Delaware County is rich in history and retains many of its historic spaces. Some have been restored, many continue to be in private hands, but the area appreciates the history that has created the fabric of the community. Having traveled throughout the country, I have found that you can also tell a lot about a community by looking at both what has been listed and when they decided to list them. Lansdowne Borough in eastern Delaware County PA is no exception.
Today, Lansdowne PA has four listings on the National Register of Historic Places.
The first two listings were for individual buildings. The earliest listing was the Twentieth Century Club of Lansdowne listed in November of 1979. The building was constructed in 1911 and was purchased by the borough in 1979 for use as a community center where it continues to host local events. The building was designed by Heacock and Hokanson of Philadelphia and was built of stone and brick.
The second location to be listed was the Lansdowne Theatre. Listed in September 1986, this grand 1400 seat auditorium remains as a centerpiece of downtown Lansdowne. Opened in June 1927 and designed by noted theater architect William H Lee, "the Lansdowne portrays an exotic fantasy of early Spanish intrigue". It was the last theater in the area that was designed with a full orchestra pit and the organ was only removed in 1979. Today, it is closed while it undergoes extensive renovations. Cinema 16:9 has opened a small theater in the building which continues the theater going tradition in the borough. It should be a great complement to the restored theater when it reopens.
Lansdowne also has two registered historic districts. The first was listed in September 1987 as the Lansdowne Park Historic District. It covers a multiblock area generally bordered by W Baltimore, Windemere, Stratford, and Owen but is very irregular. The district was developed between 1889 and 1912 as the first area development to take advantage of the expanding rail operations out of Philadelphia. Today, it retains most of its original structures and street-scape although some of the internal designs have been changed. The area also includes the oldest building in Lansdowne, the Dickenson farmhouse, built in 1732 and added to in 1790.
The fourth and most recent addition to the list is the Henry Albertson Subdivision Historic District added in December 1997. Construction in the area began in 1884 and continued through 1940 with most building completed by 1925. The 71 homes of the district are on the 1891 subdivision of the Henry Albertson Estate. The historic district includes a variety of building styles but Queen Anne, Colonial Revival, and Tudor Revival proved to be the most popular.
Today Lansdowne Borough is a great suburban community and has been chosen as one of the Classic Towns of Greater Philadelphia. It continues to offer a wide variety of housing choices to suit most needs. All these historic listings truly add to the character of the community and help make Lansdowne a great place to live. Filled with history, close to the city, containing great road and rail transportation links, the future should only get better.
If you have any questions or are looking to buy or sell real estate in the area, please feel free to call anytime.
