Bryn Athyn celebrates
new historic district
Published:
Saturday, May 09, 2009
By Jesse Reilly
Staff Writer
Touring the gothic style church and the Glencairn
Museum, once the mansion of Raymond and Mildred
Pitcairn, more than 2,500 turned down Cathedral
Road April 18 to celebrate Bryn Athyn’s designation
as a historic district.
“I don’t think anything of this magnitude
has happened here since the actual founding of
Bryn Athyn,” Joralyn Echols of the Glencairn
Museum said of the day’s festivities. “For
so long we have been a closed community and I think
this recognition will hopefully make us more accessible.”
Designated in October, the historic district includes
Cairnwood, an 1895 country home, the Glencairn
Museum, formerly the home of Raymond and Mildred
Pitcairn, Romanesque style Bryn Athyn Cathedral
as well as Cairncrest.
Local food vendors, musicians and artists lined
the driveway into the area as community members
were able to go on self guided tours of the buildings.
Live organ music was played at the cathedral and
families were able to take carriages rides around
the grounds, as well as try out some fashions of
the turn of the century when the buildings were
used as homes.
A barbershop quartet kept the event lively and
a judged carriage parade kept people’s attention,
Echols said.
“There was definitely something for everyone,” she
said. “People of all ages came together for
a great day.”
State Rep. Tom Murt, state Sen. Stewart Greenleaf
and U.S. Rep. Allyson Schwartz also participated
in the festivities.
“It was very exciting,” Echols said,
adding that an event that tied all the buildings
together has been a goal of for several years.
“We want to start having tours of all three
buildings and doing things together,” she
said. “We want to become more a part of the
community and make people feel comfortable coming
here, I think a lot of people think this is a closed
off area.”
Taking things one step at a time, Echols said
the buildings would be working together in the
upcoming months.
“We want to establish our identity as a
historic district and also maintain our individuality.
The first step is getting some events on our calendar,” she
said. “And with this recognition we think
a lot of doors will be opened and more people we
learn that we are here.”
For more information on the historic district
or any of the buildings, visit www.bahistoricdistrict.org
Photos and more story:
http://www.ourownacademy.org/ftpimages/367/download/LionsPride_June09.pdf
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