The many mansions of Fairmount Park represent a tangible record of the city, the powerful merchants, statesmen and families who built them and the grand legacies they created. Over time, the houses have endured, some still stately and meticulously preserved; others have given way to neglect, shifting priorities and the inevitable decay of time. Together, the mansions chronicle the many pinnacles and frequent hard times of Philadelphia’s communities. Among them all, however, the Woodford House has survived as a priceless gateway to the city’s unmatched history and colonial heritage.

A Bustling Colonial Capital
In the mid-18th century, Philadelphia was one of the busiest, most bustling cities in the American colonies – soon it would be the second city of the English empire, superseded only by London.

Immigrants from every part of Europe flocked to its port, running north and south along the Delaware River, hoping to find new opportunities in a new land. Some, like William Coleman, were successful enough to eventually afford summer homes just outside of town. Around 1756, Coleman built an estate he christened “Woodford” along the Schuylkill River, naming the house for the surrounding woods and the ford in the river. Coleman, a merchant and close friend of Benjamin Franklin, later served as justice of the Pennsylvania Supreme Court. He and his wife Hannah raised their orphaned nephew George Clymer, who later signed both the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution.

Georgian Mansion
Woodford was originally a one-and-a-half story Georgian mansion that stood on 12 acres with a separate home for the servants, and a stable. The house was built in classic Palladian style, featuring a formal center entry hall with a Doric frieze and a parlor with an elegantly carved over-mantle above its fireplace. About 15 years after it was built, the mansion was purchased by David Franks, a wealthy crown agent for Philadelphia, who added a second floor for bedrooms and a ballroom, and a rear two-story addition. During Franks’ years of ownership, he had all of the woodwork painted to look like mahogany, which was fashionable at the time.

The Loyalist Who Fled
But Franks was a Loyalist, and in 1778 he was arrested for treason, forcing the rest of the family to flee the country. Three years later, the house was purchased by Thomas Paschall, who sold it in 1793 to Isaac Wharton. Around 1800, the Whartons made several alterations to Woodford to make the house more comfortable and meet the demands of modern living. Two of the first floor bedrooms were converted into a dining room while two of the bedrooms on the second floor were combined into one large bedroom. Federal-style mantelpieces were installed in the new dining room and the large second floor bedroom. Woodford remained the Whartons’ summer home until 1868 when the family sold it to the city. Later designated as part of Fairmount Park, the structure was used until 1927 as administrative offices and a holding facility by the Fairmount Park Guard.

Naomi Wood Trust
Today, Woodford is owned by the Fairmount Park Commission and operated by the Naomi Wood Trust, a private, non-profit agency. Wood, a collector of antiques from Philadelphia, died in 1927. Daniel Huntoon, a collector and her close friend, served as the first Trustee of the Naomi Wood Trust. He initially leased the property from the Park Commission, and supervised the restoration of the mansion. Woodford was opened to the public in 1930. Today, the Trust retains a long-term lease on the mansion, where Wood’s antiques are exhibited.

Only a small portion of the collection was destroyed in a fire in 2003 but the remainder suffered serious smoke and water damage. The house was closed for the following two years for reconstruction and to allow the furnishings to be cleaned and repaired. Woodford re-opened in 2005 and, since then, receives about 3,000 visitors a year.

Worthy of Historic Preservation
Philadelphia attorney Larry Berger notes that Woodford should be preserved because it reflects the individual lives of those who were loyal to both sides during the Revolutionary War, one of the most important periods of American history. Unfortunately, like most small non-profits, the trust has to struggle financially in today’s economy.

“Fairmount Park has fewer resources these days to devote to historic sites,” said Berger, who has served as the site’s Trustee since the 1980s. “The city of Philadelphia has been good to us but they can’t do all that needs to be done.”

The Woodford Mansion is located at 33rd and Dauphin Streets in East Fairmount Park in Philadelphia. For further information, call 215-229-6115 or visit the web site at www.woodfordmansion.org.

Patricia A. Martinelli was appointed administrator/curator of the Vineland Historical and Antiquarian Society in February 2011. A veteran museum professional, with fifteen years of experience in the field, she has also written a number of books for Stackpole Books of Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania, on true crime, and folklore.