A famous line from Bill Bryson's book, The Lost Continent: Travels in Small Town America, goes like this; "There are things you just can’t do in life. You can’t beat the phone company, you can’t make a waiter see you until he’s
ready to see you, and you can’t go home again." Well, I can agree with the first two statements, but if Newtown Square was ever one's home, a return trip there will convince you that this is one small town that seems to mature gracefully and always
maintains its unique character and charm!
Hi, my name is Barry J. Montgomery. I am currently serving in the US Air
Force Stationed in Los Angeles, CA. I was Born in the Florida Park area of
Newtown Square, PA. My family lived there all through the 1960's until about
1974, we lived next to the Bullmeister’s and the Baldini’s (spelling?) I spent
many summers playing in the creek down the hill at the back of our property
with friends building tree forts and just walking in the woods. Florida park was
a wonderful place to grow up. We had 6 kids in my family 3 boys and 3 girls, the Welshie’s who lived almost right across the street had something like 8 kids and
the Baldini’s had about 9, that was 23 kids within three houses of each other
there was also may others kids that lived in Florida Park that we all played
with. My mother used to throw us out of the house in the summer after breakfast
and ring our big black bell to let us know it was lunch time and six or more
kids would come running from every direction possible. I also remember in the
winter we would block up Crum creek down stream from Drexel lodge and make a
skating rink. Wow! My parents would also build a bonfire next to our barn and since
we had the one of the best sledding hills in Florida Park we would always have
lots of kids sledding down the hill and just having a great time. But now times have changed, the hill is grown over, no one I know has six
to nine kids anymore and the great computer that was going to make our life so
much easier has taken more time out of it and our children's lives that few kids
seem to want to go out of the air conditioned house and into the "hot" summer
days and just go exploring anymore.
I have literally lived all over the world in my 19 years in the Air Force,
but I always consider Florida Park home to me. I go back every chance I can and
plan to again the first two weeks in June this year to have my daughter christened
in the same church my parents were married in.
As a side note my father, Robert J. Montgomery was in the Air Nation Guard
at Philly and Willow Springs from 1953 -1973. He also opened and owned the
"Camera shop" in Newtown Square then Valley Forge and Darby....years later he sold
them to Ritz camera shops and went into real estate. Both he and my mother
Barbra have since passed on, but I try as best I can to influence my four
children to the way I grew up in Florida Park. I recognize a few of the family names that have written in and I would love to here from anyone who has lived in Florida Park. My e-mail is f94starfire@sbcglobal.net
Thank you! Just wanted to let you know that I enjoyed your website about Newtown
Square. As a child (8-10 yrs. old) 1959-1961 I went to Crumb Creek Camp for 2 (2
week long) overnight sessions each summer. I remember the bus actually driving
through the covered bridge and then we were on the road where the camp was
located. From the house we walked through several fields and over a wooden
bridge over the Crumb Creek...through another field to the swimming pond. There
was a place nearby...that we could see in the distance that we called the pink
mansion. I often wonder if any of these places are still there. If you or anyone
out there reads this and knows where these places are (if they are still there)
please e-mail me and let me know. I grew up in Philadelphia so getting out to
the fresh air in summer was great...we had a blast there....I live in New Jersey
now and would like to take a day trip back to Newtown Square someday and do some
exploring. Thanks, Pat
Patricia Snyder e-mail: synder2005@verizon.net I came across your website while researching the history of my childhood home in Echo Valley. Our family lived in the original farmhouse
(not the Manor House) from 1961 thru December 2006. I was trying to find out how when the house was built, the earliest reference I can find is a 1909 map which
shows the house along with the rest of the “Echo Valley Farm” buildings. I also remember ice skating on Crum Lake (upstream from Bartram Bridge) and catching turtles and frogs in Lewis Creek. Throwing
snowballs and mudballs from the covered bridge and the hills overlooking Echo Valley Ln were also big things back then. In the summer, baseball in the
front yard and soap box derby racing on Battles Lane were some of my fondest memories. These uniquely suburban activities have all but disappeared from the
lives of today's children. Urban home spacing, organized athletic activities and the internet have replaced neighborhood play. Hopefully, neighborhoods like Echo Valley can remain intact in the face of suburban sprawl and the money hungry developers.
George Grey What a wonderful trip down memory lane I just had reading stories of past residents of my lovely town. I was born here in 1952, and have lived in Florida Park for all but a few years of my life. My grandparents built the house my husband and I now live in. My three sisters, my brother and myself were all raised in this house, and I raised my three daughters here, as well.
Great web site, I also lived in the area
from 1950-1971. We lived on Golf Club Road and have
many fine memories of that time. Remember the pga tour
Mackeys, Kellys, Powells Lumber Yard. Also knew the
Harrison family very well. I now live in New Smyrna
Beach Fla. Moved to Deltona in 1971 from Lionville Pa.
I was around 14 when we moved to Echo Valley Farm in 1962. Ours was one of only three at the bottom end of Echo Valley Lane. I remember watching the pan/earthmovers across the street on the hill as more houses went up. This part of the street was not
paved for a while. Our property went down to Crumb Creek and we used to skate on a pond beyond that in the winter. For the first time in our lives we were allowed on the street and rode our bikes up and down (fast) the big hill at the entrance. It’s
amazing we did not get hurt.
I used to cut grass in the summer for $10. The lawns were so big. We used our Jeep and a rental tractor to prepare for grass. I loved our house. I scratched my initials into the baseboard heater in my bedroom.
I remember the name of the original developer, Pickard and the old farmhouse/sales office and later a change in contractor to two of our neighbors, Newman-Griverts. We lived next to the Earles who had horses.
Several of the best school years were spent at M-N Junior High, Paxon Hollow High and Physics class at M-N Senior High where I learned of JFK’s assassination in 1963. We took Bus 2 driven by Sid. Those were the best years. We were horrified when we
had to move to New Jersey in the summer of 1964. I have never been to a high school class reunion except for the M-N 25th although I did not graduate there.
My brothers and I used play on the field, which used to go down to Goshen Road and the old covered bridge (see the picture on the web). It is now part of the development. We took rides on Goshen (pothole) Road in dad’s Jeep CJ-5 with the top down.
Some where out past the bridge is a place where we bought custom made sausage.
I remember shop class at Paxon Hollow, with a fire chief-to-be who had a Jeep with a blue light. Little did I know that I would eventually become a volunteer firefighter nearly 20 years later. I remember the big reservoir fire and the leaf fire behind
our house.
There was the PGA tour at the golf course with directional arrows painted on the streets. I learned to play the guitar there and my dad gave away all our Lionel trains to someone on our street. Now I wish he hadn’t.
The roads seems much smaller to me when I go back, the trees taller and fuller, and there is a lot less open space, but I still get home sick for Newtown Square and the surrounding area where I spent the first 16 years of my life.
I have just visited our Newtown Square Site again and found the information to be both interesting and informative, but I noticed something missing. Much is mentioned of the people of the past but I would like to thank a resident of Newtown Square for
making a difference and taking an interest in the lives of its people, with no wish for recognition.
On July 5th 1976 our home went on fire, it was the 4th of July parade in Newtown Square, because it had rained on the 4th. Our house was a total loss, gutted, we lost everything but most painful was the loss of the family pet. While trying to pick up
the pieces the next day of course cars were driving down our dead end street by the hundreds to see the devastation that made the front pages of the County Press. I can remember feeling resentful of these people, as it felt as we were a sideshow while
trying to deal with the devastation, I started to walk up to one car that seemed to sit in front of our house a little longer then most, I said "Is their something I can help you with"! What the woman in the car said would change my life and be something
I would think of years to come. She replied "Do you need anything, is their anything I can do to help you and your family?" I was somewhat in shock and quietly said no thank you, then she drove off. I really never got to thank her properly and never will
as I have no idea who she was, only that she must have been a Newtown Square resident. We had insurance and did not need help financially, we stayed with my sister and then rented a home for 4 months while our home was being reconstructed.
I grew up in Newtown Square as well. I happened upon this web site and was excited to hear that someone else wondered about the remains of a stone house off of Bishop Hollow Road. I lived on Elgin Road and my sister and I would play in those woods. We
would go to that site that Cynthia mentions. We found it very intriguing. Who did live there and how old was that place. We knew it was something special back then. I was born in 1961, we were probably about 7 or 8 when we would venture out to that site.
And how about our bus stop. We would catch the bus at the end of Elgin Road. At the time it was a field, a housing development is there now. It used to be horses and cows there. We would stand at the end of a driveway on the other side of Elgin Road to
catch the bus. And what about the pond. We used to iceskate on the pond a block away too. Remember when they put that basketball court up at the police station? Remember when they used to ice up the baseball diamond so we could iceskate? I will continue
to check into this web site. Thanks for the memories.
Hello... It was really a pleasure to visit your site. I lived in Newtown Square from ages 5 to 11 years old. Although my family lived in the area a short time, I have always considered it home. My fondest childhood memories are the candles that our
neighbors would light along the streets at Christmas time. And all the neighborhood children would get together on Christmas Eve and go Caroling around the neighborhood and stop at one persons house for a party, complete with hot chocolate. My parents
owned a business at the shore and moved our family when I was 11 years old. Since then, (I am now 32), I have always thought fondly of Newtown Square and visit whenever I can. Thank you for putting together this site. Happy New Year.
Thank you very much for posting the eloquent poetic history of Newtown Square. My family moved to Florida Park in 1959 when I was six years old and then relocated to Maryland upon my graduating high school (Marple-Newtown). I had a wonderful childhood
with my most memorable times being those spent hiking in the woods behind Florida Park along Crum Creek. What great times we all had (myself, one sister, and five brothers)!
I often wondered if Newtown Square was aware of an old stone torn down home out in the middle of a wooded area, far, far back of a path, my sister and I found about 20 years ago while taking our ponies from the road Gentilies is on to the Old Troop
Farm off Bishop Hollow Road. You would only know about it by way of horse, please let me know, I always wondered about its history.
Really enjoyed the website. I grew up in Newtown Square and found the information very interesting. I left Newtown Square back in 1975 with my parents after graduating from MNHS. We lived in Echo Valley. Great place to grow up. Thanks for the great
memories!
You've done a beautiful job on the Newtown Square Webpage and should be congratulated. I haven't even finished reading and viewing it all yet but I am printing much of the present information. As president of Newtown Townwatch, I commend you
honorably for a job well done.
Author's comments: This page contains visitor's comments and some personal experiences from former residents who have shared with us some very fond memories of life in Newtown Square. I too was a resident of this small town during my early teen years and
up until I was married in 1960. I've been a resident of Central Florida since
1979 and I've witnessed its rapid growth and I always marvel at how one's surroundings can completely change in a very short time and
sometimes the results are not always better! In order to get my perspective back in line, every now and then I'll return to Newtown Square to visit friends and relatives, and to reminisce about those good-times we shared during the 50's, (when life really was
simpler).
......Wayne Farrer
On 1/22/08, Barry Montgomery of Los Angeles, CA. wrote:
On 7/24/07, Patricia Snyder wrote:
On 6/30/07, George Grey wrote:
On 11/17/03, Sue Bennett Barnes
of Newtown Square, PA wrote;
I have fond memories of the woods and fields between Florida Park and Garrett-Williamson Lodge, including the fallen down stone structure mentioned by others. Several years ago, a car kept driving by, I finally stopped the gentleman and asked could I help him. It turns out this old man had lived here many years ago. I remembered some of the families he inquired about; but he told me then that the fallen down structure was owned by a family named Spillers, and that is how the little creek got the name of Spillers Run. I also have many memories of skating at Drexel Lodge Ponds, swimming at Thayer's swimming hole (with Mrs. Thayers permission only). Running through Trescotts (Fox Trail) farm and his cows and bulls to get there. Walks to the Square for a vanilla coke at Mackeys, Kelly's store, Grants, Hartinetts, The Old Troop Farm (now home to Newtown Square Petticoat League), and summer days filled with neighborhood kids riding bikes or playing cowboys and indians in the fields next to us (now Old Masters Golf Course).
Things have changed a lot; but on any given day here in Florida Park, kids can still be found riding bikes, playing football and playing paint ball in the woods behind my house.
Thank you for letting me share my thoughts, and what lovely thoughts they are.
On 08/09/03, J.Siddall of New Smyrna Beach, FL wrote;
Well thanks for the thoughts from the BEST YEARS OF
MY LIFE.
On 5/24/01, Warren Kimball Downey of Lynchburg, VA wrote;
NEWTOWN SQUARE 1962-64
On 5/19/00, Barbara Hoekstra of New Holland, PA, wrote;
Great website. Had fun reading and thinking about the past - growing up in Newtown Square...specifically 'the Heights' - Alice Grim, Ellis School - picnics on their grounds, going to MN, Paxon Hollow the first year it opened, Mackey's drug store,
Hartnett's 5 & 10, - it was great. This is a fun web site.
On 3/27/00, Guillermo O. Weise (Bill) of Santa Cruz, Bolivia, wrote;
I just love this place....
I had the best year in my life in Newtown Square as an exchange student, I graduated from Monsignor Bonner H.S. My host parents were Mr & Mrs George Reed, Supervisor at that time. I lived at 3117 Green Valley Rd. Had many friends in there who I still
miss a lot, especially Frank Koster from Broomall, can't remember at the moment the names of so many other nice guys...I am talking about the period 1959 - 1960.
Please feel free to send any comments at my E-Mail
On 3/19/00, Cynthia McElroy wrote;
I always wanted to let that person know she was truly appreciated and her offer went a long way.
Thank You who ever you are!
On 12/19/99, Mary Beth Sharitz wrote;
On 3/2/99, Lloyd B. Roach wrote;
Nice pix.(of High Larches) I spent my entire childhood in this home from 1944 to 1962.
On 12/26/98, Anonymous of the "Great American Trolley Co." wrote;
On 11/5/98, Pamela Munch Hickey wrote;
A girlfriend and I, who resided in the Heights, walked just about every Saturday to Mackey's Drug Store and bought a hot dog and lime rickey at the counter. We also took the Red Arrow line to 69th Street to go shopping.
Just thought you would enjoy some reminiscence from a previous resident.
On 8/2/98, Cynthia McElroy wrote;
On 6/21/98, Michael Galligher of Boca Raton, FL, wrote;
On 3/22/98, Meg Sweeney-Shea wrote;
Hello from Newtown Square. Found your information very interesting.
On 6/22/97, Edd Paffett wrote;
