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Haverford Township is one of the oldest in the state,
William Penn having deeded the tract to a group of Welsh
Quakers in the year 1681, who named it Haverford in memory
of their home in Haverfordshire, Wales. Llanerch,
originally called Haverford, consisted of four farms. On
the Davis Farm of 88 acres still stands the home of the
Davis family. This house on Mercer Avenue faced toward
Philadelphia and was originally owned by Dr. Benjamin Smith.
The property was bought from him by Samuel Davis in 1793.
The land from the Methodist Church to City Line was known
as the Silas Bewley Farm from whence Bewley Road received
its name.
The title to Llanerch was acquired in 1901 by Charles S.
Taylor from Mary Albertson. The name Llanerch was given
the property by the Albertsons and is the Welsh name for
the top of a knoll. As you will note, there are valleys on
all four sides of Llanerch.
The Methodist Church, organized in 1897, first held
services in the old Johnson house at Park and Darby Roads.
The church building on Llandillo Road was dedicated in 1898.
The Presbyterian Church at Park and Lansdowne Roads was
dedicated in 1912. The original little two-story four-room
red brick school house was built in 1905 and replaced in
1913 with the building currently used by the Stratford
Friends School at Darby and Llandillo Roads.
Ethel Rich McCaffrey - May, 1938
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