Marple and Newtown Townships

By Mike Mathis

For most of their histories, Marple and Newtown Townships were farming communities on the western outskirts of Philadelphia. The thriving farms supplied local grocers, while the fresh air and clean water in Marple and Newtown attracted city dwellers seeking recreational opportunities. With the West Chester Pike linking the townships to other areas, they quickly became quintessential suburban communities. Marple and Newtown Townships captures the growth of the two communities from the early 20th century through the 1990s. A trolley line established early in the century provided transportation for commuters, but it was not until the 1950s that Marple and Newtown were transformed from sleepy outposts to sprawling suburbs. Housing developments such as Lawrence Park attracted thousands of new families to the area. Included in this collection are local landmarks which have long since vanished, including Bonsall’s General Store, the old Marple-Newtown High School, Bessie Parker’s, and the Bergdoll Mansion.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Arcadia Publishing
• Release date: Sep 18, 2012
• ISBN: 9781439634769

Mike Mathis

Mike Mathis and Joanna Falcone Sullivan grew up in Marple Township and vividly recall the kidnapping and murder of Gretchen Harrington and its effect on their community. Like with the people interviewed in this book, the tragedy was forever seared in their memory. Both authors started their journalism careers at the Paxon Hollow Junior High School newspaper, the Hollow Log, and have worked for decades in the newspaper and communications industry. As adults, they long talked about writing this book and finally saw an opportunity during the COVID-19 pandemic.

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BIBLIOGRAPHY

INTRODUCTION

The histories of Marple and Newtown Townships have been intertwined in numerous ways since they were founded in the late 1600s. Long inhabited by a branch of the Lenni Lenape Indian tribe, both municipalities were later inhabited by Quakers who had been subjected to harassment by the Church of England for failing to pay tithes and attend services. One of them was William Penn, who in 1681 obtained land that encompassed the state of Pennsylvania in payment for a debt owed to his father by King Charles II. Penn, best known as the founder of Philadelphia and as the namesake of Pennsylvania, gave settlers the opportunity to buy or rent land for farming; many who could not afford the price worked as servants to pay their passage to the new country. The names of the first families who settled in Marple and Newtown Townships are memorialized today as streets, schools, and subdivisions: Ellis, Langford, Stanfield, Worrall, Caley, and Lewis.

Marple and Newtown remained largely agrarian through the late 1800s. Mills and tanneries operated as well, and small villages where commerce was concentrated began to appear. Broomall became the crossroads of Marple; Newtown Square became the business center of Newtown. Both Marple and Newtown were noted for their clean water and pure country air. Children from Philadelphia were sent to summer camps and wealthy Philadelphians seeking to escape the summer heat built vacation homes in Florida Park. In the early 1900s, a trolley line was established along West Chester Pike between Philadelphia and West Chester. It connected the outlying countryside with the city faster than ever before and would eventually contribute to the suburbanization of Marple and Newtown. While both townships experienced some new home construction in the 1920s, it was not until the 1950s that subdivisions took off. Lawrence Park, Rose Tree Woods, Valley View Acres, and Echo Valley were some