Introduction
As you drive west along route 30 from Philadelphia through the many towns of the “Main Line” you will eventually come to Berwyn in Easttown Township. If you look around there is little to remind you of the interesting history of the area, particularly as it relates to early America. In spite of this, the history of Easttown colors the reflections of 300 years and numerous generations as it weaves its way through the many eras of our past.
The purpose of this book is to tell the stories that have always surrounded Easttown, to follow the people who founded it and those who sustained it as well as the legendary charachers who lived or frequented it over 300 years. It is considered a panoramic and colorful chronicle of Easttown’s growth and development over the years.
To set the stage for the Tricentennial History of Easttown the book begins with men of vision in England and other countries who were attracted by the promise of land. In the “Colonial Period” we learn how the early Dutch, Swedish and English obtained the land and how it was divided and divided again and passed along generation after generation. Although Easttown is not large it is amazing how often land changed hands and how many people were involved. The heritage and customs of these first settlers is highlighted, how they toiled to raise crops and homes, where roads were built to connect the settlements. The religions and their churches are described, as are their customs of birth, death and everyday life, who could vote and the inns where they voted, where social life centered.
This period of colonization transforms the raw land into farms and settlements and local goverment appears. We learn of the village of Cockletown, which in the future becomes Reeseville and finally Berwyn. We learn about the families who lived there, their properties and the dwellings in which they live. This in turn leads to the “Pre-Revolutionary Period” and the further establishment of the rural economy. Soon the residents of Easttown have a front row seat to military events in the War for Independence and we learn of the politics and the involvement of the people in this conflict. Some of the most decisive and exciting events of the war are detailed. We find the township had its share of hardships and heroes.
Following the war the country’s first pike or toll road pleased travelers and it passed through Easttown. The Philadelphia and Lancaster Turnpike followed much the same route as today’s Route 30 Lancaster Pike. This, in turn, we are told, brought taverns to the area, and as the communities grew, schools and churches. Law, too came to Easttown with a Justice of the Peace in 1800. Then came the railroad that cut through Berwyn and took much traffic from the turnpike and caused the decline of the “Tavern”.
The emergence of the railroad led to the beginning of local industry and, with this, population growth and expansion of educational facilities. Several small streams in the area provided waterpower and as a result textile and other mills were built, including a cigar factory. One of the mills was Wateroo Mill, which stands today. It became the first post office in Easttown. Then came steam power and gradually these country factories, so far from the markets and lacking cheap and quick transportation, becam abandoned and before long fell into ruins.
The Civil War soon followed and all its heroes and heartbreaks related to Easttown are chronicled here. A look at the politics of the area tells us how they caused changes in Easttown. Then comes a modest growth in population and some prosperity. Next is the aftermath of the war and the movement north of many former slaves who were no free.
Soon America was 100 years old and during this Centennial period of 1876 to 1885 the name Berwyn comes into being and is recognized by the United States Postal Office. The railroad made improvements, one of which was to build the red brick Berwyn Train Station in 1881. Water pipes were laid, a library and private schools started, a general store opened in Berwyn, new homes were built and a real estate office appeared. The Wayne homestead became a tourist attraction until pilfering became a problem. This was not the only crime that came to Berwyn, there was the “Hammer Hollow Gang”, but the Berwyn Protective Association soon put a stop to that. They even had a “Lancaster Avenue Improvement Association.” Progress abounded and Easttown began again to change.
As it developed it became one of the most popular suburbs on Philadelphia’s “Main Line” ... Just east of Berwyn, there was Devon, still in Easttown. It was created as a summer resort. New, large homes were built as well as resort hotels for the wealthy of Philadelphia. They were places to vacation and get away from the city. Then these wealthy landowners and horse breeders formed the Devon Horse Show in 1896. They needed a convenient place for their money, so Berwyn National Bank was opened. Young William Fritz took over his father’s lumber, coal, and feed business in 1885 (it’s still in the family at the same location). Easttown was still growing and in 1890 the population had doubled in 10 years. All sorts of social organizations came into being, including the fledgling Berwyn Fire Company. It was a time of many changes, from a sleepy town to a thriving active Main Line community.
The final chapters reveal the coming of the automobile and the many wonderful changes it made in Easttown. It includes new people, new industries, World War I, and the post-war era leading up to the “Great Depression,” even President Roosevelt’s WPA and what that brought to Berwyn. We then journey through the era of World War II, the space age and right up to 2004, introducing new people as we go, until we have documented most everything.
And now it is time to celebrate Easttown’s 300 year Tricentennial ... a township this book proves is “Old in History ... Young in Spirit!”
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Notes
Further research has clarified the early history of the Welsh tract and Easttown deeds.
The Welsh tract was an agreement made in early 1681 between William Penn and a group of Welsh Quakers. It was agreed that an area would be set aside for purchase by the Welsh Quakers, the Welsh tract, where they could use their own language and customs. At this time William Penn’s land transactions were all verbal. There is no document describing the agreement concerning the Welsh tract.
In early 1681 William Shardlow and William Wood purchased 5,000 acres of land. 3,380 acres was surveyed as a block which encompassed most of what is now Easttown. In the same period, James Claypole purchased 1050 acres which is now the western part of Easttown.
Neither of these transactions were initially documented. The Claypole tract was documented through a survey in 1684. William Wood died around 1690 and the Shardlow - Wood tract was split into 4 plots of alternating ownership by William Shardlow and Joseph Wood.
See Easttown Deed History for details.