Plymouth Friends Meetinghouse

Plymouth Friends Meetinghouse is a historic Quaker meeting house located at the corner of Germantown Pike and Butler Pike in Plymouth Meeting, Montgomery County, Pennsylvania. It is part of the Plymouth Meeting Historic District, and was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1971.[1]

Plymouth Friends Meetinghouse
Plymouth Friends Meetinghouse, HABS Photograph
Plymouth Friends Meetinghouse is located in Philadelphia
Plymouth Friends Meetinghouse
Plymouth Friends Meetinghouse is located in Pennsylvania
Plymouth Friends Meetinghouse
Plymouth Friends Meetinghouse is located in the United States
Plymouth Friends Meetinghouse
LocationCorner of Germantown Pike and Butler Pike, Plymouth Meeting, Pennsylvania
Coordinates40°6′8″N 75°16′48″W / 40.10222°N 75.28000°W / 40.10222; -75.28000
Area5 acres (2.0 ha)
Built1708
Architectural styleColonial
NRHP reference No.71000714[1]
Significant dates
Added to NRHPFebruary 18, 1971
Designated PHMCMay 15, 1955[2]

It was built in 1708, and is constructed of native limestone. A wing was added in 1780, and the interior was rebuilt in 1867 following a fire. The porch was also added in 1867, and a rear wing added in 1945.

During the American Revolutionary War, the building served as a temporary military hospital. Troops under the Marquis de Lafayette camped on the grounds prior to the May 20, 1778 Battle of Barren Hill. The meeting house was a hub of activity during the Underground Railroad. Lucretia Mott lectured across the street at Abolition Hall, and is known to have attended the meeting. Artist and teacher Thomas Hovenden (1840–1895) was a member of the meeting and is buried in the adjacent cemetery.[3]

Plymouth Meeting Friends School is under the care of the meeting and is located on site.

Several scenes in the historical novel The Quakeress (1905) by Max Adler take place in the meetinghouse.

References

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  1. ^ a b "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
  2. ^ "PHMC Historical Markers". Historical Marker Database. Pennsylvania Historical & Museum Commission. Archived from the original on December 7, 2013. Retrieved December 30, 2013.
  3. ^ "National Historic Landmarks & National Register of Historic Places in Pennsylvania". CRGIS: Cultural Resources Geographic Information System. Archived from the original (Searchable database) on 2007-07-21. Retrieved 2012-05-26. Note: This includes Helen Reichart Mirras (December 1969). "National Register of Historic Places Inventory Nomination Form: Plymouth Friends Meetinghouse" (PDF). Retrieved 2012-05-24.
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