09/27/2023
A report pulled from LMT dating back to 2008--
Elm Lowne is located at 1324 Dolington Road. The property includes a stone farmhouse, a large barn, a tenant house that was formerly a carriage house, a springhouse, and a corn crib. The property has not been determined eligible for, or
listed on, the National Register of Historic Places. This does not mean that the property could not be listed in the National Register, rather application forms for National Register listing have not been filed with the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission. Based on historical information and observations of the architectural integrity of the property, it is the opinion of Heritage Conservancy that the property retains historic integrity and meets the criteria for listing to the National Register of Historic Places. The house was constructed in several sections beginning in the late 18th century. The documentary evidence suggests that the main
house was constructed by Edward Yardley. He took title to the property in 1827, and when he advertised the property for sale in December 1835, the house was noted as being “new” and built “agreeably to the modern style.”1 Just over ten years
later when William Cadwallader had the property advertised for sale, the house was described as “nearly new” but still “built in the modern style.” These references do not necessarily mean that the entire structure was new, but only that the main living
section (the “house” in the eighteenth/nineteenth-century expression) was new. The 1 The December 9, 1835, Pennsylvania Correspondent newspaper stated: “The improvements are a new Stone House, 30 by 36 feet, built agreeably to the modern style, with folding doors between the parlors; marble mantels &c. finished in the best manner, with a stone kitchen adjoining, dining room, wash house, &c. and a good spring house over a never failing spring of water, near the door--there are also, all the necessary outbuildings, requisite for a farm of the above dimensions. The buildings are situated on a commanding eminence, within view of the river Delaware and the city of Trenton...” Elm Lowne
Large cooking fireplace in Elm Lowne House
Springhouse on Elm Lowne property. 8 Heritage Conservancy
original house may have been relegated to use as a kitchen as part of the new construction and was the adjoining “stone kitchen” noted in the advertisement. Documentation of the barn is less precise. As one can imagine in a farming community, newspaper advertisements typically emphasize the size and attributes
of a barn. The fact that the 1835 newspaper advertisement goes into such details about the house, but merely states that the property had “all the necessary outbuildings, requisite for a farm” of its size is curious. However, a description in November 1836 of a “barn and hay house stone stable high” seems to describe
the main section of the barn.2 In 1846, the barn was described as a “large frame barn and hayhouse.” The hay house may have been the frame bridge side extension of the main barn, but the term is more typically associated with an addition such as the rear “L”.
The property appears to be significant for its association with agricultural development in Bucks County (Criteria A). It also may be significant for its association with various members of the Yardley family who owned the property in the late 18th and early 19th century and is also associated with Anthony Veiller, a
significant screenwriter from 1930 through 1950, who purchased the property in 1937 (Criteria B). Anthony Veiller wrote and narrated parts of the Why We Fight Series of World War II propaganda films with Frank Capra. Other films include Stage Door (1937) and The Killers (1946) for both of which he received an Oscar nomination for Best Adapted Screenplay. He was the writer, producer, and actor
for the film Red Planet Mars (1952). He also worked with John Huston on Night of the Iguana (1962).3 In addition to its association with Veiller, the house appears to be an excellent
example of vernacular Georgian architecture (Criteria C). The outbuildings add to the architectural integrity and historic significance of the property. The interior of the house includes a large cooking fireplace, Georgian, Federal, and Colonial Revival
style woodwork, and wood flooring. The property is in excellent condition. As noted under the Infrastructure Assessment & Feasibility section of this report, the township has had an extensive study of the barn completed. The Master Plan for the
Barn at Elm Lowne by Susan Maxman & Partners Architects (SMP) examined the rehabilitation and adaptive reuse of he barn as an educational and performing arts center. The project completed three tasks. Task I – historical and structural condition assessment
2 On November 16, 1836, Edward Yardley attempted to sell the land on the east side of Dolington Road. This tract was described by Yardley as “the farm whereon I lately resided, and now in tenure of John Tomlinson, containing 103 acres”. The advertisement indicates that the improvements on the 103 acres were a good stone Dwelling House, kitchen, barn, and hay house stone stable high, a stone wagon house and spring house near the door, and
concludes with, “As this property was advertised last fall, and about one-half sold without the buildings, a further description is deemed unnecessary as it is presumed those desirous of purchasing a property of this kind would be likely to call and view for themselves”.
