The Gilpin Homestead, also known as General Howe Headquarters, is a historic home which is located in Chadds Ford,

Delaware County, Pennsylvania Delaware County, colloquially referred to as Delco, is a county in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. With a population of 576,830 as of the 2020 census, it is the fifth-most populous county in Pennsylvania and the third=smallest in area. Del ...

. It was added to the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artist ...

in 1971.

History and architectural features

The original house was built in 1754, and consisted of a brick building with two basement rooms, two first-floor rooms, two bedrooms, and the attic. Sometime around 1811, a stone addition was built that is now the middle of the house, and a second stone addition was completed by 1859. ''Note:'' This includes A porch was added between 1870 and 1897, and the garage was attached in 1949. Also located on the property are a

carriage house A carriage house, also called a remise or coach house, is an outbuilding which was originally built to house horse-drawn carriages and the related tack. In Great Britain the farm building was called a cart shed. These typically were open ...

-barn, small barn,

spring house A spring house, or springhouse, is a small building, usually of a single room, constructed over a spring. While the original purpose of a springhouse was to keep the spring water clean by excluding fallen leaves, animals, etc., the enclosing str ...

, a

creamery A creamery is a place where milk and cream are processed and where butter and cheese is produced. Cream is separated from whole milk; pasteurization is done to the skimmed milk and cream separately. Whole milk for sale has had some cream ret ...

-cheese house, and the stone remains of a barn built in 1860. ''Note:'' This includes

William Howe, 5th Viscount Howe William Howe, 5th Viscount Howe, KB PC (10 August 172912 July 1814) was a British Army officer who rose to become Commander-in-Chief of British land forces in the Colonies during the American War of Independence. Howe was one of three bro ...

used the Gilpin house as his headquarters from late afternoon of September 11, until the morning of September 16, 1777, after the Battle of Brandywine. ''Note:'' This includes The 1754 section was added to an earlier house, probably built in the 1730s. This was eventually torn down to allow for the nineteenth century additions. There is not, and never was a staircase in the 1754 section, but visible on the plaster wall in the present stair hall, is the "witness" of the original stair. It was added to the

in 1971.

References

{{National Register of Historic Places in Pennsylvania Houses on the National Register of Historic Places in Pennsylvania Houses completed in 1754 Houses in Delaware County, Pennsylvania 1754 establishments in Pennsylvania National Register of Historic Places in Delaware County, Pennsylvania Chadds Ford Township, Delaware County, Pennsylvania

History and architectural features

See also

References