Included in the Shoemaker Collection are photographs, sketches, newsclippings and manuscript text:
The original Francis Daniel Pastorius built a two-story stone dwelling here soon after he arrived in 1683 as the leader of the Germantown settlement. Except for 1698-1700 when he taught in Philadelphia, Pastorius lived here until his death in 1719. At that time his two sons wrote to their grandfather in Germany, asking him to come live in the vacant Germantown house which "has a vegetable and fruit garden, and prettily planted with flowers."
In 1748 his grandson Daniel Francis Pastorius built the Green Tree Tavern immediately to the northwest of the homestead. Then in 1796, his great grandson built a larger mansion to the south east of the homestead. The house remained in the Pastorius family until it was purchased by Dr. Dunton shortly after the Civil War; Dunton tore down the original homestead and used the stone from that dwelling in the building of a rear wing.
This 1796 house was moved fifty feet north when High Street was constructed; then when the First Methodist Church was built on this property in 1898, the house was moved a second time to its present location at 25 High Street. One of the Pastorius farm houses stands still at the rear of the church, almost touching it.
Caption:
"Dr. William R. Dunton's House. N cor
Germantown Road & High St. The Methodist Church now covers the
site. House moved to High st."
Manuscript text, dated 1889:
"This house is situated on the north corner of Main and High
streets. At what date it was built I do not know, but Daniel
Pastorius told Henry Freas sixty years ago, that it was built by
his father Daniel Pastorious the elder, this would make the date
of erection sometime after the battle of Germantown. In the rear
was an old tannery long ago done away with. The house originally
stood in the middle of what is now High St., but upon the death
of Daniel Pastorious Jr., his son John, his executor, determined
to open a street through the old place and accordingly moved the
house bodily to its present position and laid out High St.
"I think Dr. Dunton, who has lived in it many years, has added to the back buildings.
"Chas. B. Engle tells me Daniel Pastorious Sr. was a tanner and carried on the business in the yard spoken of above and, he thinks, he built the house though it is possible it was erected prior to his time."
"Doorway from Dr. Bensils house, School House Lane and Germantown Ave, now part of an old house rear High St. and Germantown Ave."
"Doorway of Daniel Pastorius' House, Later Dr. Wm. R. Dounton's, High St, rear Methodist Church."
Back to the page for this location
|| Home || Germantown || Addresses || Texts || Maps || Key ||