Tredyffrin Easttown Historical Society

06/20/2026

06/20/2026

Dedication of the New St. Monica Parochial School, 1916–17
(From the Spring 2026 issue of the TEHS History Quarterly)

The first image shows an elevated view looking east behind the church and school building during the dedication of the new St. Monica Parochial School, constructed in 1916–17. A large crowd of parishioners is gathered on the church grounds. A grandstand was erected for the occasion, and a flagpole prepared for the ceremonial raising of the American flag is visible at right.

The second photograph shows a group of boys standing at the flagpole with the American flag raised during the dedication ceremony. The grandstand erected for the occasion is visible in the left background.

In the third image, six altar boys, approximately ten to eleven years old, dressed in cassocks and white surplices, process during the 1917 dedication ceremony. The boy at center front, holding his hands in the prescribed prayer position, has been identified by his nephew as Robert (“Bob”) Doyle.

The final image is a detail from a 1920 map of Berwyn showing the location of St. Monica Church and School.

Source: TEHS Quarterly, Spring 2026, Saint Monica Church of Berwyn: A Retrospective Photo Album. Available for purchase online at https://www.tehistory.org/hqstore.html

Images:
#1 - #3: The McGranahan Collection, These photos that were gathered by the late Nancy McGranahan. They date back to the opening of the original parochial school building in 1917 and the pastorate of Father John Carey (1906-39).

#4: Atlas of Properties on Main Line Pennsylvania Railroad from Overbrook to Paoli, 1920, Plate 30, A. H. Mueller, Publisher.

06/17/2026

“Yesterday in Tredyffrin” is a project of the Tredyffrin Township Historical Commission, an advisory group to the board of supervisors, tasked with providing heritage conservation education to residents and recommending the appreciation and protection of significant historic places in the township. Contact them at: [email protected]

YESTERDAY IN TREDYFFRIN – When the Tredyffrin Library opened half a century ago on Upper Gulph Road, volunteers carted books in their cars from its former home at the Strafford (now, Woodlynde) School, its home since 1967. (Established in 1966 – before which the township had no public library – the library had previously used temporary quarters at Valley Forge Middle School.) The current building was designed to provide space for 75,000 books, with a seating capacity of 82, plus meeting space. The library’s design earned its Italian-born architect Romaldo Giurgola – a member of the influential “Philadelphia School” of modern architecture – the National Award of Merit from the American Institute of Architects in 1978, and also the First Award by the Pennsylvania Society of Architects. The library received a $6 million renovation in 2007. In 2026, the library’s 50th year, its board is considering whether to further renovate, or even replace, the structure.

06/15/2026

The Spring 2026 issue of History Quarterly has been distributed to members and is also available at local libraries and retail outlets listed on the Tredyffrin Easttown Historical Society Website Publications Page⁠: https://www.tehistory.org/pubs.html

This issue includes:

1. “Saint Monica Church of Berwyn: A Retrospective Photo Album” — a collection of historic photographs documenting a landmark Berwyn church that survived a devastating fire.
2. “Virgin Mary Statue Restoration” — a companion article describing the serendipitous restoration of a statue located outside the school adjacent to the church.
3. “Murder by Cake” — the story of an unsolved 1922 murder mystery that unfolded in an otherwise tranquil Devon neighborhood.
4. “Posts from Facebook” — featuring the story of pioneering Berwyn physician Della H. Williams, who played a role in the murder investigation.

For those interested in obtaining copies of the History Quarterly, another option is the History Quarterly Online Store⁠, where selected back issues and the current issue may be purchased via PayPal and shipped by U.S. Mail at: https://www.tehistory.org/hqstore.html

We appreciate your support!

06/13/2026

Mary A. Quimby – Valedictorian of Easttown High School's Class of 1900

On June 7, 1900, six students graduated from Easttown High School in Berwyn. Leading the class as valedictorian was Mary A. Quimby (shown in the first photo, top row, second from the right). Her classmates included Bessie Hunter, George Bankhard, Bessie Seasholtz, James Heilner, and Tom Aiken.

Mary was the daughter of Rev. Dr. Alden Quimby, pastor of the Berwyn Methodist Episcopal Church. In addition to his ministry, Dr. Quimby was an avid student of astronomy and the author of several historical novels.

Among Mary's closest classmates was Tom Aiken (seated in the first photo to Mary's right), who would later become one of Berwyn's most respected physicians. The two often worked together on challenging school assignments, forming a friendship that endured long after graduation.

After high school, Mary attended the Philadelphia Collegiate Institute for Girls, graduating in 1902. She began a career in education, teaching in the public schools before joining the faculty of The Shipley School in Bryn Mawr where she became head of the Latin Department. In 1921, she married Daniel Shumway, a professor at the University of Pennsylvania. (Daniel passed away in 1940 at the age of 71.)

When Tom Aiken died in 1956, Mary reflected on their school days and the qualities she had recognized in him as a young man: “Those high school days revealed in Tom the same qualities in intellect that made him the skilled and beloved Dr. Aiken.”

Mary was living in Bryn Mawr when she passed away in 1973 at the age of 88.

Sources:
"Easttown's H.S. Commencement," Daily Local News, June 8, 1900, p. 1.
"Alden W. Quimby, Amateur Astronomer," TEHS Quarterly, January 1986.
"Diplomas for Girls," Philadelphia Times, June 6, 1902, p. 7.
"Thomas Gerald Aiken, MD," TEHS Quarterly, April 1958.
"Marriage License," June 18, 1921, p. 2.
"Daniel Shumway Death Certificate," January 11, 1940.
"Shumway Obit," Philadelphia Inquirer, February 17, 1973, p. 23.

Images:
Graduating Class of Easttown High School, June 7, 1900, TEHS Archive.
Easttown High School, early 1900s, Photographer Lucy Sampson, TEHS Archive.
1900 Atlas of Properties Along the Pennsylvania RR from Overbrook to Malvern , J.L. Smith
Mary Q. Shumway, Head of Latin Department, Shipley School Yearbook, 1954.

06/09/2026

“Yesterday in Tredyffrin” is a project of the Tredyffrin Township Historical Commission, an advisory group to the board of supervisors, tasked with providing heritage conservation education to residents and recommending the appreciation and protection of significant historic places in the township.

YESTERDAY IN TREDYFFRIN – Now buried a few steps from Great Valley Baptist Church’s 1805 meetinghouse, its former pastor, the Rev. Leonard Fletcher (d. 1859), was forced from his pastorate in 1840 for being too outspoken against slavery. Born in Massachusetts, Fletcher served churches in Maryland and New Jersey, and came to Tredyffrin in 1832. In his eight years at Great Valley, he led the church during its largest growth, baptizing 448 people, and helping plant several of its daughter churches. On the side, he was a leader in Chester County’s anti-slavery Wilberforce Society, and one of its most colorful speakers. Those speeches pleased Wilberforce members, but some in the congregation dissented. Fletcher resigned and, when his replacement turned out to be pro-slavery, many church members left to found Radnor’s First Baptist Church which became strongly abolitionist. Perhaps to continue the argument, Fletcher’s grave marker admonishes the reader, “Remember the words I spoke unto you while I was yet with you.” (Luke 24:44)

06/06/2026

The General Jackson Inn, near Mile Post 18, Paoli
(The building burned down in 1964.)

Looking northeast where the then-Lancaster Pike intersects with Chestnut Road, the 18th mile marker (from Philadelphia) in Paoli can be seen in the foreground on the north side of the Pike. To the immediate east is the General Jackson Inn, a well-run stage coach inn during the early 19th century originally owned by Randall Evans, a brother of Joshua Evans who ran the Paoli Inn just a few blocks west.

Tradition tells us that the two brothers frequently fought as would find the other interfering with his regular customers. Much later, during the 1930s, the building became known as the Windmill Tea Room (second photo).

Today the Jiffy L**e building stands approximately where the General Jackson Inn once stood. - Herb Fry and Roger Thorne

Additional Information: https://www.tehistory.org/hqda/html/v01/v01n4p024.html

Image 1: General Jackson Inn, 1888, Photographer Julius Sachse, TEHS Archive, Herb and Barbara Fry Collection.
Image 2: Windmill Tea Room, c1930, TEHS Archive.
Image 3: Google Maps 2026, showing Jiffy L**e location in Paoli

06/02/2026

“Yesterday in Tredyffrin” is a project of the Tredyffrin Township Historical Commission, an advisory group to the board of supervisors, tasked with providing heritage conservation education to residents and recommending the appreciation and protection of significant historic places in the township.

Update from the Historical Commission:
Last week’s “Yesterday in Tredyffrin” on the Strafford train station quoted a 2009 article in the Tredyffrin-Easttown History Quarterly that the commonly told tale that the structure was built for the 1876 Centennial exhibition was “entirely possible.” However, a 2011 article in the same publication dismissed the story as entirely a myth.

YESTERDAY IN TREDYFFRIN – Built in 1832 on one-third of an acre donated by neighbors, the Carr School on Upper Gulph Road was intended was a more-convenient option for Tredyffrin’s panhandle-area children than the Old Eagle School a mile away. Originally a private fee-based school charging 2 cents per student per day, the Carr School became a public school in 1840 and was used until replaced by a larger building nearby in 1868. Through all those years and since, the building – known alternatively as the Union Chapel – was used for civic, social and religious gatherings. The adjoining graveyard has served as a playground and, during the wars, as a practice field for marching. Since a major renovation in 2001, the Carr School has used as a free tutoring and mentoring center.

05/30/2026

The First Devon Country Fair – 1919

World War I ended in November 1918, and by the following March, The Philadelphia Inquirer reported that plans were rapidly taking shape for the 1919 “Devon Victory Horse Show and Fair,” with Bryn Mawr Hospital selected as the beneficiary. Scheduled for May 28 through 31, the event was expected to become the “principal out-of-door social event for Decoration Day.”

Many new attractions were planned, including an old-fashioned market inspired by the small villages of France, complete with “little thatched-roof cottages that formed the Happy Village.” The cottages were painted white with blue and green doors and windowpanes, resembling those found in rural French communities.

While the horses competed in the ring, activities for children filled the grounds. A special playroom offered storytelling and games, while donkeys such as “Tillie,” shown in the photo below, carried young riders around the field for ten cents. “Straw rides” — what we would call hayrides today — were also a popular attraction, as seen in the next photo.

Sources:
"Horse Show Plans," The Philadelphia Inquirer, April 6, 1919, 37.
“Horse Show and Country Fair Opens at Devon,” Evening Public Ledger, May 28, 1919, 2.
“Girl of Thirteen Thrills Horse Show Crowd,” Evening Public Ledger, May 29, 1919, 2.

Images:
1) 1919 Country Fair at The Devon Horse Show Poster, TEHS Archive.
2) “Horse Show and Country Fair Opens at Devon,” Evening Public Ledger, May 28, 1919, 2.
3) “Society Folk at Second Day of Devon Horse Show,” Miss Mildred Wood and Miss Janet McCoy on Tillie, Social Register, May 30, 1919. (International Film Service Company).
4) “Society Kiddies Enjoy Straw Ride at the Devon Horse Show and Country Fair,” Social Register, May 30, 1919. (International Film Service Company).