Voting & Registration Information ............................24 Environmental Advisory Council .........................26-28 National Flood Insurance Program...........................28 Historical Commission

The Historical Commission has been very busy these past few months. Grant applications, interns at work, and planning the Chester County Village Walk on July 28.

Let's start with the Grants... Tredyffrin Township is fortunate to be designated a Certified Local Government (CLG) by the PA State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO). The CLG program is a National Park Service (NPS) initiative to provide financial and technical support for select communities to sustain their heritage practices and sites. Tredyffrin is one of only 48 Pennsylvania towns with this distinction…out of more than 2,500 municipalities in the Commonwealth. The Township applied for a 2022 CLG grant to develop strategies to better support and preserve Tredyffrin's long heritage from

thcolonial days to the 20 century. The grant funds will allow the Historical Commission to engage an historic preservation consultant for this work. Expect more news soon.

The Interns were hard at work... Here's their story, provided by Beth Specker, an Historical Commission Member…

For the first time, the Historical Commission participated in the Conestoga High School Senior Internship program. Two Conestoga seniors, Nicholas Rinderle and Matt Pawlow, interned with the Commission from May 9 through June 3. Their orientation included two walking tours of historic neighborhoods, led by Commission Chair Rob Williams.

The students were tasked with intensive research on the Township's 13 buildings listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Properties included General Anthony Wayne's quarters, the Strafford Station, and Van Leer (Conestoga) Cabin. The interns also helped to develop plans and social media posts for the Chester County Village Walk held on July 28.

Of the students work, Commission Lead Beth Specker said, “They were an asset to the Commission, working diligently on their projects.” Chair Rob Williams added, “Matt and Nicholas were excited to learn the stories of Township landmarks they pass every week. They became tour guides themselves.”

One of the most interesting points of research for all involved was the Van Leer Cabin on the grounds of Conestoga High School. Regarding the cabin, the boys discovered:

The Van Leer-Curwen Cabin “stands on the east side of Irish Road about halfway between Conestoga Road and Lisbeth Lane. It has four rooms, two on the first floor and two on the second floor, and two fireplaces on the first floor.” The land where the cabin stood was originally purchased by Dr. Berhard Van Leer, of Prussia, in 1759. The property was then passed down to his son, Isaac, in 1786, who later purchased a neighboring strip of land where the cabin would be built. When Isaac passed away and the estate was probated, the land was divided into three sections that were passed to his sons. William Van Leer had the cabin built on his property sometime after 1809, and he later utilized it as his retirement home until his death in 1847. The property and cabin were then sold to James Lawless, and eventually made its way into the hands of the Curwen family, who then sold it to the School Board.

In 1960, then vice president and future president of the Tredyffrin Easttown Historical Society (TEHS), Conrad Wilson, proposed an experimental course to the School Board, centered around the Van Leer-Curwen Cabin. Wilson was also a teacher at Conestoga; he and multiple students published essays and reports on the cabin. Efforts to restore the cabin for educational purposes began, and Mrs. Mildred Fisher, a past TEHS president, served as the chairperson for the restoration committee. G. Edwin Brumbaugh, a notable architect who restored Independence Hall in Philadelphia, was “employed to make a complete report of the worth of the Log Cabin”. A goal of $2500 was planned for restoration of the cabin. The Historical Society donated money and hosted cabin tours to meet it. On June 23, 1966, the restoration of the cabin was officially celebrated with a TEHS meeting.

In the fall, Matt will be attending Loyola Marymount and Nicholas will be attending the University of South Carolina. On behalf of the Historical Commission, we thank both for their amazing work.

Call for new Commissioners The Township seeks volunteers for the Historical Commission. As an advisory group, the Commission provides heritage education for Township residents and visitors, and makes recommendations to the Board of Supervisors on historic site conservation. Residents with backgrounds in architecture, historical research or architectual historian, residential real estate, historic house restoration and building, and municipal planning are invited to apply. If you are interested in volunteering, please send a letter of interest and brief resume to the Township.