I received a note that a circa 1796 farmhouse was for sale in Broomall. I don't know the history of the particular house - located at 2994 Eastburn Ave Broomall, PA, close to Media Line Road near the high school. I checked one of the old maps at Keith Lockhart’s tremendously helpful Delaware County History site: http://delawarecountyhistory.com/marpletownship/index.html . The 1909 map seems to show this place as part of what was a much larger farm then owned by James S. Austin. But the farm was being sold off by that time – the beginning few blocks of Lovell, Pennview and Highland avenues had been subdivided in the area surrounding Charles W. Russell’s Oak View Farm.
In 1892 the farmhouse was part of the 14 acre parcel owned by R. Dayfield. In 1880 – the same 14 acre farm owned by L. Dunn. 1848? J. Watson. And that is the earliest known Marple map showing land in subdivided parcels. To find the rest of the story, you would need to go to the Delaware County recorder of deeds to find L. Dunn or J. Watson and then trace ownership back. And then with a name, you could look at tax records that exist back then. And perhaps you could figure out who built this house and when.
In any event, it is up for sale. If you are one of those people who love the charm and history of old houses, then check this place out, and pass the word to those who might be interested. And if you know more about this particular place, please chime in. History exists in the hundreds or thousands of stories and photos from family histories, that are handed down from generation to generation. But now with the internet, we have a place to collect them – when everything we post up becomes searchable and part of that stream of history.
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I am not a realtor – don’t know the house or its history. But I love to see old homes bought by people who love them, rather than by people who tear them down to build the nondescript single family homes of the 21st century. Click through to this site for more information on the house: http://www.century21.com/property/2994-eastburn-ave-broomall-pa-19008-REN012883266
