Francis Cope House Explained

The Francis Cope House is a historic building located on the grounds of the Awbury Arboretum in the U.S. city of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.^{[1] [2] [3] [4]} Nowadays it is a rentable space, owned by Awbury Arboretum.^[5]

History

A Quaker shipping merchant by the name of Henry Cope bought the Awbury property in 1852, and it served as a summer estate for his family. Awbury was named for Avebury, the English town where he was born. He bought the forty-acre property by his daughter and son-in-law, Mary Cope and John Smith Haines. In 1861, Henry's oldest son, a man by the name of Francis Reeve Cope and his wife Anna built their house, which is the Francis Cope House. Soon the Germantown property became a regular year-round home for the Cope-Haines family. For them, many houses were built throughout the 1860s-1920s.

Architecture

The Francis Cope House is made largely of Wissahickon schist, which was harvested from a nearby Washington Lane quarry.

References

40.0506°N -75.1681°W

Notes and References

1. Book: Klein . William M. . Gardens of Philadelphia & the Delaware Valley . Temple University Press, 1995 . 261-262 . 29 August 2023.
2. Book: Levine . Adam . A Guide to the Great Gardens of the Philadelphia Region . Temple University Press, 2007 . 34.
3. Book: Harshberger . John W. . The Old Gardens Of Pennsylvania, Awbury Arboretum . The Garden Magazine, Volumes 33-34, Doubleday, Page & Company, 1921 . 255-256 . 29 August 2023.
4. Web site: Our History . 2023-04-26 . Awbury Arboretum Philadelphia, PA . en-US.
5. Web site: Francis Cope House . 2023-04-26 . Awbury Arboretum Philadelphia, PA . en-US.