University of Pennsylvania ScholarlyCommons Theses (Historic Preservation) Graduate Program in Historic Preservation 2016 From Philadelphia Country House to City Recreation Center: Uncovering the Architectural History of the Building Known Successively as Blockley Retreat, Kirkbride Mansion, and Lee Cultural Center Through Building Archaeology Joseph C. Mester University of Pennsylvania Follow this and additional works at: http://repository.upenn.edu/hp_theses Part of the Architectural History and Criticism Commons, and the Historic Preservation and Conservation Commons Mester, Joseph C., "From Philadelphia Country House to City Recreation Center: Uncovering the Architectural History of the Building Known Successively as Blockley Retreat, Kirkbride Mansion, and Lee Cultural Center Through Building Archaeology" (2016). Theses (Historic Preservation). Paper 598. http://repository.upenn.edu/hp_theses/598 Suggested Citation: Mester, Joseph C. (2016). From Philadelphia Country House to City Recreation Center: Uncovering the Architectural History of the Building Known Successively as Blockley Retreat, Kirkbride Mansion, and Lee Cultural Center Through Building Archaeology. (Masters Thesis). University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA. This paper is posted at ScholarlyCommons. http://repository.upenn.edu/hp_theses/598 For more information, please contact [email protected]. From Philadelphia Country House to City Recreation Center: Uncovering the Architectural History of the Building Known Successively as Blockley Retreat, Kirkbride Mansion, and Lee Cultural Center Through Building Archaeology Abstract In this thesis, I analyze the Federal style country house, initiated in 1794, that stands today near the corner of 44th Street and Haverford Avenue in West Philadelphia. As it aged, the owners and occupants slowly transformed the country house from a private “country seat” to a public recreation center in the midst of a dense urban neighborhood. I examine the house and its additions, known collectively today as the Lee Cultural Center, through both documentary and material evidence. This building-archaeological approach studies building materials, finishes, and construction technology in order to date and interpret the construction, alteration, use, and significance of remaining fabric. My study focuses on three important stratigraphic layers within the house. These correspond to the McConnell-Busti Country House period (1794-1824), the Kirkbride Family Residence period (1840-1883), and the Lee Cultural Center period (1957-present). This thesis argues that the distinct layers uncovered during building archaeology reveal a nationally significant story of a building in continuum. Never loudly advertised, the preservation and reuse strategies employed by the building’s stewards over the last 60 years offers a valuable counter-example to the more explicitly curatorial approaches taken to such buildings in Philadelphia and beyond. In the twenty-first century, this country house turned cultural center stands not only as a monument to its early occupants but also proof that a major change in use to suit new social needs does not need to equal the wholesale destruction of historic fabric. Keywords Mill Creek, Federal style, Hospital for the Insane, adaptive reuse, Harbeson Hough Livingston & Larson Disciplines Architectural History and Criticism | Historic Preservation and Conservation Comments Suggested Citation: Mester, Joseph C. (2016). From Philadelphia Country House to City Recreation Center: Uncovering the Architectural History of the Building Known Successively as Blockley Retreat, Kirkbride Mansion, and Lee Cultural Center Through Building Archaeology. (Masters Thesis). University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA. This thesis or dissertation is available at ScholarlyCommons: http://repository.upenn.edu/hp_theses/598 FROM PHILADELPHIA COUNTRY HOUSE TO CITY RECREATION CENTER: UNCOVERING THE ARCHITECTURAL HISTORY OF THE BUILDING KNOWN SUCCESSIVELY AS BLOCKLEY RETREAT, KIRKBRIDE MANSION, AND LEE CULTURAL CENTER THROUGH BUILDING ARCHAEOLOGY. Joseph C. Mester A THESIS in Historic Preservation Presented to the Faculties of the University of Pennsylvania in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements of the Degree of MASTER OF SCIENCE IN HISTORIC PRESERVATION 2016 ______________________________ Advisor Aaron V. Wunsch Assistant Professor ______________________________ Program Chair Randall F. Mason Associate Professor ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS The advice given by my advisor Dr. Aaron Wunsch has been invaluable to the research and writing of this thesis. Professor Frank Matero’s assistance with fieldwork was greatly appreciated. I am particularly grateful to Rob Armstrong, Theresa Stuhlman, and Aaron “Shaggy” Hoffer of Philadelphia’s Department of Parks and Recreation for entrusting me with access to this nationally significant culture resource. I also extend my thanks to my classmates from HSPV 601: Research, Recording, and Interpretation whose collaboration in recording the Lee Cultural Center served as a starting point for this project. It would be remiss of me to not acknowledge the graciousness and patience of my wife throughout my studies. Thank you, Maggie. ii TABLE OF CONTENTS LIST OF FIGURES .............................................................................................................. v ABBREVIATIONS ............................................................................................................ viii CHAPTER 1 | INTRODUCTION ....................................................................................... 1 CHAPTER 2 | THE EVOLUTION AND PRACTICE OF BUILDING ARCHAEOLOGY ........ 6 CHAPTER 3 | McCONNELL-BUSTI COUNTRY HOUSE PERIOD (1794-1824) ............... 20 CONTEXT FOR THE McCONNELL-BUSTI COUNTRY HOUSE ................................... 21 EXTERIOR OF THE McCONNELL-BUSTI COUNTRY HOUSE ..................................... 32 GAMBREL ROOF ..................................................................................................... 39 INTERIOR OF THE McCONNELL-BUSTI COUNTRY HOUSE ...................................... 41 FIRST FLOOR ........................................................................................................... 43 SECOND FLOOR ..................................................................................................... 50 GARRET ................................................................................................................... 53 CHAPTER 4 | THE KIRKBRIDE FAMILY RESIDENCE PERIOD (1840-1883) ................... 56 CONTEXT FOR THE KIRKBRIDE MANSION ............................................................... 56 EXTERIOR OF THE KIRKBRIDE MANSION ................................................................. 65 INTERIOR OF THE KIRKBRIDE MANSION .................................................................. 68 CHAPTER 5 | LEE CULTURAL CENTER PERIOD (1957-present) ................................... 73 CONTEXT FOR THE LEE CULTURAL CENTER ........................................................... 73 EXTERIOR OF THE LEE CULTURAL CENTER ............................................................. 81 INTERIOR OF THE LEE CULTURAL CENTER .............................................................. 83 OTHER INTERVENTIONS AT THE LEE CULTURAL CENTER ...................................... 88 CHAPTER 6 | CONCLUSION ......................................................................................... 91 RECOMMENDATIONS FOR FUTURE SCHOLARSHIP ................................................ 94 BIBLIOGRAPHY ............................................................................................................... 96 APPENDIX A | MAJOR EVENT CHRONOLOGY .......................................................... 109 APPENDIX B | TRANSCRIPTIONS OF EPHEMERA ...................................................... 115 NEWSPAPER ADVERTISEMENTS ............................................................................. 116 PORCUPINE’S GAZETTE, MARCH 19, 1799 ......................................................... 116 UNITED STATES’ GAZETTE, MAY 14, 1804 .......................................................... 117 INSURANCE SURVEYS .............................................................................................. 118 iii MUTUAL INSURANCE COMPANY SURVEY, MARCH 15, 1806 ............................ 118 FRANKLIN FIRE INSURANCE COMPANY SURVEY, DECEMBER 30, 1835 ........... 119 FRANKLIN FIRE INSURANCE COMPANY RE-SURVEY, APRIL 14, 1842 ............... 122 FRANKLIN FIRE INSURANCE COMPANY RESURVEY, FEBRUARY 5, 1877 .......... 125 PHILADELPHIA CONTRIBUTIONSHIP SURVEY, APRIL 15, 1908 .......................... 126 PHILADELPHIA CONTRIBUTIONSHIP RE-SURVEY, JANUARY 5, 1949 ................ 129 APPENDIX C | FASTENER ANALYSIS .......................................................................... 132 APPENDIX D | HARDWARE ANALYSIS ....................................................................... 156 APPENDIX E | ARCHITECTURAL DRAWINGS AND MODELS .................................... 159 INDEX .......... .. ................................................................................................................ 173 iv LIST OF FIGURES Figure 1.1. A perspective of the John A. Lee Cultural Center from the northwest. Photograph by Grace Meloy, 2015. .................................................................................. 2 Figure 3.1. A detail of the West Philadelphia Landowners in October 1777 Map prepared by Jim Duffin,