Tuesday, May 21, 2013

A Daydreamy Day

Welcome to Lemon Hill

I love old homes.
♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ 
Any style.
Any condition.
Any location.


Welcome to Woodford

When I visit an old home,
I get all daydreamy
imagining life there.

Welcome to Laurel Hill

Nothing breaks my heart more than the destruction
of a quality, historic building
to be replaced with a cheap, modern structure.

Laurel Hill hardware detail 

So I am happy to say...
within the boundaries of the largest city park
in the United States are the former summer homes
of prominent Philadelphians:

Lemon Hill features a completely oval room on each of 3 floors. 

The Mansions of Fairmount Park 

Woodford

 Living near these treasures, 
but never visiting the mansions 
I thought it was about time I did so. 

I really enjoyed the knowledgable docent at Laurel Hill.

Happily, the homes have all been preserved. 

Woodford

Sadly, they are managed by different organizations. 
 This makes it difficult for visitors to compile 
an itinerary for visiting them. 

The Art Museum features temporary shows at Lemon Hill.

No matter how much you love old homes or architecture, 
visiting them all at once would be mental suicide. 


 A city view across the Schuylkill River
above Boathouse Row as seen from Lemon Hill.

Pick a few to see or visit them over a period of time. 

You can catch summer concerts at Laurel Hill.

Three down...four to go. 
Maybe next week. 

Here is MY guide to help you
next time you are in Philadelphia:

East of River
Mount Pleasant (Georgian) 39°59′0″N 75°11′59″W / 39.98333°N 
3800 Mt. Pleasant Drive, Philadelphia, PA
is administered by the Philadelphia Museum of Art.
Open Tues-Sun: 10 am-5 pm, except major holidays
Admission$3; Students and Children (12 and under)-Free
♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ 

Woodford (Georgian) 39.993377,-75.187559
                                            2300 N 33rd St  East Fairmount Park, PA 19102
is administered by the Farimount Park Commission
Open Tues.-Sun., 10 am to 4 pm
Admission$5 adults, $3 senior citizens, $2 children
♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ 

Strawberry Mansion (Federal with Greek Revival) 39.994193,-75.190386
2450 Strawberry Mansion Drive, Philadelphia, PA 19132
is preserved by The Committee of 1926. 
Open:  Exterior Construction is completed.
Admission: Adults - $3
**********

Lemon Hill (Federal) 39.970704,-75.187252
Sedgeley and Lemon Hill Drs, Philadelphia, PA 19130
is operated by Colonial Dames of America. 
*Overlooks Boathouse Row and has a city view.
Open April - Nov., Wed - Sun, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Admission: Adults - $5
♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ 

7201 Edgley Dr, Philadelphia, PA 19121
is operated by Women for Greater Philadelphia
*Views of the Schuylkill River from the back. 
If the area is closed for a Regatta, tell them you want to visit the mansion. 
Main Floor Tours: 
Open Tues.-Sun., 10 am to 4 pm. 
Admission: $5 adults, $3 senior citizens, $2 children
♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ 

West of River 
Sweet Briar 39.976591,-75.20077 
1 Sweet Briar Drive, Philadelphia, PA 19131
is operated by Modern Club of Philadelphia
Open: July 1-December 15, Wed-Sun: 10 am-4 pm.Admission: $3 per person
♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ 

Cedar Grove (Federal) 39.97914,-75.20444
1 Cedar Grove Drive, Philadelphia, PA 19131
is administered by the Philadelphia Museum of Art.
Tues-Sun: 10 am-5 pm, except major holidays
Admission: $3; Students and Children (12 and under) - Free 
Check for construction closures.
♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ 


View from Belmont Mansion Dr. 
Belmont (Palladian) 39.990911,-75.213194
200 Belmont Mansion Drive, Philadelphia, PA
is managed by the American Woman's Heritage Society 
and houses The Underground Railroad Museum. 
*From the front is a great city skyline view. 
Admission: $7 Adult, $5 Student/Sr/Child, Under 6 Free
Summer: Tuesday-Friday 11 AM-5 PM, Weekends 11 AM-5 PM
Winter: Tuesday-Friday 11 AM-5 PM, Weekends Noon-5 PM

♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ 

Map

The mansion names are often shared with 
neighborhoods in the community. 
Don't let that confuse you. 
Laurel Hill is also the name of a beautiful, historic 
cemetery nearby.  It is also worth a visit. 

Sharing with http://kentweakley.com/blog/ http://communalglobal.blogspot.com/

8 comments:

Anonymous said...

Nice photos. Great photography. I mean a door knob with a key in it how classy is that.

Thanks for sharing all.

Wayne said...

This is a great collection of places to visit. I have not been to a single one :-(

Nancy said...

Your photo caught my eye at Tuesdays Around The World -- we live in a 100+ year-old farmhouse, but it looks nothing like these beauties. :)

Sarah Huizenga said...

What a lovely photo walk. Thanks for sharing all the information as well, so fascinating.

Coloring Outside the Lines said...

I love old homes and homesteads. I think in another life I would have been a historian, I love it that much.

Anonymous said...

it looks like such a great place. great to visit and great in history!

Zena said...

Beautiful photos

EG CameraGirl said...

I share your love of old architecture. It makes me angry when developers tear down something old to replace it with something badly built.