Brandywine Hills (Wilmington, DE)
By Carolyn Roland- In Delaware and S. Chester County PA, Carolyn Roland, GRI, CRS
(Independent architectural histor'n)
Probably built before 1800, this unique stone historic home for sale was once the center of a gristmill community in Brandywine Hundred (now part of the City of Wilmington). The Henry Webster House, with its lovely gardens and thick stone walls, is a charmer waiting for the next generation of owners.  In the 1930's, well known local architect George Pope was brought in to bring this historic house up to 1930's standards, with electricity and City water lines being run. He did floor plans of its present state--with fireplaces at either end of the main floor, and a box winder stair in its traditional corner location next to a fireplace (very Delaware River Valley!). He then drew up plans (still extant) adding a kitchen at one end, and used the chimney from one fireplace to vent a modern f...
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By Carolyn Roland- In Delaware and S. Chester County PA, Carolyn Roland, GRI, CRS
(Independent architectural histor'n)
This late 18th century stone Delaware historic home is in the finest traditions of the English-influenced early mill owner homes in the Brandywine Valley. But rather than being built by one of the Quaker millers in nearby Brandywine Village who used the Brandywine Creek to power their mills, Henry Webster was a member of the Holy Trinity Church (Old Swedes). His marriage to Sara Stedham is recorded in their 1755 register. And his gristmill was on the Shellpot Creek, which fed into the Brandywine.           It was in the 1930's that this early Wilmington historic home became the nucleus of a new community, Brandywine Hills. It was at this time that the surrounding land was transferred from Brandywine Hundred to become a part of the City of Wilmington, Delaware. It was also when the well ...
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By Carolyn Roland- In Delaware and S. Chester County PA, Carolyn Roland, GRI, CRS
(Independent architectural histor'n)
     The historic Henry Webster home for sale in North Wilmington, Delaware has just had a price reduction, giving historic home lovers a great chance to buy a Delaware Brandywine Granite home once lived in by the Websters. Henry Webster was a miller, and his mill was a short distance away, on the Shellpot Creek.   In the late 18th century, the Webster family owned hundreds of acres of land in the Brandywine Hundred area, and one family member still owns a farm selling organic produce not far from the Henry Webster house. This 4 bedroom, 2 bath historic home for sale is now priced at $320,000. More information on this historic home for sale can be found on my website.       
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By Carolyn Roland- In Delaware and S. Chester County PA, Carolyn Roland, GRI, CRS
(Independent architectural histor'n)
Now I’m not saying that Henry Webster is haunting this house, but if he were to come  back, the poor guy would be 275 years old, and you just might hear his bones creak.  And now, this historic home is for sale at a greatly reduced price. Luckily, it's pretty quiet here in Brandywine Hills, on the edge of Wilmington, Delaware. The present owners of the Henry Webster House feel that he would probably like to linger in the formal gardens and enjoy all the fragrant boxwood and flowers. We think Webster would like the screened porch they added.          Were he to come inside he would see the changes time has brought. As the Colonial Revival movement hit in the early 20th Century, well-known local architect, George Pope was brought in to make a few changes. No longer did people wish to cook...
Comments 3
By Carolyn Roland- In Delaware and S. Chester County PA, Carolyn Roland, GRI, CRS
(Independent architectural histor'n)
When Colonial style homes became popular in the early twentieth century, the late 18th century Henry Webster house sat by itself on the southern edge of Brandywine Hundred  The house had belonged to a mill owner whose mill was on the Shellpot Creek, less than a block away from the present house. In the Brandywine tradition, this historic home for sale is stone, with 18" thick walls (approx.) and deep window sills. Re-imagined in the Colonial Revival Style, it was given a new floor plan by well known Wilmington architect George Pope in the 1930's when Brandywine Hills was created and the City of Wilmington expanded to include the Webster House.   In an estate-like setting with formal gardens on all sides, this Williamsburg style home and gardens will be holding an open house Sunday, Jun...
Comments 2
By Carolyn Roland- In Delaware and S. Chester County PA, Carolyn Roland, GRI, CRS
(Independent architectural histor'n)
  Historic records give us some information on the occupants of 4311 Marlowe Road in Wilmington, Delaware. Since the owner, Henry Webster, owned a grist mill, he needed workers. As did his neighbors, who were farmers and millers, he owned a slave. Present occupants of Brandywine Hundred (of which this was a part until the mid-20th century) might be surprised to know that early settlers here owned slaves, but Delaware has had a mixed history in this regard, until the Emancipation Proclamation on January 1, 1863. At the same time, the Underground Railroad and well known Abolitionist, Thomas Garrett made their home here in Wilmington. 1800 Census Records Brandywine Hundred  for Henry Webster’s Household 1 free white male from age 16-26 1 free white male from 26-45 2 free white females, und...
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By Carolyn Roland- In Delaware and S. Chester County PA, Carolyn Roland, GRI, CRS
(Independent architectural histor'n)
For a slice of Delaware history, consider the historic Henry Webster House at 4311 Marlowe Road, Wilmington, Delaware.  This 4 bedroom, 2 bath stone home was built for Henry Webster and his Swedish wife, Sarah Stedham, between 1760-70, calculating by his wedding in 1755 at Old Swede's Church in Wilmington, and the basement joists, which are made of trees, an early construction method,  not milled lumber. The first mill on the Shellpot Creek, built in 1662, was owned by Jouse Andriaesen, called Herring Rocks. It later became part of the William Sellers estate, which is just down the road from the Webster house.The most famous of the mills in Brandywine Hundred was the one built by Henry Webster, a grist mill built ca. 1772 to 1790. It was where the woods behind the church across the stre...
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