Morton Morton House

The story

Written by AI from this property's National Register nomination and the record above; every sentence is checked against its sources before it appears here. Corrections: privacy@treealive.com

The Morton Morton House is a Georgian house on 5.5 acres at the junction of Muckinipates and Darby Creeks in Norwood, Delaware County. It was built about 1750 and listed in the National Register in 2000.

Why it's listed

It qualified under Criterion C, with local significance in architecture and a period of significance of about 1750, the date of the house. The nomination calls it an excellent southeastern Pennsylvania example of Colonial/Georgian architecture and a rare survival of the hall-parlor plan, with a winder staircase and bolection moldings.

Physical character

Flemish bond brickwork with glazed headers, some forming the initials MM, sits on gneiss stone foundations under a wood shingle roof. Inside are wide plank pine floors, a winder stair, large cooking fireplaces and Georgian paneling. In 1845 a third story went up on the main block and the wing's half-story was made full; a 1971 restoration returned the pre-1845 look.

Historical context

The land was patented in 1672 to Morton Mortonson, Sr. and John Cornelius, and Morton Morton first appears in Ridley Township tax records in 1739. It was deeded to the Borough in 1954, then served as a house museum from 1971 until termite infestation closed it in 1997.