John Palmer – William Hannum House
The John Palmer – William Hannum House was built on land from an original 1688 grant from William Penn to John Palmer. John Palmer came to America from England as a “Redemptioner,” and had to pay for his passage through years of labor. The original building was constructed of fieldstone and plaster. The present-day family room contains the large cooking fireplace with the original crane. All of the floors on the first floor are original and made of oak. John Palmer passed the estate to his grandson, Moses Palmer, who enlarged the house in 1740. The house was acquired by William Hannum II in the 1800s, who further enlarged the house in 1840. A summer kitchen was added to this wing, complete with stone walls and 18 inch deep window sills. “Graffiti” from the Hannum Family in 1878 can be found on the walls of the 3rd floor. Also on the property is a building once used as a saddlery by the Palmers. It is also believed to have been a schoolhouse at one time. The original Palmer Barn was remodeled, and is now a private, separate home. Concord Township Historic Resource #97
No. 1 Schoolhouse
The No. 1 Schoolhouse at 816 Baltimore Pike in Concordville Village is a Greek Revival style schoolhouse, with 2-3 one-story additions in the rear. The school features a date stone in the center of the second story and reads “Concord Public School No. 1, 1874.” The schoolhouse also boasts a large, vented cupola at the top of the roof ridge facing Baltimore Pike. This schoolhouse was built in 1874. Before the construction of this building, all schools in the township were located on private properties. According to Henry Ashmead’s History of Delaware County, the first school board meetings about school construction began around 1860. Construction on the new school building did not commence until 1873, and E.O. Taylor was given the contract to build the school on a parcel of George Drayton’s land. By 1874, a two-story brick building was completed at $3,798.75 (approximately $105,000 today). This building replaced the former No. 1 schoolhouse on Spring Valley Road. In 1882, the No. 1 School had 39 out of 162 total students in the township. This was the largest amount of students over the five schools in the township. By 1876, the District Superintendent was required to visit every school monthly for half a day and report to the school board on the condition, order, and progress of each school. In 1882, William Gamble and Samuel Hill said to the school board that all schools in Concord Township were satisfactory, except for No. 1, due to a lack of “order.” However, the following April 1883 saw an improvement in the school. In 1869, Concord Township schools ran sessions beginning at 8:00 AM, an hour break at noon, and concluding at 5 PM. Twenty days constituted a school month, with teachers operating “in service” days every other Saturday. The Concord Union Lodge No. 1258, a temperance movement group, held their meetings on the second floor of the No.1 School beginning in 1877. They met every Monday night weekly and paid $20 to the school board for use of the building. The Concord Grange 1141 first met in the No.1 Schoolhouse at the turn of the 20th century before moving to Darlington Hall. In later years, the Ennis Oil & Burner Service owned and used the schoolhouse. Concord Township Historic Resource #160
Nicholas Newlin House
The Nicholas Newlin House was built in c. 1742 by the grandson of the first Nicholas Newlin in Concord Township. Nathaniel Newlin purchased 33 acres in 1721 from Caleb Perkins, and gifted it to his daughter, Mary, and her husband, Richard Clayton. The Claytons built two stone houses. The foundation of the c.1742 Nicholas Newlin house remains from the first house, and the second house still stands on the Concord Friends Meeting grounds. In 1731, Mary’s brother Nicholas purchased the 33 acres with two houses. He built the current structure. The stone and frame building behind the home was a slaughterhouse and a springhouse. The Micajah Speakman Family owned the property from 1751-1824. It was then sold to Samuel Hewes, and in 1866 to Alexander Scott. Charles Green owned the house in 1913 to the 1940s. The house is divided into two private apartments today. There are dark stains present on the 3rd floor, believed to be from wounded soldiers from the Battle of the Brandywine. There is also a round, deep, stone walled hole to the south near Thornton Road, believed o be an ice house for this property. The northeast wing was built around 1800 and the barn c.1870 The Nicholas Newlin House is one of the last remaining mid18th century houses in Concord Township that retains a great deal of architectural integrity. The Flemish Bond brickwork, with the use of periodic glazed headers on the South wall presents an interesting and attractive design. The house features a datestone inscribed with “1742.” This property is listed on the National Register of Historic Places since 1972. The barn received the Rehabilitation Award in 1993 from the Heritage Commission of Delaware County. This house is a private residence, and not open to the public. Concord Township Historic Resource #121
Samuel Hewes House
The Samuel Hewes House was built c. 1856 at the intersection of Concord and Thornton Roads in Concordville. It is a contributing historic resource to the National Register of Historic Place’s Concordville Historic District; listed as the “1856 Brick House” in reference to its datestone. Samuel Hewes was the original owner, who was a hatter, farmer, and landlord. He owned 76 acres of land according to the 1850 Agricultural Census. He also owned multiple other properties within Concord Township that he rented out for private use and various public businesses. The Hewes property then passed to Dr. Hillborn Darlington in 1870. It stayed within the Darlington family, with property owners including Amelia Sharple Darlington and Dr. Horace Hillborn Darlington, until 1979. Both Dr. Hillborn Darlington and his son Dr. Horace Darlington were well known “horse and buggy” physicians within Concord Township. Dr. Hillborn Darlington used the first floor of the Samuel Hewes House as an apothecary store, and the building later became used as a post office. The second floor was known as “Darlington Hall,” and was used as a dance hall. The Concord Grange 1141 also held meetings in Darlington Hall in the late 1890s, of which Dr. Horace Hillborn Darlington was a founding member. The building is currently used as apartments, and not open to the public. Concord Township Historic Resource #119