308 Bewley Road
4 Bedrooms, 4 Bathrooms
Built between 1908 and 1916
Inhabitants
| Names | Years |
|---|---|
| Allan Botting Smedley & Elizabeth Porter Kruger Smedley | fl. 1908–1916 |
| Zacharia R. Scholl & Laura Ledyard Scholl | fl. 1916–1950 |
| John Gillespie Magee & Ruth Heather Haskell Magee | fl. 1940 |
| Everett Donald Macdonald and Evelyn V. McKinly Macdonald | fl. 1950 |
| Fred S. Stewart & Grace Johnston Stewart | fl. 1953 |
| Helen J. Herblin | fl. 1958 |
| John E. Wilson & Ruth Saulsbury Wilson | ?–1976 |
| Santine Caporaletti | 1976–1986 |
| Stanley J. Mann & Donna M. Mann | 1986–2013 |
History
The house was originally entirely white on both the oustide and on a fair amount of the inside. It was redone on both ends by its owners in the late 2010s/early 2020s.
The house may not have been the one that was always there, but there was at least a property located in the home in 1908, as there's one locacted there on a map of Haverford Township. The 1913 atlas lists the owner as A.B. Smedley, who I identified as Allan Smedley, and since he's listed as being in Llanerch in both 1909, as well as 1915 for an Airedale Terrier dog show, I am going on a hunch to conclude it was him who first owned the home. In 1905, his grandmother, Jane, is listed as a Llanerch resident. She is listing as having died in West Chester in 1909, so perhaps she lived in the home before and they took it over?
1910 census:Electrical engineer Allan is living with his family.
| Name | Age | Relation to Head of Household |
|---|---|---|
| Allan B. Smedley | 26 | Head |
| Elizabeth K. Smedley | 28 | Wife |
| Richard H. Smedley | 2 | Son |
| Richard B. Kruger | 51 | Father-in-law |
| Emma B. Kruger | 52 | Mother-in-law |
Although I can't find it on the 1920 census, I think the next owners were the Scholl family, as Mr. and Mrs. Zacharia are listed as living in Llanerch as early as 1916 and occupied it by the 1930 census.
1930 census: Mother Laura living with son and servant.
| Name | Age | Relation to Head of Household |
|---|---|---|
| Laura L. Scholl | 60 | Head |
| Cornelius L. Scholl | 23 | Son |
| Bradley Tait | Servant |
For whatever reason, Laura's husband, Zacharia R. Scholl, was not included in that census, but she died in 1937.
1940 census: The Scholls don't appear on the census this year, and rather the Magees headed by Foreman John do, before his death in 1940.
| Name | Age | Relation to Head of Household |
|---|---|---|
| John J. Magee | 45 | Head |
| Ruth H. Magee | 35 | Wife |
| Heather Magee | 4/12 | Daughter |
1950 census: Zachariah is living alone as a widow and the MacDonalds are living there in separate unit as well.
| Name | Age | Relation to Head of Household |
|---|---|---|
| Zacharieh Scholl | 84 | Head |
| Everett Macdonald | 12 | Head |
| Evelyn M. Macdonald | 7 | Wife |
Zachariah died in 1950. In 1953, Fred S. Stewart dies as well, registered to this house. The same can be said for Helen J. Herblin, who died in 1958 and was registered to this address. The final before the end of this pattern is John E. Wilson, who died in 1976 and was listed as living here.
Philadelphia Inquirer, May 6th, 1976, page 29
The house was sold by Helen to M.D. Hartman in 1950, and an apartment within the house was rented to widow Elizabeth dodd. The Hartmans sold to Walter N. Howley in 1957 for $19,750. The Howleys lived there until at least 1975. By 1984, Curtis W. and Susan Reeves lived there.
Although it's not clear if either lived there, Santine Caporaletti sold the house to Stanley Mann in 1986 for $139,000. David Dewsnap probably lived at the address as well, because he is listed as having unclaimed property at the address in 2004. The property was sold by the Manns in 2014 for $400,000.