’t want to be at King of Prussia in Chester County. But it sure seems like that is the direction that everything is going, isn’t it? But I will say that I am honestly grateful that the rehab actually occurred.
It is so important for municipalities to see that adaptive reuse of old structures can occur. Like what finally happened here would be ideal for the Lloyd Farm House in Caln. Or the 18th century farmhouse on the property of the boat dealership that was Clews and Strawbridge in Frazer. Or what about the old farmhouse in Exton – you know 105 S. Whitford Road in Exton? Was part of Oaklands Estate originally and a familial/childhood home of a now retired and popular former Chester County State Representative?
I am also going to say that in spite of the insane amount of development in West Whiteland, it is also a municipality that has some mighty fine adaptive reuse and restoration of historic structures if they survive.
Back to Ashbridge House/Indian Run Farm. So the farmhouse is part of the development, and the old barn is World of Beer. The photos you will be seeing are from the Newlin family.
I am always grateful when these family members send me photos of these places I write about. Because when I see them as they were in my minds eye, and I imagine, it’s always so wonderful when I see actual photos if they exist to see that I wasn’t wrong in my imagining. It’s also cool since a lot of these families don’t have a lot of descendants left, or they don’t have descendants that know of once came from this area and lived in these great places.
The photos I am about to post start in the late 19th century and run through to the 1970s.
Thank you so much Nick for the photos and the prompt to post an update.
The new company going into the grand old colonial gal is called VK Brewing. Veteran owned.
Soooo…time will tell. I hope they honor the past of The Ship Inn. Of course I like others wonder what will happen with all of the memorabilia and historical bits?
Chef Robert Irvine tried to bring a horse to water but hey you can’t make him drink. I won’t miss the now former owner yelling at his employees on the dining room floor at the Ship Inn. Here’s hoping they keep him off of the dining room floor at Duling-Kurtz the other place he and his wife own.
So the Realtor is listing this property for Church Farm School, yet records still reflect West Whiteland? How does that work?
People are funny. Especially when they are realtors and they act like an unprofessional gaggle of low class attack rats. And yes, this is all about the Benjamin Pennypacker House listing which I blogged about yesterday because I was and am concerned.
Below are screen shots of how this Realtor went live with the listing. How it was in Malvern, that it was a Colonial, etc etc. I said calling a house in Exton Malvern is just as bad as calling a house in Downingtown, Chester Springs. None of these places are bad, so just market truthfully, right?
Yesterday’s version of the Keller Williams Listing on The Benjamin Pennypacker House
Well I noticed today that the listing had ummm changed. Still not particularly well written but at least it reflected the correct town and that it wasn’t “colonial” in style or architectural classification. I mean come on, if you take two minutes to read historic resource survey forms on the property (in yesterday’s post) they tell you all about the style, etc.
But I digress. Now it’s better, but now some I know remarked was it historically hysterical or hysterically historical?
So now I have to ask if Church Farm School condones the behavior of the screen shots I am going to share at the end of this post? Because this Realtor is representing them and this property correct? So whomever provided the introduction to Church Farm, they would also have some culpability perhaps?
Church Farm School is an institution I believe in. But this behavior runs contrary to who they are. Church Farm didn’t send the “enlightened” to troll my blog’s Facebook page but because now a smudge and swirl surrounds this property and the listing, well do those of us who support this fine school in small ways need to re-think said support? I don’t think so, but it gives me pause.
Now the next things is this, Chesco Views still shows the property in possession of West Whiteland (screen shot at top of page) so did someone jump the proverbial gun here? I mean I know West Whiteland voted on it around the 26th I guess it was? But if the property still shows one thing can you list a property until that dust has settled and it reflects current ownership? (I don’t know which is why I am asking.)
So this is a curious tale, now getting more curious and there is probably much more attention on this now than Church Farm School wants. But when they are teaching their wonderful boys to be upstanding young men, and buddies of their realtor, egged on by said realtor behave oddly and unfortunately, well it gives one pause, doesn’t it?
And to have one of these buddies essentially imply I am anti-U.S. military and anti- Marine Corps because I don’t think much of this whole Pennypacker listing etc so far, well that is a step too far, isn’t it? I am not commenting on someone’s military service record (it has absolutely ZERO to do with the topic at hand and to imply that is rather offensive), I was and am commenting on that listing and issues I see, and now these other “professionals”, and they seem to be in part from Keller Williams , so how does their behavior reflect on that brand? Would you choose them to represent you?
Apparently this whole topic of the Benjamin Pennypacker house is now a hot local topic. Maybe it will keep the wrecking ball from the door? One can only hope. But Realtor and pal realtor types who left comments? Bad tactic and people will remember this, and you all did this to yourselves. Your comments were public on social media and were removed, but screenshots were retained. And they are below, as is my right.
This is my favorite of the nasty comments. This woman has trolled me on social media for years to the extent that I try to block her everywhere. Last time was in a breast cancer group because she just does breast cancer better than everyone. She still can’t spell IRE properly. And she essentially uses the same nasty comment at me every time and every time misspells IRE as EYRE and is actually using the wrong word. And it’s always drivel I write, yet she is like a human gaper delay and always has to read and comment.
This is all turning out to be quite curious. Especially since I don’t object to the property being sold, I just find things strange and really am hoping a preservation buyer finds this place.
Apparently it’s keep your friends close, and some Realtors closer? Have a good night.
Big, deep breath. That moment when you see a historic asset go up for sale with mistakes in the listing, surprisingly undervalued, and you feel like it has the same weight as listing a fast food restaurant and pad…only it wouldn’t be only $450,000. Is this being marketed as a RESTORE or a TEAR DOWN? Hard to tell.
Let’s start with WEST WHITELAND AND EXTON aren’t MALVERN.
Details matter.
This realtor is an unknown, doesn’t seem to to have the chops for this property. I am sure he will be offended by this, but that is my opinion, and allowed.
This is a historic asset. Whom would he know at Church Farm? Maybe it would be that person who was the former finance director at Easttown Township and now Director of Finance and Operations, perhaps? And did they get to know each other at Caln Township? (Also see this link and isn’t that interesting?)
This listing says “Malvern”. To me that screams Realtor FAUX marketing…you know like saying Downingtown listings are “Chester Springs”? This property is in EXTON.
The listing describes this house as a “COLONIAL”. It is not. And ALL you would have to do is look up the Pennsylvania Historic Resource Form which is publicly available in the Internet with a super quick search and embedded here. The style of this FARMHOUSE, which is neither COLONIAL nor a FRONT HALL COLONIAL it is FEDERAL or FEDERAL TRANSITONAL. Also referred to as RURAL FEDERAL STYLE.
I adore Church Farm School, but I am concerned at WHO the Realtor is for the property and the fire sale price for a historic asset on 2 acres. I mean $450,000 is like tear down pricing isn’t it? Is this really being marketed as such? And let’s talk it’s February, this is a house in need of serious work, and the snow and ice aren’t really 100% removed to make it safe to go see? That would now be a potential liability on this wonderful school, since it flipped back fairly recently from West Whiteland, wouldn’t it? (I mean even ChescoViews still has West Whiteland as owner as of today, right?)
And let’s talk West Whiteland for a moment. This farmhouse sits on a property that was supposed to be a park years ago, correct? Yet only recently began that transformation truly, correct? Now former Manager of West Whiteland Mimi Gleason was manager from 2014 until recently correct? West Whiteland got this property when? 2006? It was totally before her tenure, Michael Cotter preceded her, and then Michael Cotter next went where? West Chester Borough or something until he resigned in 2017? Who was the West Whiteland Township Manager prior to Cotter? It was a woman maybe named Christine Smeltzer (she shows up in Foote Mineral stuff)? Before that Steve Ross maybe?
So this house was in West Whiteland’s custody FOR YEARS, so why did it literally sit and rot? Why did it take so long for the park to actually happen? Why did this property essentially go from Church Farm to West Whiteland and now ALL THESE YEARS LATER goes back to Church Farm? Just so weird, huh? I mean why didn’t West Whiteland use the farmhouse for something? Even having to do with the park? Why now send it back to Church Farm?
Property was originally acquired around 1918 by Church Farm School. Originally they used it as the farm manger’s residents. So when did West Whiteland take custody of this property? 1990s maybe? I found reference to the Church Farm Property in a little book about Exton called “Little Bobby Reese Growing Up in Exton” – I found a copy of that book and will be writing about it soon.
And in this “History of West Whiteland”, you find reference to the Benjamin Pennypacker House:
So the description describes an eat in kitchen. OK it would have to be fit for habitation to have that, right? Is it? Look at the listing photos – doesn’t it scream demolition by neglect as a structure? Why didn’t West Whiteland maintain it better while they had custody?
Sign me very concerned about the future of this property. I wish it had a Realtor who did these kinds of listings more regularly, and umm, given the condition of the house and the weather, why not list it in the SPRING? Church Farm is a school, so they aren’t real estate magnates. But this property should have more experienced Realtors and at least an attempt a listing more appropriate to preserving this house and property. And who decided this was the listing price?
Chester County is losing too many historic assets and open space. Please let anyone you know looking for a historic property. If this gets torn down, it will literally be criminal to historic preservation.
I don’t give a rat’s ass if this is sold, but I am questioning if it is being sold as land and a tear down, or as a rough gem to restore? I am also questioning why West Whiteland seemed to practice demolition by neglect while they had this property?
Moms Against Suffocating Kids. You just can’t make this stuff up.
How about Kids Against Suffocating Moms?
First of all, personally I am too damn old to protest in the rain. Secondly it’s SUNDAY, don’t they have anything else to do? Thirdly what do they think will happen because they stood in the rain outside a mall on Route 100 at Route 30? Literally no one blink their lights or beeped the horns in support. The people in the car next to us were laughing hysterically.
Also there is that whole thing about respecting our beautiful United States flag and not flying it in inclement weather? So Captain America, do you not respect our flag enough? The flag, our flag, should not be subject to weather damage. Maybe that is an all weather flag, but still? There are actually federal guidelines. How is this even a flag-bearing occasion?
Honestly, you can’t make this stuff up. I would say they should volunteer on a pediatric ward for kids with COVID but who knows if they even have shots?
Today social media groups on the Main Line are all abuzz about a particular development plan. It is proposed for Bryn Mawr. I think it’s awful.
This was the proposed “Berwyn Square” that Easttown recently said no to.
It is the same developer apparently as the “Berwyn Square” that Eastown just said no to. Which was truly remarkable because Eastown never says no to anything.
I didn’t just connect the dots to all these development plans, Savvy Main Line did it for us (CLICK HERE FOR SAVVY)
Too. Damn. Much. Development.
The Bryn Mawr plan is shocking. Having grown up on the Main Line, and especially because where I went to high school was Shipley which is in Bryn Mawr, I spent a lot of years in Bryn Mawr. And I can tell you a great deal of the wonderful “village” feel disappeared when Bryn Mawr Hospital supersized. But a plan like this? I think it would kill what is left of the small town Main Street kind of vibe.
Obviously I no longer live in Lower Merion so even though I sent the commissioner for the ward that contains Bryn Mawr an email, I know my opinion doesn’t matter, I just gave it anyway. I figure he owes it to me to listen since way back when he wanted to become a commissioner in the first place a group I was part of helped him get elected.
The other reality of this plan and if you look at the last screenshot in this post it shows a rendering of sorts, and it also totally doesn’t show you what that Lancaster Ave (Route 30) intersection in Bryn Mawr is really like. It is an extraordinarily busy and accident prone intersection. It’s where Morris Avenue ends and Bryn Mawr Ave. begins. It’s where Ludington library is, the main and original branch of Bryn Mawr Trust Company is there. It’s where the train station is and a block or so from where the hospital begins.
2007 Accident Bryn Mawr.
The above photo was taken in 2007. One of the many accidents at this intersection. This particular accident I believe resulted in the fatality of the driver in the car in front of the bus. I also had another friend who was hit pushing her babies across the street in a stroller on a pedestrian walk signal at this corner. At that time, there was an NBC10 report on that accident.
No one is going to say that the building currently on the corner where they are proposing to put this apartment development is attractive. It’s never been attractive. But every development that is proposed is overly dense no matter where you live and whichever township or county you call home.
Downingtown PA development on Route 30.
The above photo is a development in progress in Downingtown. Another massive development. And none of these developments are particularly distinguishable from each other. Which is why I find great humor in the “brynmawr square“ and “Berwyn Square” development proposals
Development in East Whiteland along Route 30.
Above you see the development often discussed in East Whiteland. I don’t understand how the people who are paid to do the planning for these townships as well as elected officials have no vision.
At the end of the day this is why we desperately need to update the Municipalities Planning Code of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. This amount of development is not sustainable. And I will never believe the emperor’s new clothes fairytale that it is.
It’s very sad that it has come to this, but pick the township, town, and county and there’s always a bad development plan or several bad development plans. We are the ones that live in these communities and it’s time for elected officials to start listening to us.
Thanks for stopping by and stay safe in the snow.
Proposed “Bryn Mawr Square” Lancaster Ave (Route 30)
