Chadds Ford Life Fall/Winter 2022 Edition

Chadds Ford Life Fall/Winter 2022

Letter from the Editor:

If there is one component of life in southeastern Pennsylvania that is more definitive of the region than its natural landscape and the history that has happened there, it is found in the individuality of its many towns.

Yet, at the heart of what makes each of these towns unique from one another are the people who live there, and over the last few centuries and especially now, Chadds Ford has been defined by its people. Throughout the pages of this current edition of Chadds Ford Life, you will read stories that profile just a few of them.

In her essay, “My grandmother’s house,” contributing writer Caroline Roosevelt takes readers through the catacombs of her grandmother’s home at Round Hill Farm, which serves now as a treasure trove of eccentric people and memories.

In our Q & A, Philip Ferro and Kate Hussey talk about the transformation of their Chadds Ford Tavern into a restaurant that gives a nod to its rich past, inspires a “New Classic” ambience and offers a diverse menu.

Writer Richard L. Gaw profiles Michael Firsow and Denise Gindhart of Alchemy, the Soul of Transformation, who devote much of their lives and energy to guiding the spiritual journeys of those who come to visit their beautiful Chadds Ford home.

In her photo essay, “The making of beautiful things,” photographer Jie Deng captures the exquisite craftsmanship of David Cloud, the principal artisan and owner of Thornbury Wood, and contributing writer and historian Gene Pisasale shares some colorful stories of Chadds Ford Village history and its people.

It would take hundreds – perhaps thousands – of editions of Chadds Ford Life to accurately and completely tell the entire story of this town, its people, its businesses, its new residences and its continuing journey, but unfortunately one issue at a time will have to do. Here are just a few of your neighbors; we are so proud to introduce you to them. We’ll see you again in the Spring of 2023 with the next issue of Chadds Ford Life.

Sincerely,

Cover photo: Jie Deng Cover Design: Tricia Hoadley

The Galer Estate Winery and Tasting Room has served as just one of many local sites for Chadds Ford Business Association events and meetings.

Chadds Ford Business Association promotes commerce and community

Chadds Ford Business Association promotes commerce and community

Chadds Ford Business Association promotes commerce and community

1990s concrete road divider united businesses in effort to keep customers

By Drewe Phinny Staff Writer

Joe Lafferty, president of the Chadds Ford Business Association (CFBA), offers a simple yet eloquent explanation of the group’s mission: “The CFBA is a group of business owners and professionals from the Chadds Ford area that meet monthly to network, share ideas and occasionally have guest speakers to present hot topics in the local marketplace,” he said.

Of course, the brevity belies a more complex understanding of all the things that make up the organization of approximately 80 members.

Vice President Frank Rupp provided some related geographical information. “Even though our name is Chadds Ford Business Association, we’re not just confined to Chadds Ford’s borders,” he said. “If you go to our website, you’ll find a member map that shows just how far the CFBA’s membership stretches. Our group truly encompasses a full, ten-mile radius.”

Aesthetic beauty is a big part of Chadds Ford’s appeal. Rupp explained, “It’s an absolutely gorgeous area. We have a wide-range of bucolic farms along with modern homes all nestled together in the historic Brandywine Valley. It’s a pretty eclectic group of people and properties. We are also very fortunate to Joe Lafferty, president of the Chadds Ford Business Association.

have an abundance of quality restaurants to host our meetings, as well the gracious support of our local townships.” Some of the Chadds Ford Business Association’s favorite venues include Brandywine Prime in Chadds Ford for hors d’oeuvres, dinners and drinks, breakfast meetings at the Chadds Ford Township and Pennsbury Township buildings for updates from their supervisors and catering by Hank’s Place, and delicious lunches in Antica’s private dining room. In early October, the CFBA met for an evening event at Galer Estate & Winery for a private tour with owner Lele Galer and delicious catering by Sovana Bistro.

Rupp’s original business was Frank Rupp Design, a design company for small business owners. “I switched my CFBA membership over to our Painter House Suites business shortly after we took ownership of the Historic Dilworthtown properties in 2020 and I started getting asked more about the restaurants than my design services,” Rupp said. “The switch just made sense. While commercial real estate and design may seem like disparate career choices, I find that I use my design capabilities nearly every day,

whether it is updating our website’s content or helping my tenants with their signs. In the work environment someone is always going to ask you to design some sort of presentation piece or PowerPoint… and that knowledge of design can be carried into your work regardless of your active profession. I think everyone would benefit from a little bit of design training so they are able to communicate with their customers and colleagues more effectively.”

Speaking of communication, each member of the CFBA contributes his or her special talent which becomes part of a larger effort to enhance the goal to promote an atmosphere conducive to commerce in the community. Rupp pointed out an example of this form of productive activity. Chadds Ford’s printed paper, The Chadds Ford Post, went out of business 13 years ago. Fellow CFBA board member Emily

Brandywine Prime.

Myers and the editor of the Post formed a new publication to be distributed electronically called Chadds Ford Live. Subscribers get an email blast at 12:10 a.m. every Friday morning. It includes all the important news from Glen Mills to Kennett Square. It’s a great way to quickly read through a weekly summary of the local news and events and to stay informed about what is going on in the community. As an added bonus, every CFBA member receives the email blast free, as part of their membership with the group.

One of the more interesting aspects of the origin of the CFBA actually came out of a state effort to divide the roadway for safety’s sake.

Chadds Ford’s business success is a product of people organizing to change their fate. The entire stretch of Route 1 was going to have a three-foot concrete divider separating north and south lanes from Kennett Square to Media. For example, with no traffic light at the Chadds Ford Tavern, if you were going southbound on Route 1, you wouldn’t have access to the restaurant. In essence, the town was going to get cut off. So, out of the desire to preserve the area’s natural charm and unique business offerings, local business owners and professionals formed an association to petition the state to alter the plan, and as a team, successfully preserved Chadds Ford to be the beautiful small town it is today.

“The whole thing was organized in the late 1990s, when PennDOT said they were going to put a concrete divider stretching from Media all the way to Kennett Square on Route 1, with openings only where there were existing traffic lights,” Rupp explained.

on Page 14

The Pennsbury Township building.

The business owners were understandably not happy. The sentiment was that the divider was going to shut out half the business potential from the opposing side of the road. With the current setup afforded drivers the ability to make left-hand turns to pull into businesses along Route 1, but the proposed divider would have put all that to an end.

Rupp explained that they all met at the Brandywine River Hotel to fill out a petition to get PennDOT to modify the plan so there would be openings along the way so people could still get across the street. It was one of the first times the business community along Route1 came together for a unified cause.

Mixing business with pleasure, Rupp said, is a great way to get to know somebody in a different way that reflects a deeper aspect of his or her personality. “You see them so frequently that trust forms naturally… and if the opportunity arises where you need a fellow member’s expertise, the relationship is already built,” he said.

The Chadds Ford Business Association has a set schedule and meets the first Thursday of the month for breakfast, lunch or dinner. Myers handles the location details.

The Chadds Ford Township building.

The website maintained by the The Chadds Ford Business Association is an important resource for members. Rupp said, “That’s one of the reasons they brought me on

board, for my graphic design abilities. I built the website for them so they no longer had to do the paper forms for membership. We were now able to promote ourselves online with SEO (Search Engine Organization) rather than just word of mouth.”

In addition to building the CFBA website, Rupp also maintains it.

“It’s important to note that all of the CFBA board members volunteer their time and effort to support the group,” he said. “We do this because we want to see our members and the community thrive. Originally, my job was just the website, but we had a board changeover so I also took over additional responsibilities. I now build the email invitations in Constant Contact and upload the event details to the CFBA Facebook (Facebook. com/chaddsfordbusiness) and website (www.ChaddsFord.org).”

The yearly membership fee is $125. As an added bonus, if you are already a member of Southern Chester County Chamber of Commerce or Delaware County Chamber of Commerce, $100 of your chamber membership due can be applied to your CFBA membership. If you aren’t ready to join, but want to check out a meeting, non-members are always welcome to attend at the standard rate. Members of the CFBA get discounted tickets to the monthly meetings, a listing on the group’s website, a listing on the Chadds Ford Live website, and receipt of their weekly email news blast.

Joe Lafferty, President

Owner, Joe Eckert and Joe Lafferty, Allstate Insurance 610-388-1501

joelafferty@allstate.com

H. Frank Rupp, Jr., Vice President

Owner, Painter House Suites, LLC 484-443-8833

painterhousesuites@gmail.com

Mary Marines, Secretary

Owner, Pennock Insurance, Inc. 610-358-2600

mmarines@pennockins.com

Jim Leader

Owner, Leader Sunoco 610-388-7611

leadersunoco@verizon.net

Emily Myers

Owner, ChaddsFordLive.com 610-212-3639

business@chaddsfordlive.com

Senior-living comm features quality of l

Apartments, amenities, services among options offered at The Residence at Chadds Ford

By Natalie Smith Contributing Writer

The desire to lead your best life certainly doesn’t wane as you get older. For many, moving to a senior community –whether it be to live independently or with some level of care – is a way to maintain that quality of living without the responsibilities that come with home ownership.

For those seniors and their loved ones looking for a welcoming and accessibly placed community, The Residence at Chadds Ford has a way of life that enables residents to enjoy and explore their days highlighted by “good times, good friends and great care.”

Established by Massachusetts-based LCB Senior Living, The Residence at Chadds Ford is the group’s first in Pennsylvania; its second is in Bala Cynwyd. The company owns or operates communities throughout New England and the Mid-Atlantic.

This community, which features month-to-month rentals, offers Independent Living, Personal Care and Reflections Memory Care options in an attractive, 88-apartment structure on Wilmington Pike in Glen Mills, Delaware County. The location is ideal for many reasons, said Cindy Graul, the community’s business development director.

The Residence at Chadds Ford opened in early 2020.

munity living

“I always describe our building as a little unique when the people are looking to source a community such as ours for senior living and month-to-month rentals,” Graul said. “We are in a really unique spot. We’re sitting in Delaware County; our backyard faces Chester County and we’re just five miles from the border of the State of Delaware. Adult children who are trying to bring their parents back … maybe they started having more and more significant health issues. Or they live down south in Florida or North Carolina and are transitioning back to their children’s area.

“It’s a really neat sweet spot because we’re super close to the West Chester area. We often find that we are that convenient place for a lot of the family, so that’s what attracts a lot of people here.”

For residents, the appealing apartments are offered in studio, one- and two-bedroom designs, each with a kitchenette and full bath. Comfortable seating for residents and their guests, outside the front doors of some units, essentially extends the living area.

“The first three floors of the building have a little horseshoe of apartments. At the end of the hallway, we have a laundry room. It dispenses the detergent for you and there

is a folding table and washer-dryer. If you still love to do laundry, great. Otherwise we can do it for you for $25 a week. I’d be signing up for that,” Graul said.

“It’s a very nicely appointed building where there is a modern element blended with traditional pieces that are timely looking. So it’s not over-the-top modern, but it also is very well-appointed in what I would describe as monochromatic.”

All images by Double S Media Resident Joan Washburne tends to an herb garden in The Residence at Chadds Ford’s courtyard. Chefs at the community incorporate the herbs into their menu items.

Cindy Graul is the business development director for The Residence at Chadds Ford.

Residents Joan Bonita (left) and Anna Ruggere take a break during a session in the workout room.

The Residence at Chadds Ford

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Services and amenities are plentiful, including three chef-prepared meals daily. Menus boast such chef’s seasonal specialties as Shrimp Scampi, Teriyaki Chicken and Butcher’s Choice, which is a “rotating chef-inspired steakhouse selection.” Breakfast and lunch menus carry items like Eggs Your Way and Build Your Own Burger. Meals are served from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. and residents may dine at anytime they wish. And if you feel like having pancakes at 5 p.m.? No problem.

In addition to the restaurant-style gourmet meals, among the services included in the monthly fee are weekly housekeeping and linen service; access to an emergency response system, activated in the apartments and via pendants given

Tables are ready to accommodate residents prior to an evening meal in the dining room at The Residence at Chadds Ford. The flowers are arranged by resident “green thumb” Joan Washburne.

to residents; utilities; common-area Wi-Fi; and garage parking. For those who don’t drive, a transport service is offered, taking residents to their errands within a 10-mile radius of The Residence.

For residents needing Assisted Living or Personal Care, a host of services are offered for additional charges, such as help walking, bathing and aid with morning and evening routines.

Reflections Memory Care is a program “based on a philosophy of empathy, expression and mindfulness.” The planned programs are geared toward supporting and enriching residents’ experiences. Three gourmet-style meals are also included, with colors and sounds surrounding the dining experience adapted for those with dementia. For instance, Graul said the caregivers wear lime green because it is more easily seen by people affected by that condition.

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A home-theater style screening room, complete with a popcorn machine and comfortable seating, is the location for both live and pre-recorded presentations.

Resident Carole Harper works on completing a jigsaw puzzle while in one of the Residence’s common areas.

included: a strength and cardio class; tai chi class; non-denominational Bible study; blackjack; and a Pizza & Pub Social with live music. Rounding out the evening was Friday Night Flix in the Theatre Room with a showing of “Les Misérables.” Graul noted that the nondenominational Bible-study group

suggested and run by resident Dick Wirth, who has a longtime interest in religion, she noted. And the food-preparation

Resident Dick Wirth. His interest in religion led him to run a non-denominational Bible study.

from the green thumb of resident Joan Washburne, who maintains fresh herbs in a raised planter that the chefs incorporate in residents’ meals. Washburne also arranges flowers on the tables in the dining room every Thursday.

Graul praised Engagement Director Kristin Cartwright for her work with the residents and creating appealing programs for them.

“We like to focus on the ability first, rather than their disability because it’s person-centered. We need to see what they are capable of rather than what their deficits are,” Graul said. “There are so many opportunities that we have here within our community to tap into the life and work experiences of our residents, as well as their hobbies or interests, in order to let their light shine from within and grow their interests. They can help self-guide our events by being the leader of an organization or a club.”

Graul said that some residents who are enthusiastic about The Residence at Chadds Ford often want to share their passion.

“One of my favorite features when I’m [giving tours of The Residence] are our ‘ambassadors’ - they’re not wearing a name tag. They’re not assigned as an ambassador. These are people that I know that are really proud

to call this their home and it really is a gift being in their house. They’re happy to really share why they love living here.”

Contact Natalie Smith at natalie@DoubleSMedia.com

A rack of dumbbells awaits the next ‘power lifter’ in the workout room.

A dedicated room for workouts and physical activity is another of the benefits enjoyed by residents at the Chadds Ford location.

Philip Ferro and Kate Husseyand Kate of the Chadds Ford Tavern

Philip Ferro and Kate Hussey of the Chadds Ford Tavern

In October 2017, Chef Philip Ferro purchased the 220-year-old Chadds Ford Tavern with an idea to keep the flavor of its rich history alive while modernizing its menu with both five-star entrees and Tavern favorites. Along with his fiancée Kate Hussey, Ferro has turned the Chadds Ford Tavern into a hotspot for those seeking gourmet meals or a great burger, a beer and an Eagles game. Chadds Ford Life recently met with Philip and Kate to discuss the continuing success of a local favorite.

Chadds Ford Life: When you purchased the Chadds Ford Tavern in October 2017, you saw potential within its walls. What vision did you have for the restaurant that inspired you enough to take over its ownership?

Philip: I don’t know if it is the lighting or the wood or the old architecture, but when you walk into the Chadds Ford Tavern, you are hit with a calm and relaxing feeling, and it is very hard to replicate. The place still had the good bones, but I just wanted to clean it up and pair the new with the old – by installing a new floor, new light fixtures and a new ceiling. I wanted to give it a feeling that I call “New Classic.”

The Chadds Ford Tavern is not only a nod of thanks to former owner Tommy Drane, but the reimagination of what a modern tavern should look like. Take me through the steps of what you did to achieve that “New Classic” ambience.

Philip: It was a combination of everything. Tommy had some Wyeth prints and some Bill Ewing paintings in the restaurant, and I acquired a few more that I hung up a week or so ago. The Chadds Ford Tavern was been woven into the history of Chadds Ford. For instance, Tommy told me that Andrew Wyeth would sit near the fireplace and sell his art out of the Chadds Ford Tavern, so I wanted to celebrate that history.

The booths were sticky from the 50 years of their being there, so I had them all refinished and had cushions on the backs and the seats. I also introduced tablecloths to soften the feel of the restaurant and enhance that “New Classic” feel.

Kate, the big question facing a lot of restaurants these days is “Who drives the menu? Is it the chef, the management or is it the customer?” Some who go to the Chadds Ford Tavern ask for the Prime Kuvobuta Pork Chop and a glass of Chardonnay, while others want a Handheld and a mug of beer, often at the same table. How would you describe your menu?

Kate: Philip opened the Chadds Ford Tavern in April 2018, and I came aboard in June of that year. Philip’s menu was borne out of everything he has learned over the years, what sells and doesn’t sell, in a way that offers something for everyone.

I have been saying from day one that we have a phenomenal staff, a phenomenal atmosphere and we offer phenomenal drinks, but they come to the Chadds Ford Tavern for Philip – for what he does with food.

You can have great service and a great cocktail, but if your steak is horrific, you’re not going to go back to that restaurant. On the flip side, if you have terrible service, you’re not likely to return to that restaurant. In order for a restaurant to succeed, every single aspect has to go hand-in-hand with each other.

So often, the success of a restaurant begins with the dedication of its owner, and becomes an infectious energy that inspires everyone else, yes?

Kate: When Philip first opened the Chadds Ford Tavern, he was spending as often as 18 hours a day building this restaurant, in the kitchen and away from his children. If the servers are going to work here, they have to put at least half

Courtesy photo Ferro’s menus are an eclectic blend of classic dishes and handheld favorites that appeal to any culinary taste.

of that effort in, because if our guests don’t see that effort, it affects every other part of what we do.

Philip, talk about your approach to food. What goes into your menu and what do you want to achieve with it?

Philip: My approach is to keep it simple. People want steak, potatoes and a good vegetable. People want real appetizers. There is a time and a place for fancy food, but if you want to have consistently great food that you can rely on every day, that’s what we strive to achieve. The Chadds Ford Tavern is my ninth restaurant, so the menu is reflective of my 27 years in the restaurant industry and knowing what sells and what our guests want.

You both have enjoyed several years in the restaurant industry. What drew the both of you to want to pursue a career in the industry?

Kate: By chance, I happened to get a job at Manny Hattans in Kennett Square when I was 16 and asked to operate their takeout counter. At first it was a job, and then I came to love it. That love grew a little more when I started running Floga Bistro across the street. I held onto that love for a while, but realized that it wasn’t something I wanted to do for the rest of my life.

Photo by Richard L. Gaw Philip Ferro and Kate Hussey of the Chadds Ford Tavern, with their daughter, Serafina.

Q

Continued from Page 23

I went to Penn State and received a degree in psychology. I then moved back to Kennett Square and walked into the Chadds Ford Tavern just to pursue a part-time job while I looked for opportunities in the psychology field. Soon after, Philip and I started dating and I soon realized I wasn’t going anywhere. I enjoy the multi facets of running a restaurant. Philip is the one who got me back into the restaurant industry and he is the one who keeps me here.

Philip: The first thing that got me interested in cooking were those TV commercials that sold hand blenders. I was about ten years old, and was intrigued by the fact that you could use these blenders to whip eggs into what looked like whip cream. By the time I was 12, I became glued to the Food Network and then I began to cook for my family when I was in middle school –dinners as complicated standing rib roast and all of the sides.

By the time I was 15, I was working part-time at restaurants as a bus boy, and then I was asked by a chef at Catherine’s in Drexel Hill to cut some onions. He saw that I knew how to handle a knife, and then I found myself on the line, cooking with guys in their 40s.

When I was 17, I began to take vo-tech classes in cooking, and although I eventually dropped out of high school, I was also running the kitchen at Rolling Green Golf Club in Springfield.

I was earning good money, I was pleasing people and I loved preparing food, and they saw the talent in me at such a young age, and it just progressed from there.

Kate, if Philip is the overseer in the kitchen, then you are the overseer of everything else at the Chadds Ford Tavern, from staffing to reservations to maintaining the smooth, wellfunctioning engine of a well-run restaurant. Describe how you are able to multi-task in an industry where at any moment, chaos may disrupt order.

Kate: It comes through experience. There have been times when Philip and I look at each other wide-eyed, but we just figure out what to do. In the event of a last-minute cancellation table for a party that happens exactly when 30 other people walk in the door and you don’t have a table ready for them, you don’t know how to handle until you have to handle it.

Continued on Page 26

The truth is, the Chadds Ford Tavern doesn’t succeed with just the two of you. Talk about some of the other people who help to make the restaurant successful.

Kate: We have an unbelievable team. They have done everything for us, and for each other. At the top of that list is Iggy Acuna.

Philip: Iggy came in during construction of the new Chadds Ford Tavern back in early 2018, speaking not one word of English. She put her son on her phone who told me, ‘My mom wants a job washing dishes.’ I told him to tell her that I needed a pantry chef, so I told him to tell her that I was going to teach her how to be a chef. She watches me make desserts, and the salads –

Kate: Meanwhile, she didn’t know how to read a menu at the time. When the tickets came through, she looked for certain letters to help her determine what she was supposed to prepare.

Philip: Now, four years later, she runs the kitchen at the Chadds Ford Tavern. She does all of the ordering, manages the kitchen staff, makes sure all of the cleaning is done and on her only day off, she comes in at five o’clock in the morning and cleans the entire restaurant.

Kate: Catherine “Katie” Mervine works full-time at the Chichester School District but is also a phenomenal server, bartender and chef manager at the Chadds Ford Tavern. She is hard-working, reliable and our customers love her. We also have my sister Jess, who is now the general manager, followed by my mother Betsy and most recently my father Leo, who now gets more five-star reviews than anyone else in the restaurant.

Philip: The moral of our story is that we would rather promote the staff we work with rather than bring in an outside manager from Craig’s List. We want people that know our system in order to enable them to succeed in that system.

Is running a restaurant a lot like giving a daily performance?

Philip: Every single day I have to make sure the stage is set for everyone to succeed. I have to set up the lighting, arrange the music, prepare the kitchen and write the specials list. For many years, I was doing all of that on my own, but now, Kate provides the management to make sure that everything goes according to plan. But still, it’s a production that goes on every day.

Philip, you have owned ten restaurants in your career, and you are currently in the planning phase of creating two restaurants in downtown Coatesville -- at the old Chester County Bank and at the original YMCA Building. What continues to drive you to work so hard?

Philip: I just want to be successful. It’s been about taking an old building and repurposing it as a way of showing people that this is what I can do – and what Coatesville can do -- against great odds. I began meeting with architects three years ago and finally got both locations out of the developers’ hands. I want to be known as the high school dropout from Upper Darby who came to Chester County and played a part in the revitalization of Coatesville.

What have been among your most favorite moments at the Chadds Ford Tavern?

Kate: New Year’s Eve, 2020, right before the pandemic. It was wall-to-wall bodies. At one point that evening, we had 285 people in the restaurant, and the kitchen was pushing out food faster than I had ever seen before. We were forced to place more tables in the restaurant, and everywhere you looked, there was dancing.

Courtesy photo Ferro’s menus are an eclectic blend of classic dishes and handheld favorites that appeal to any culinary taste.

Courtesy photo Ferro purchased the historic tavern in 2017 and spent the next several months renovating its interior to meet the design standards of a “New Classic” restaurant.

Q & A

At the end of the night, there were still 100 people at the bar area watching a fiddle player perform on top of the bar. Philip and I then looked at each other as if to say, ‘Can you believe this?’

Philip: My favorite moment is looking around and seeing a full restaurant of happy people. It’s a good feeling, because it’s ultimately what you get in this business for.

What are your favorite spots in Chadds Ford?

Kate: My favorite spot is being at home. Realistically, we don’t hang out. That’s the cost of being in this business. Our hang out and our life is this restaurant.

You throw a dinner party and can invite anyone – famous or not, living or not. Who would you like to see at that table?

Kate: I would love to see my grandparents again. My grandfather put my siblings and I through college, and I would like for him to see how successful I have become, in partnership with Philip. I would love for my grandmother to meet Philip, and I would also like to invite Whitney Houston. She was my idol when I was growing up.

Philip: I would like my grandmother at that table, to see how successful I have become. My mother told me that when I was a young boy, I was glued to my grandmother as she made pork chops. I would also like to invite my Uncle Brian and my father, who passed away when I was 21, who also never got a chance to see my success.

As far as people in business, I would like to invite [restaurateur] Steven Starr, Chef Thomas Keller from The French Laundry and Donald Trump.

What food or item can always be found in your refrigerator?

Philip: Peanut butter and jelly. We had it last night!

Kate: Between helping to run our restaurants and our young daughter Serafina, I have very little time to shop, so I am constantly telling Philip to pick something up on his way home. There is always frozen pizza, lemonade and cookies and milk, every night.

The Chadds Ford Tavern is located at 1400 Baltimore Pike in Chadds Ford. To make reservations, call 484-800-4084, or visit www.thecftavern.com.

- Richard L. Gaw

Prada Chanel Hermes Celine

Michael Kors Kate Spade Tory Burch Louis Vuitton

Ralph Lauren Gucci Burberry Louis Vuitton Alexander McQueen John Varvatos

Chadds Ford V through the y

Chadds Ford Village V through the years

By Gene Pisasale Contributing Writer

You may be familiar with Chadds Ford history, but there are numerous little-known stories still to be told about its colorful past. Structures which once had a prominent place on the landscape have changed significantly, while others have been removed, replaced with more modern buildings which serve a completely different purpose. The area surrounding the intersection of Route 1 (Baltimore Pike) and Creek Road (Route 100) has seen several of these structures come and go. A review of their history gives you a fuller understanding of the many changes which occurred over more than 300 years, from when it was called a “village” to the present day.

Chadds Ford, circa 1910. Photo courtesy of Chadds Ford Historical Society.

Chadds Ford in 2015.

Village years Village years

|Chadds Ford Life|Chadds Ford Village

Continued on Page 32

In his History of Delaware County, Pennsylvania , Henry Graham Ashmead states that Francis Chadsey (later shortened to Chads) erected one of the earliest mills on the Brandywine sometime after 1703. Upon his death in 1713, his property reverted to his son John, who by 1737 established a ferry across the Brandywine to meet the needs of travelers along “Ye Olde Road to Nottingham.” His rates were pretty reasonable: “Every horse and rider, four pence. Every single person on foot, three pence… Every ox, cow or heifer, four pence each… Every coach, wagon, or cart, one shilling and six pence…” Due to the occasional heavy rains which swelled the river, the ferry service became quite popular.

In Chadds Ford Then and Now , author Phyllis Recca mentions that “…the early village had a tavern, a cooper’s shop and several homes.” A colloquial misspelling of Chads’s name resulted in what we know today as Chadds Ford.

Some people may not be aware that Chadds Ford has resided in two different counties—and two different townships. In September 1789, Delaware County split off from Chester County, one of the three original counties in Pennsylvania. While Chadds Ford was situated there, the southeastern area of Chester County had been Birmingham Township. After its separation from Chester County, the southwestern area in Delaware County was also named Birmingham Township. Due to ongoing confusion, in 1996, Birmingham Township, Delaware County became Chadds Ford Township.

Chadds Ford Village Sign.

Chadds Ford Village

During the 19th century, the area added general stores and numerous homes. A 1910 photograph shows a southwest view of Chadds Ford Village, looking toward the intersection of Route 1 and Route 100, where Gallagher’s Store (later known as Work’s Store) once stood. Septuagenarians may recall the old store, which was a thriving business. Sadly, the building was torn down in 1957.

Today some younger people might think that paved highways have always been with us, but Baltimore Pike was a dirt road until 1917. The route was transformed into a paved road with a steady and even surface suitable for automobiles. A photograph of the village circa 1920 shows the improved roadway, which allowed much easier transport both north and south. More progress came in 1938: Baltimore Pike was

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Chadds Ford, circa 1920. Photo courtesy of Chadds Ford Historical Society.

Brittingham’s Blacksmith Shop in 1095. Photo courtesy of Chadds Ford Historical Society.

Brittingham’s Garage in 1937. Photo courtesy of Chadds Ford Historical Society.

Chadds Ford Village

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widened to three lanes. Sometime in the 1950s, it was expanded again to four lanes to accommodate far heavier vehicle usage.

In the 1960s, Peter Ochmanowicz built the Sunoco gasoline station at the intersection, providing much needed fuel to those traveling through the region. The station was later purchased by Jim Leader and today is known as Leader’s Sunoco. It has been a fixture in the village for decades. Leader’s has an enviable position: it is the only one for miles either way (north or south) on Baltimore Pike and thus gets much business from passing motorists. The intersection saw something new in 1983—a traffic light. Old timers in the area may recall waiting at a stop sign for vehicles to pass before getting “the green light” at the crossroads of Baltimore Pike and Creek Road, today a very busy intersection.

For many people, the one spot they think of in Chadds Ford is Hank’s Place. The site where Hank’s now stands has had many names. At the turn of the 20th century, Brittingham’s blacksmith shop occupied the northwest corner of the intersection. A 1905 photograph shows the establishment, which was later reconstructed as a garage and gasoline station in the 1920s. Yet another business took its place in the 1940s, when Brittingham’s Garage

was torn down and a hot dog stand was built. When the owner passed away, his granddaughter attempted to run the establishment, but had little luck until a gentleman named Hank Shupe showed up. According to Recca, Hank had been living in an apartment above Gallagher’s Store. Where she failed, Shupe experienced success. The new spot, dubbed Hank’s Place, became hugely popular. The original building was replaced in 1978 with the structure most people know today. It was expanded and remodeled after new owners Peter and Voula Skiadas took over in 1991. They ran Hank’s very successfully for 26 years, adding dozens of beautiful flowering plants, giving the corner a garden-like atmosphere.

Not long after Hank’s Place was sold in 2017 to new owners Anthony and Katie Young, the success story started to falter. The COVID epidemic sharply curtailed business for it and most other restaurants. Another tragedy struck in September 2021: the remnants of Hurricane Ida ripped through the Brandywine Valley, rushing floodwaters into the intersection, which damaged Hank’s, Leader’s Sunoco and other establishments. The Youngs are waiting for a permit, hoping to rebuild, running a take-out food truck in the interim.

Over more than three centuries, the village of Chadds Ford has seen many changes. Still visited by thousands who flock to the Brandywine River Museum of Art, the nearby Christian Sanderson Museum and the Chadds Ford Historical Society, Chadds Ford is awaiting a “rebirth” which hopefully will propel it successfully through the 21st century.

Gene Pisasale is an historian, author and lecturer based in Kennett Square. His ten books focus on the Chester County/mid-Atlantic region. His latest book is Forgotten Founding Fathers: Pennsylvania and Delaware in the American Revolution. His books are available on his website at www.GenePisasale.com and on www. Amazon.com. Gene can be reached via e-mail at Gene@ GenePisasale.com.

Hank’s Place, 2015.

Shorty Steilmeir at a hot dog stand in the 1940s. Photo courtesy of Sanderson Museum.

Scott Ritterman, M.D.Nikos K. Pavlides, M.D.Linda P. D'Andrea, M.D.Glenn E. Lipton, M.D.James T. Guille, M.D.

Into the alchemy of transformation

By Richard L. Gaw Staff Writer

Speaking purely in the ethereal, the Divine Masculine projects its energy outward by virtue of action and assertion, personifying logic, emotional strength and a goal-driven work ethic. In contrast, the energy of the Divine Feminine is channeled inward by the forces of collaboration and communication in a manner that radiates divine love, creativity, intuition, emotionality and faith.

When these two dissimilar forces are merged – when they manifest their separate powers as one -- they create a delicate dance of joined energy that is virtually impenetrable.

This is the story of that delicate dance. This is the story of Michael Firsow, Denise Gindhart and how they came to create Alchemy, the Soul of Transformation in Chadds Ford.

Since 2016, Michael Firsow and Denise Gindhart have brought their life experiences and spiritual teachings into their work with individuals, groups and organizations

Photo by Richard L. Gaw

Denise Gindhart and Michael Firsow of Alchemy, The Soul of Transformation in Chadds Ford.

On the surface at least, Michael Firsow was the personification of success. After graduating from the University of Maryland in the late 1980s, he became a civil engineer and then embarked on a career in mortgage banking, and with it came all of the trappings: a nice car, a sweet condo, sharp suits and ties and responsibilities, and the easy luxury of expendable income. He was the master of his own universe.

“I was having a conversation with a friend of mine around that time, and I told him that I defined myself as the good friend who would drop everything to help someone,” Firsow said. “He then told me, ‘Michael. You’re not that kind of guy at all. You are all about you and your goals.’

“My friend was right. I was driven by a desire for more money and more success, but I had no peace. I was living my life on automatic pilot, and there was never an original or authentic thought in my head, ever.

“I looked inside and asked myself what would make me happy, and my inner voice began to ask me, ‘What do you want to be?’ For some reason, I heard the word ‘Love,’ but at the time, I didn’t know what that meant. At the time, love seemed untouchable to me, but it was what I aspired to feel.”

In the early stages of his journey of self reflection and definition, Firsow began to read books on spirituality and began to meditate regularly and in 1996, he read “The Autobiography of a Yogi,” by Paramahansa Yogananda. Considered to be the bible of meditation and yoga to many Westerners since its publication in 1946, the book served as a touchstone that changed the entire direction of Firsow’s life and led him toward the path of enlightenment and the study of Hinduism.

He spent 13 years as a Brahmachari – a Hindu Monk -- and many were spent in Varanasi, India, where he ran non-profit Humanitarian organizations for an International Ashram, a women’s empowerment center and shelter, a children’s school, and a hunger relief program.

While in Varanasi, Firsow was asked to serve as the key facilitator for the construction of a $2 million ashram, and chaired a commission that was made up of very influential stakeholders. While they provided the “structure” of the project, they did not possess the precious other side that Michael knew he needed: “Creation.”

“I spent four years trying to make this project work –through the organization, through a committee and through global fundraisers, but there was still a gap missing,” he said. “I didn’t know what that gap was and how it could be filled, but I realized that there was something here that

I couldn’t manifest. That project needed an energetic connection – a building of shared momentum -- that was more than just about raising money.”

Soon, the gap in the creation of the ashram was filled by Denise Gindhart – a 35-year veteran of international design and construction and a meditation practitioner herself –who was asked to join Firsow’s committee to build the ashram.

* * *

From early childhood, Denise Gindhart carried with her a spiritual gift that transcended mere religion.

“I always had a deep spiritual connection with God, but I always knew that there was something beyond what I was learning from my faith,” said Gindhart, who was raised in a Catholic family in Erie, Pa. “I loved the experience of it, but not the part where I was being told what to think. I was gifted during this time with being very intuitive and insightful and I had the ability to sense or see things that others couldn’t, so I began the journey of trying to understand what that gift was.”

Following her graduation from Penn State, Gindhart balanced the responsibilities of her entry into the corporate world with motherhood and her interest in meditation, and through a connection with the organization Firsow was connected with in India – they also shared the same spiritual teacher -- joined his committee remotely while still living in Philadelphia. She soon found out that the group was a consortium of different voices charged with a necessary yet burdensome agenda.

Alchemy hosts a wide variety of spiritual gatherings throughout the year.

“I offered the suggestion that all we needed to do was meditate on this in order to create the necessary vortex to get this project up and running,” she said. “That was the first touch point between Michael and me – the fact that there was someone else who feels the same way he did.”

In spite of the thousand of miles and several time zones that separated them, Firsow and Gindhart communicated virtually, and traded off guided meditations that helped to guide the project along. When they first met months later at a global conference in Boston, “our connection was like an explosion, a total opening up on so many levels,” Michael said. “Up to the time I met Denise, it was all about my individual enlightenment, but we were being moved into a collective community, working on a larger level than just our individual enlightenment.”

“When you bring the balance of the Divine Masculine and the Divine Feminine together, it becomes potent and creates the ability to transform,” Gindhart said. “It was an incredible love between us, but it was also an intention that asked, ‘How do we serve?’ Michael and I saw the potential of what we could do, so the question became, ‘How do we express this in the world to provide people with an access point?’

“I began to realize that I am on my path in an effort to hold as much light as I can, but also to serve in whatever capacity that means.”

Eventually, after several weeks of soul searching, Firsow left India and his life as a monk to join Gindhart in Philadelphia. In 2016, they created Alchemy, a Transformation of the Soul, and since 2018, they have transformed their 2.9-acre Chadds Ford property into a sanctuary for learning, spirituality and connection.

* * *

Throughout the year, Alchemy is teeming with a full calendar of both online and in-person meditation sessions; esoteric teachings; individual, community and group workshops and services dedicated to healing and finding profound peace; mindfulness training; and sacred healing

ceremonies and Sunday morning meditations. Visitors to Alchemy often take full advantage of a fully-furnished meditation center and a large, three-season porch for meetings and discussions – all of which are surrounded by stunning views of the Chadds Ford countryside.

In short, Alchemy is the Divine Masculine and the Divine Feminine at work. Michael’s online meditations – available on the Alchemy website – are a stunningly deep dive into the power of the individual to manifest his or her spirit and possibilities. Denise shares her study of Feng Shui, Geomancy and Energy Healing methods with organizations to provide a unique set of skills that support individuals, groups and organizations.

In addition, Alchemy provides classes and workshops that reach all sectors of the business community: Organizational Consciousness, Enlightened Leadership, Business Alchemy Coaching and Mindfulness, and Organizational Consciousness.

The work of Firsow and Gindhart has its roots in The Global Awareness Charitable Trust, a 501(c)3 non-profit organization they founded in 2020 that is committed to supporting humanity in living an enlightened awareness through creating and sponsoring events that promote unity, dissolving all racism, promoting cross-cultural communication, fostering community, and honoring all people in their unique expression.

While Firsow and Gindhart can speak first-hand about the challenge adults have to permit themselves to come in contact with their spiritual selves, allowing one’s self to do so is often the act of abandoning the self-invention of borders and false narratives – the paradigm of misdirected energy.

The unlocking of all of these misfirings can be achieved through meditation, they said.

“In order to begin your meditation, you have to start to understand yourself as an energetic being,” Firsow said. “That’s why meditation is important, because without it, you cannot step back from your thoughts and emotions and in effect, you remain at the effect of them. You see them as who you are.

Courtesy photos

Michael and Denise on a recent spiritual retreat in the Middle East.

“Once you step back, you will have an entirely new menu of choices, rather than reacting to how you’ve conditioned yourself to live. Through meditation, an emotional transformation starts to happen and you begin to feel the higher emotions, and you go more into the heart and it builds to the point where you transcend.”

“A meditation process can help you access peace,” Gindhart said. “It’s about playing. Spend time with a two year-old, because they are completely tuned in. They are not worried about money or what their business card is going to say. They are looking at the butterflies and the sunlight.

“This is not about doing one’s inner child work, but it really is about being able to play, to dance, to sing, to be free. This gives you access points to your own liberation.”

From the large picture windows and porches of their Chadds Ford home, Firsow and Gindhart see hundreds of visitors each year make the journey up their winding driveway to attend a workshop or class, and for every visitor, there is an individual reason for their wanting to be there.

“People want to feel connected with others who are free of judgment and provide unconditional love,” Gindhart said. “Some people who arrive here aren’t feeling well physically, emotionally and spiritually, which too often leads them to a crossroads of choosing between going to victimhood or saying, ‘I have got to dig deeper.’ “It is that friction that can be a catalyst to ignite a transformation, and a lot of people who come here are ready to step onto that. “Michael and I are here to facilitate you finding that for you.”

Michael conducts a sundown ceremony at Alchemy.

Alchemy, The Soul of Transformation is located at 641 Webb Road in Chadds Ford. To learn more, visit www. alchemyforsoul.com.

To contact Staff Writer Richard L. Gaw, email rgaw@chestercounty.com.

For David Cloud, the principal artisan and owner of Thornbury Wood, the art of making furniture is the symmetry of what happens when history and design intersect. It all comes together in…

The making of BEAUTIFUL THINGS

Photos by Jie Deng Text by Richard L. Gaw

When everything is going right – when the woodworker’s hands are working in perfect harmony with the tools and the wood is surrendering to the intended design of what it will eventually become – it is a quiet and rhythmic symphony. Throughout most of his life and for the past several years full time, David Cloud, the owner of Thornbury Wood in nearby Glen Mills, has been the maestro of his own symphony of wood. Working in collaboration with other skilled artisans, the functional elegance of Thornbury Wood is all on display in homes in Chadds Ford and throughout southeastern Pennsylvania: Farm tables, staircases, pergolas, countertops, built-in cabinetry and custom bars.

Thornbury Wood

In an age of technology that has revolutionized the art of making furniture and made it possible to churn out more products in a shorter amount of time, Cloud approaches his work piece-by piece. Ninety percent of his arsenal includes four hand-held tools – a chisel, a hand saw, a hand plane and a spoke shave.

“It is all about synchronization,” said Cloud, a veteran woodworking at The University of the Arts in Philadelphia about working with sharpened hand tools and knowing how to sharpen them. It is also about knowing the grain

structure and density of various grains of wood – graciously accepting that mahogany is different than walnut which is different from oak.

“Many woodworkers want to bully the wood and the tool line, but the tool dictates the work. Your only task should be to guide the tool along, and when you are in the right zone, you can feel that in your hands.”

There is one additional tool that never leaves Cloud’s think pad that combines his career in aerospace technology with his future plans as a craftsman.

Thornbury Wood

from

“If not sketching, I am always thinking of ways to do things better,” Cloud said. “I am at a turning point in my business where I still want people to have beautiful things, but one-of-a-kind pieces can be very expensive because there are so many hours involved. I am trying to use my technology background and all of its tools and methodologies to determine how to leverage ways to make beautiful things more cost effectively, while still keeping the hand-made appeal of what we do.”

Cloud refers to his craft as “the macro-merging of history and design.”

“I am study all of these periods of our history every day and their impact on design,” he said, “but at the end of the day, it is about combining the knowledge base in my head with the natural materials that are at my disposal, and somewhere in the middle of that intersection, emerges something beautiful.”

To learn more about David Cloud and Thornbury Wood, visit www. thornburywood.com.

Ford Life|

Ford People|

My grandmother’s

By Caroline Roosevelt Contributing Writer

I’m listening to Pavarotti as I write this essay, and Queen Elizabeth II has just died.

The solemn pageantry of the occasion of Her Majesty’s passing makes me think of my grandmother – the subject of this essay – and the British TV shows she watched, her saloncurled silver hair with shocks of yellowed white much like The Queen, her selectively British accent which was passed down to my father and down to my siblings and me, who still pronounce the word “rather” with a British pronunciation.

I am conjuring up vignettes long stuffed away in order to paint my grandmothers’ home again in my memory, but in order for me to best do so, I will need to take you inside it.

My grandmother Vera Story Roosevelt was born in Vevey, Switzerland and raised in Tuscany to English speaking expatriates, and it was in Italy where she imbued her American life with a little European flare. When I was a child, stepping into her home felt like an adventure to another country, and it was there that she endowed me with little bits of foreign culture, priming me for an interest in travel, art, music and a taste for the unknown.

This was the home my father grew up in, and it has been 22 years since I have crossed the transom into the mudroom of Round Hill Farm in

Chadds Ford and acclimated myself to the aroma of her cigarettes and whatever was cooking on the stove. It was a warm scent that hinted of onions, garlic and humidity that had not escaped the room. Being in that home, my clothes took on the scent of an antique, far different than the smell of laundry detergent and new house paint that accompanied my classmates. There, I smelled like craft, raw materials, wool, leather, silver polish, dogs and lavender.

* * *

My grandmother’s house was a unique serpentine stone home three stories in height that featured a mansard roof, and came with several accompanying eccentricities -- a tiny pool in the backyard that was useless and full of leaves; a tiny greenhouse off of the living room; a giant barn and separate chicken coop; and, as I always appreciated when I was little, a small tree by the mudroom which was perfect for perching.

In one of my memories, I am seven, and Nana leads me into the kitchen, holding my hand. “Caroline!” she exclaims when she sees me -- her voice graveled from years of smoking -- but still bright and lively. We enter the mudroom and awaken a little cat asleep on the dryer, and once in the kitchen, she pulls a chocolate cake out of the fridge for me and my sister, and it sits in the middle of the kitchen baiting me. Following closely behind, my

During the writer’s childhood, the Round Hill Farm in Chad just her grandmother’s home. It was a treasure island journe and discoveries that took her to another time

Vera Story Roosevelt, in her mid-thirties.

hadds Ford was more than rney of nooks and crannies and place s house

mother shakes her head at me – the unspoken language of ‘You can’t have the cake.” If there wasn’t a chocolate cake, there were always loose cookies from the cookie drawer. I also wasn’t allowed to have those, but my grandmother would sneak them to me anyway.

The kitchen was orange and yellow and lit by various small lamps tarnished by nicotine-stained lampshades and one overhead ceiling fan light, as well as a table that seemed perfect for conversation. Nana would always have someone over, chatting at the table, whether it was the garbage man, the cleaning lady, her friend Peter, or whoever was boarding in the attic at that moment. She’d gesticulate wildly into the air (Italian) with her cigarette in one hand while her other arm was bent over the back of the chair, opening herself up to her guests. I never knew my paternal grandfather and cannot imagine anyone hosting in this house other than Nana.

Then there was Licky, my grandmother’s three-legged poodle, who transcended pet status and is better described now as a life companion. In the kitchen, my grandmother would serve us dinner off of little china plates with crimson roses swirling on the surface, and it was there that Licky would beg for food, as he was accustomed to eating human food at human times off of the same china.

My grandmother was the only person who forced me to finish my food. “First rate plate!” she’d say. Although my stomach would growl as it stretched, I appreciated her frankness, as I didn’t have to live with it daily, but only had to endure it during visits. I found it entertaining, and also found her opinions (dressed as facts) to be amusing, such as, “Don’t tuck your hair behind your ears, they’ll stick out permanently!”

Let’s move on to the dining room. Rarely lit, it featured a long, mahogany dining table and a large writing desk on

the far end of the room where the mail collected. Along the walls yawned several tables and stands adorned with various old silver vessels, platters, and cutlery. I barely noticed them then, and barely notice my penchant for displaying random silver items in my house now, despite the far diminished surface space of my house. We never ate there, and it seemed the room’s only purpose was to serve as the space I ran through to get to the living room.

The den, another cozy nook in an otherwise grand house, featured a little television in the corner that came with rabbit ears and a manual dial, and was always tuned to PBS for my grandmother’s British comedies, a pre-recording of a Three Tenors performance or, in those days before cable, an old videotape of the Royal Ballet reenacting Beatrix Potter tales. Jeremy Fisher (a.k.a., Michael Coleman, a.k.a., the man they had dressed up as a frog for the occasion) would leap across the screen gracefully as my sister and I sat on the floor, crisscross from each other and entirely entranced.

Off of the living room, there was a tiny greenhouse that felt like a secret - and I would sneak into the warm, muggy room, the loose pebbles crunching under my feet, to take a whiff of the geranium scented air.

Along the other side of the living room sat a spinning wheel, with wool paused in the infrastructure that tumbled down into a basket. My grandmother would spin yarn from the sheep she raised in order to make sweaters and socks. Off of this side of the living room, there was a tiny coat closet, but if one moved the coats to the side, one would find a toilet that was only used in emergencies, which was a real shame for the coats.

Courtesy images

Round Hill Farm.

Ford Life|

My grandmother’s house

* *

My grandmother’s house was split by the stairway/hallway which separated formal from informal. The hallway, dark like the dining room, stretched along the entirety of the first floor, and a stairway, which wound up two stories by a mahogany rail, created a mood shift. An old grandfather clock ticked in the hall, and sat just to the left of two floor-to-ceiling double doors leading to a large reception room. This was used for parties, for Christmas, and the display of giant paintings by my great grandfather, Julian Story.

Of all of my relatives, I wanted to meet my grandfather the most. He was an artist who prior to marrying my grandmother had previously been wed to a famous opera singer, and wore a waxed mustache not unlike Salvador Dali. To me, he was famous because he painted the Lady with the Goldfish Bowl, an epic painting of a young woman with an Edwardian bun longingly staring into a gleaming goldfish bowl. It towered over the ivory sofa in this expansive room, and to this day, it’s one of my favorite paintings, and it was bittersweet to see it find a new home at the Telfair Museum in Atlanta when my grandmother died.

This room, which lay dormant for most of my visits, also included two large fireplaces, and furniture so antique that I imagined Victorian ladies in corsets fainting all over it. Those scenes from the beginning of “The Nutcracker,” where the children open their Christmas presents, and the adults languidly chat with each other in their evening wear could have happened there.

At the top of the second-floor stairs, a painting of the champion racehorse Macaroni, greets me. (My father’s side of the family was involved in equestrian culture, but the buck stopped with him as he didn’t like horses, and neither do I, so I’m grateful.)

Turn left at the top of the stairs to enter the master bedroom which takes up a third of the second floor. This was a real bedroom, and one large enough to host a small gathering. My grandmothers’ canopy bed was in the corner, and as I walked across the room, I could move from bed, to chaise lounge, to armoire, to dressing table with all of her silver brushes and combs and mirrors.

I remember the smell like of her Lancome night cream in my memory. In her youth, Nana was a Ponds Cold Cream model who graced the pages of Seventeen magazine, and I can see the vestiges of a well worn beauty routine as they spread across her vanity.

Off of the bedroom, my grandmother’s closet connected to one of the guest bedrooms, where one of my seven aunts and uncles claimed this as a childhood bedroom, but I

can’t remember which one. My parents used the room whenever we slept overand we slept over a lot in the last year of my grandmother’s life.

The hallway was lined with linen closets, and to the right, there was a large bathroom that smelled of lavender and included a soaking tub and bath tray full of body brushes and sponges. My mother, who had watched us hold chickens, play with a nest of baby mice, and roll around in the hay in the barn earlier that day, would quietly dump us in the bath.

“You shouldn’t bathe every night! It’ll take all of the natural oils off your skin!” Nana would say to our parents. We all wondered from time to time how my father lived past childhood.

Continue further down the hall, and you take a few steps down into another quadrant of the home, where there were two bedrooms, one with a bed on a frame so high I couldn’t climb onto it until late adolescence, that served as my father’s my room during his childhood. The other bedroom was simply referred to as “the little room with the orange carpet” that offered a tiny bed, was the size of a closet and served as my Aunt Jane’s room. These rooms shared a smaller bathroom, which we never used for bath time, but it occurred to me that we could have, and I wasn’t sure if this was an unspoken rule, or if there was a reason we didn’t use it.

Running back downstairs now, there was a basement off of the dining room and a secret back stairwell to the little bedroom with the orange carpet. The basement, where jars of preserves and pickles were preserved, also extended into the root cellar where a ghost resided, or at least that is what my grandmother told us – and with such conviction that I believed it to be true and refused to ever descend into its catacombs. I’ve never witnessed any ghosts, and I’m envious of those who have. Every now and then, I have a recurring dream where I am running between the main staircase and the hidden staircase in my grandmother’s house, checking on her and hiding from the ghosts of previous tenants or ancestors.

Vera Story Roosevelt on her wedding day.

My grandmother’s house

* *

Everything about Round Hill Farm smelled like archives, but existed in reality -- the people, the animals, the roaring conversations – all of it was nestled into the realm of memories. It was there that I watched the story of my grandmothers’ life settle into the things around her, pressed into paintings on the wall, illuminated by the ticks in the grandfather clock, and shaped by the bristles in her silver hairbrush.

The day my grandmother died -- gently in her sleep, in the canopy bed in the corner of the sprawling bedroom -- her spirit left little fingerprints all over the house on its way out. Her new poodle, Emily (Licky had passed away - and we knew that was the beginning of the end), was curled up at her feet. Her adult children were communing around her, chairs pulled up to the bed leaving marks on the pink carpet.

I still practice my French, like we did at her kitchen table, working to pronounce “vingt” just right as we had -- hurling the word back and forth until I perfected the accent. In college, I studied in Florence, and saw visions of my grandmother, smoking her cigarette, in every little “Nona” leaning out their window.

I still prefer to say “rather” the British way, even though I get teased for it.

I will miss visiting Round Hill Farm, and hearing the sound of my grandmother’s voice. I think of her often and keep her in my routine, lifting some of the personality from her home as seasoning for my own -- Lancome night cream on my dresser, a silver platter prominently displayed in my living room, and a painting of a lady with a mandolin which dominated the entire first floor of my home.

Soon after my grandmother passed, the farm was sold and beautifully renovated, but is virtually unrecognizable now. The barn is gone, as far as I can see from the road. The pool with the leaves has most likely been removed. I wonder if the owners kept any of the original floorboards, where my sister and I would look for secret cracks and compartments, convinced that there were hidden treasures. I wonder if there’s still a jar of preserves hiding in the rubble of the renovation somewhere, like a bottle of abandoned champagne among the wreckage of the Titanic.

Caroline Roosevelt lives in Kennett Square with her husband and their daughter.