Haverford Heritage Trail Site 25: Lawrence Cabin Original Site

Directions from Previous Site: At the end of Old West Chester Pike, off West Chester Pike just east of Darby Creek.
Physical Address: Old West Chester Pike, Havertown PA
GPS Coordinates: 39.97565, -75.33584
Parking: In parking lots
Ownership: Private
Arcadia Book Page: 11, 82, 83

Description and History: Old West Chester Pike was created when the section of West Chester Pike crossing Darby Creek was straightened and enlarged, moving slightly north of the original road (shown above). The road was a toll turnpike between Philadelphia and Newtown Square in earlier days, and came to host a long roadside country trolley line to West Chester along its length. Early on, a small development cropped up where this road crossed Darby Creek. The Lawrence Cabin (Site 5) had been located here, and with an addition added to each side, was later referred to as “the House of Three Generations.” Humphrey Ellis operated a wool processing mill at this site as well, which by 1807 was being run by the Lawrence family as a grist mill. In the 1930s it was converted into a saw mill by Robert H. Smith, and remained in service until 1987. The Lawrence Cabin and a 500 pound grist grinding stone were moved to the Nitre Hall area for preservation in 1961. Between 1892 and 1901 the “Adele” post office was also established and operated at this site.