The Philadelphia Main Line, known simply as the Main Line, is an informally delineated historical and

social Social organisms, including human(s), live collectively in interacting populations. This interaction is considered social whether they are aware of it or not, and whether the exchange is voluntary or not. Etymology The word "social" derives fro ...

region of suburban

Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

, Pennsylvania. Lying along the former

Pennsylvania Railroad The Pennsylvania Railroad ( reporting mark PRR), legal name as the Pennsylvania Railroad Company, also known as the "Pennsy," was an American Class I railroad that was established in 1846 and headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. At its ...

's once prestigious Main Line, it runs northwest from Center City Philadelphia parallel to Philadelphia and Lancaster Turnpike, also known as U.S. Route 30. The railroad first connected the Main Line towns in the 19th century. They became home to sprawling country estates belonging to Philadelphia's wealthiest families, and over the decades became a bastion of "

old money Old money is a social class of the rich who have been able to maintain their wealth over multiple generations, in contrast with new money whose wealth has been acquired within its own generation. The term often refers to perceived members of th ...

". The Main Line includes some of the wealthiest communities in the country, including Gladwyne, Villanova, Radnor, Haverford, and Merion. Today, the railroad is

Amtrak The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, Trade name, doing business as Amtrak (; ), is the national Passenger train, passenger railroad company of the United States. It operates intercity rail service in 46 of the 48 contiguous United Stat ...

Keystone Corridor The Keystone Corridor is a 349-mile (562 km) railroad corridor between Philadelphia and Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, that consists of two rail lines: Amtrak and SEPTA's Philadelphia to Harrisburg Main Line, Philadelphia-to-Harrisburg main li ...

, along which

SEPTA SEPTA, the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority, is a regional public transportation authority that operates bus, rapid transit, commuter rail, light rail, and electric trolleybus services for nearly four million people througho ...

's Paoli/Thorndale Line operates.

History

17th and 18th centuries

The Main Line region was long part of

Lenapehoking Lenapehoking () is widely translated as ' homelands of the Lenape', which in the 16th and 17th centuries, ranged along the Eastern seaboard from western Connecticut to Delaware, and encompassed the territory adjacent to the Delaware and lower ...

, the homeland of the

matrilineal Matrilineality, at times called matriliny, is the tracing of kinship through the female line. It may also correlate with a social system in which people identify with their matriline, their mother's lineage, and which can involve the inheritan ...

Lenape The Lenape (, , ; ), also called the Lenni Lenape and Delaware people, are an Indigenous peoples of the Northeastern Woodlands, Indigenous people of the Northeastern Woodlands, who live in the United States and Canada. The Lenape's historica ...

Native Americans (the "true people", or "Delaware Indians"). Europeans arrived in the 1600s, after

William Penn William Penn ( – ) was an English writer, religious thinker, and influential Quakers, Quaker who founded the Province of Pennsylvania during the British colonization of the Americas, British colonial era. An advocate of democracy and religi ...

sold a tract of land, called the Welsh Tract, to a group of Welsh

Quakers Quakers are people who belong to the Religious Society of Friends, a historically Protestantism, Protestant Christian set of Christian denomination, denominations. Members refer to each other as Friends after in the Bible, and originally ...

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

in 1681. This accounts for the many Welsh place names in the area. However, what might be termed the "Celtification" of many Main Line place and street names occurred long after colonial times. So, for instance, as a marketing device to attract wealthy new residents, the area once awkwardly named Athensville became the more culturally glamorous Ardmore ( Ardmore is a place name found in Ireland and Scotland) in 1873.

19th century

The

built its main line during the early 19th century as part of the Main Line of Public Works that spanned Pennsylvania. Later in the century, the railroad, which owned much of the land surrounding the tracks, encouraged the development of this picturesque environment by building way stations along the portion of its track closest to Philadelphia. The benefits of what was touted as "healthy yet cultivated country living" attracted Philadelphia's social

elite In political and sociological theory, the elite (, from , to select or to sort out) are a small group of powerful or wealthy people who hold a disproportionate amount of wealth, privilege, political power, or skill in a group. Defined by the ...

, many of whom had one house in the city and another larger "country home" on the Main Line.

20th century

In the 20th century, many wealthy Philadelphia families moved to the Main Line suburbs. Part of the national trend of suburbanization, this drove rapid investment, prosperity, and growth that turned the area into greater Philadelphia's most affluent and fashionable region. Estates with sweeping lawns and towering maples, the débutante balls and the Merion Cricket Club, which drew crowds of 25,000 spectators to its matches in the early 1900s, were the setting for the 1940 Grant/ Hepburn/ Stewart motion picture '' The Philadelphia Story.'' The railroad placed stops about two minutes apart, starting with Overbrook. The surrounding communities became known by the railroad station names which started at Broad Street Station in Center City Philadelphia and went on to 32nd Street Station, replaced by

30th Street Station 30th Street Station, officially William H. Gray III 30th Street Station, is a major intermodal passenger transport, intermodal transit station in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. The station opened in 1933 as Pennsylvania Station– ...

in 1933, the 52nd Street Station (decommissioned), and then the Main Line stations: Overbrook, Merion, Narberth, Wynnewood, Ardmore, Haverford, Bryn Mawr, Rosemont, Villanova, Radnor, St. Davids, Wayne, Strafford,

Devon Devon ( ; historically also known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by the Bristol Channel to the north, Somerset and Dorset to the east, the English Channel to the south, and Cornwall to the west ...

, Berwyn, Daylesford, Paoli, and Malvern. At least five of these station buildings, along with the first Bryn Mawr Hotel, were designed by Wilson Brothers & Company. A branch line of the Main Line (currently known as SEPTA's Cynwyd Line) extended to the communities now known as Bala and Cynwyd (via Wynnefield Station in Philadelphia), then proceeded to the West Laurel Hill Cemetery, where there was once a station, and crossed back into Philadelphia over the

Schuylkill River The Schuylkill River ( , ) is a river in eastern Pennsylvania. It flows for U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map(). accessed April 1, 2011. from Pottsville, Pennsylvania, Pottsville ...

via the famous Manayunk Bridge. Broad Street Station was replaced with Suburban Station in 1930, and 30th Street Station replaced 32nd Street three years later. Suburban service now extends west of the Main Line to the communities of Exton, Whitford, Downingtown, and Thorndale. The railroad line then continued on to

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

, with major stations at Lancaster,

Harrisburg Harrisburg ( ; ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the Commonwealth (U.S. state), U.S. commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat, seat of Dauphin County, Pennsylvania, Dauphin County. With a population of 50, ...

and

Pittsburgh Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, United States, and its county seat. It is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, second-most populous city in Pennsylvania (after Philadelphia) and the List of Un ...

. The railroad, since taken over by

, is still in service, although its route is slightly different from the original. It also serves the Paoli/Thorndale Line of the

Regional Rail system.

Gilded Age

It was not only extremely wealthy people on the Main Line in the period 1880–1920. Wealthy households required large numbers of servants in order to maintain their lifestyle. Often these servants were Black migrants from the South and recent immigrants from Europe. For example, in the 1900 census, Tredyffrin Township was 13.5% Black; another 15% had been born in Europe. The two largest countries of origin were Italy and Ireland. The corresponding figures for Lower Merion Township were 6% Black and 15% born in Europe; almost 11% were from Ireland. Another dimension of this story is illustrated by the community of Mount Pleasant, in Tredyffrin Township just north of Wayne. This is a community that became predominantly Black in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. As of the 1920 census, most of the Black residents in the Mount Pleasant region, or their parents, had come from the

South South is one of the cardinal directions or compass points. The direction is the opposite of north and is perpendicular to both west and east. Etymology The word ''south'' comes from Old English ''sūþ'', from earlier Proto-Germanic ''*sunþa ...

. Many of the men in this neighborhood, along Henry Avenue and Mount Pleasant Avenue, were employed by the railroad, as quarry workers, or as chauffeurs and gardeners by private families. The occupations often given for women were cooks and laundresses. This remains a predominantly Black community to the present day.

21st century

Today, the Main Line is another name for the western suburbs of Philadelphia along Lancaster Avenue (U.S. Route 30) and the former main line of the Pennsylvania Railroad and extending from the city limits to, traditionally, Bryn Mawr and ultimately Paoli, an area of about . The upper- and upper middle-class enclave has historically been one of the bastions of "

" in the Northeast, along with places like Long Island's North Shore (AKA: "Gold Coast");

Westchester County, New York Westchester County is a County (United States), county located in the southeastern portion of the U.S. state of New York (state), New York, bordering the Long Island Sound and the Byram River to its east and the Hudson River on its west. The c ...

;

Middlesex County, Massachusetts Middlesex County is a county located in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 1,632,002, making it the most populous county in both Massachusetts and New England and the 22nd most populou ...

; and

Fairfield County, Connecticut Fairfield County is a County (United States), county in the southwestern corner of the U.S. state of Connecticut. It is the List of counties in Connecticut, most populous county in the state and was also its fastest-growing from 2010 to 2020. ...

. Neighborhoods along the Main Line include nineteenth and early twentieth-century railroad suburbs and post-war subdivisions, as well as a few surviving buildings from before the suburban development era. The area today is known primarily for several educational institutions as well as robust suburban life.

Geography

Core towns

The original Main Line towns are widely considered to follow the acronym "Old Maids Never Wed And Have Babies." From

, they are: * Overbrook * Merion * Narberth * Wynnewood * Ardmore * Haverford * Bryn Mawr These seven towns are characterized as one of the primary bastions of old money in Southeastern Pennsylvania. They are comparably more dense than other suburbs and have lively, walkable downtowns. All of these communities were established along Lancaster Avenue prior to the railroad's construction. As early as 1887, Bala and Cynwyd were also included in atlases of the Pennsylvania Railroad in Lower Merion Township and Montgomery County. By 1908, one of the first atlases to refer specifically to the "Main Line" as a socio-cultural entity includes: * Bala * Cynwyd The following towns are often grouped with the core Main Line: * Wayne * Paoli * Malvern

Infill communities

Beyond these nine communities, many others have grown in the 20th century, either in between the core towns or nearby them, including: * Gladwyne, immediately to the northeast of Bryn Mawr * Villanova and Radnor, between Bryn Mawr and Wayne * Strafford,

, and Berwyn, between Wayne and Paoli These communities are primarily residential and consist of larger lot sizes than in the nine core towns. All of them, except Gladwyne, are on the railroad and have their own station stop.

Demographics

There is no collective data for the Main Line, so all data is by ZIP Code. The median family income on the Main Line is $192,630. In comparison, the median family income for the state of Pennsylvania is $87,500. The following ZIP codes are those within the previously mentioned municipalities that make up the Main Line. All data are from the 2022 American Communities Survey.

Transportation

The Main Line is served by numerous modes of transportation among which are three commuter rail lines operated by

. Connecting the region directly with Center City Philadelphia are the Paoli/Thorndale Line which shares the former

four track

grade with Amtrak, and the Manayunk/Norristown Line which operates over the former

Reading Railroad The Reading Company ( ) was a Philadelphia-headquartered railroad that provided passenger and freight transport in eastern Pennsylvania and neighboring states from 1924 until its acquisition by Conrail in 1976. Commonly called the Reading Railr ...

Norristown grade. The light rail Norristown High Speed Line runs over the

Philadelphia and Western Railroad The Philadelphia and Western Railroad was a high-speed, third rail-equipped, commuter-hauling interurban electric railroad operating in the western suburbs of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It is now SEPTA, SEPTA's Norristown High Speed Line, thoug ...

line between 69th Street Transportation Center in Upper Darby and Norristown Transportation Center in Norristown. Amtrak's intercity '' Keystone Service'' (New York City to Harrisburg) and ''Pennsylvanian'' (New York City to Pittsburgh) also serve the region with stops at the jointly operated Amtrak/SEPTA stations at Ardmore and Paoli. The main thoroughfare through the Main Line is U.S. Route 30 which follows Lancaster Avenue (formerly the Philadelphia and Lancaster Turnpike) running east to west and serves as the backbone of the region by connecting a large majority of its towns and municipalities. Other highways serving the area are the Schuylkill Expressway ( I-76) which connects it to Philadelphia, and the Blue Route ( I-476) which runs north to south connecting the region with the Northeast Extension and the

Pennsylvania Turnpike The Pennsylvania Turnpike, sometimes shortened to Penna Turnpike or PA Turnpike, is a controlled-access toll road which is operated by the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission (PTC) in Pennsylvania. It runs for across the southern part of the st ...

to the north, and to Philadelphia International Airport and

I-95 Interstate 95 (I-95) is the main north–south Interstate Highway on the East Coast of the United States, running from U.S. Route 1 (US 1) in Miami, Florida, north to the Houlton–Woodstock Border Crossing between Maine and the ...

to the south. Along the northern edge of the Main Line, US 202 runs from I-76 in a southwesterly direction, crossing US 30 in Frazer. SEPTA also commissions suburban buses on Routes 105 and 106 to run from the 69th Street Transportation Center in Upper Darby to Rosemont (Route 105) and Paoli (Route 106). These buses run almost entirely along Lancaster Avenue. SEPTA also offers light rail service through the Norristown High Speed Line. The Norristown High Speed Line runs along the Main Line from Upper Darby to Ithan Avenue Station and Villanova Station before making a northward turn at the junction of Lancaster Avenue and the Blue Route toward Norristown.

Recreation and attractions

* The Appleford Estate: A 300-year-old estate located in Villanova. Today it is maintained as an arboretum and a bird sanctuary. Its gardens were designed by renowned landscape architect Thomas Warren Sears and include woods, meadows, formal gardens, brick walkways, rhododendron tracts, a stream, pond, and waterfall. Admission is free of charge and the house is available as a rental for special events. * The Barnes Arboretum in Merion. * Bryn Mawr Film Institute: A non-profit community theater founded in 2002 in the old Bryn Mawr Theater building, built in 1926, which is in the process of significant restoration. The institute offers showings of classic movies of the 20th century, opera, film education courses, and film discussions. * The Cynwyd Heritage Trail is a linear 'rail-to-trail' park which opened in 2011. The trail intersects with roads, bridges, neighborhoods, parks, railway stations, historic mills, and the West Laurel Hill and Westminster Cemeteries. The trail also connects to the pedestrian-only Manayunk Bridge on the

, which opened in 2015. * Chanticleer Garden: An estate and

botanical garden A botanical garden or botanic gardenThe terms ''botanic'' and ''botanical'' and ''garden'' or ''gardens'' are used more-or-less interchangeably, although the word ''botanic'' is generally reserved for the earlier, more traditional gardens. is ...

located in Wayne, which is listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

. * The Devon Horse Show: The oldest and largest multi-breed horse show in the U.S. * Harriton House: Located in Bryn Mawr, was built in 1704 by a Welsh Quaker named Rowland Ellis. He named the estate "Bryn Mawr", meaning "high hill" in Welsh, which is where the community gained its name. The house's best known occupant was Charles Thomson, the first and only secretary of the Continental Congress in Philadelphia.
Historic Waynesborough
Revolutionary war hero Anthony Wayne's historic estate. Alternatively known as Waynesborough, this is where Anthony Wayne was born. It is registered as a National Historic Landmark and is a historic house museum. * Jenkins Arboretum: A nonprofit botanical garden located in

. * King of Prussia Mall located in

King of Prussia The monarchs of Prussia were members of the House of Hohenzollern who were the hereditary rulers of the former German state of Prussia from its founding in 1525 as the Duchy of Prussia. The Duchy had evolved out of the Teutonic Order, a Roman C ...

is the third-largest mall in terms of retail space in America and is only a short distance away from the Main Line. *The Lower Merion Academy was built in 1812, and is a -story, five-bay,

stucco Stucco or render is a construction material made of aggregates, a binder, and water. Stucco is applied wet and hardens to a very dense solid. It is used as a decorative coating for walls and ceilings, exterior walls, and as a sculptural and ...

ed stone building with

cupola In architecture, a cupola () is a relatively small, usually dome-like structure on top of a building often crowning a larger roof or dome. Cupolas often serve as a roof lantern to admit light and air or as a lookout. The word derives, via Ital ...

in the Federal style. It was renovated in 1938, in the

Colonial Revival The Colonial Revival architectural style seeks to revive elements of American colonial architecture. The beginnings of the Colonial Revival style are often attributed to the Centennial Exhibition of 1876, which reawakened Americans to the arch ...

style. Located in Bala Cynwyd, it is still used for educational purposes and now also house
The Lower Merion Historical Society
It was added to the

in 2002.
The free education provided to local children in the Academy
predated Pennsylvania's state laws mandating free public schooling (1834–1836). *The Merion Friends Meeting House, in Merion Station, completed in 1715, is the third oldest Quaker Meeting House in the United States. It is still in active use by the Society of Friends. The property also includes stables and a cemetery, with an estimated 2,000 burials (many of which are unmarked in accordance with early Quaker custom). Construction began in 1695, and the meeting house exhibits distinctively Welsh architectural features, including a cross- or T-shape building plan, that distinguish it from later Quaker meeting houses. It was declared a

National Historic Landmark A National Historic Landmark (NHL) is a National Register of Historic Places property types, building, district, object, site, or structure that is officially recognized by the Federal government of the United States, United States government f ...

in 1999. * The Woodmont Estate

Sporting and social clubs

Private clubs played an important role in the development of the Main Line, offering social gathering places and facilities for cricket, golf, tennis, squash, and horseback riding to wealthy or socially connected families. Among them are: *

Aronimink Golf Club Aronimink Golf Club is a private country club in the eastern United States, located in Newtown Square, Pennsylvania, a suburb west of Philadelphia. Its championship layout is consistently rated among the nation's top golf courses. Aronimink is c ...

* Merion Cricket Club * Merion Golf Club: Ranked America's 7th best golf course in 2008. Hosted the U.S. Open in 2013. * Overbrook Golf Club * Philadelphia Country Club: One of the first 100 golf courses established in the United States. Hosted the 1939 U.S. Open. * Radnor Hunt: the oldest active foxhunting group in the United States
Waynesborough Country Club
Other recent social clubs have become an important part of the Main Line Community such as:
Philadelphia Main Line 20's and 30's Suburban Social Group
The largest young adult social club in the area founded in 2021.

Education

The school districts that serve the Main Line are Lower Merion School District in Montgomery County, Radnor Township School District and School District of Haverford Township in Delaware County, and Tredyffrin/Easttown School District and Great Valley School District in Chester County. The region has numerous nationally ranked public and private schools. Among them are: Public high schools * Great Valley High School * Conestoga High School (Tredyffrin/Easttown SD) * Harriton High School (Lower Merion SD) *

Lower Merion High School Lower Merion High School is a public high school in Ardmore, Pennsylvania, in the Main Line suburbs of Philadelphia. It is one of two high schools in the Lower Merion School District; the other one is Harriton High School. Lower Merion serves ...

* Radnor High School *

Haverford High School Haverford Senior High School is the public high school of Haverford Township, Pennsylvania, Haverford Township, Pennsylvania, United States, operated by the School District of Haverford Township. It is at 200 Mill Road in Havertown, Pennsylvania ...

Private schools * Academy of Notre Dame de Namur (girls) * Agnes Irwin School (girls) * The Baldwin School (girls) * Delaware Valley Friends School * Devon Preparatory School (boys) * Holy Child School at Rosemont (preschool – grade 8) * Malvern Preparatory School (boys) * Merion Mercy Academy (girls) *

Episcopal Academy The Episcopal Academy, founded in 1785, is a private, co-educational school for grades Pre-K through 12 based in Newtown Square, Pennsylvania. Prior to 2008, the main campus was located in Merion Station and the satellite campus was located in ...

* Friends' Central School *

The Haverford School The Haverford School is a Independent school, private, non-sectarian, all-boys college preparatory day school, junior kindergarten through grade twelve. Founded in 1884 as The Haverford College Grammar School, it is located in Haverford, Penns ...

(boys) *

The Mesivta High School ''The'' is a grammatical article in English, denoting nouns that are already or about to be mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The ...

(boys) * Jack M. Barrack Hebrew Academy (co-ed) * Kohelet Yeshiva High School (co-ed) * The Phelps School (boys) * Sacred Heart Academy Bryn Mawr (girls) * The Shipley School *

Valley Forge Military Academy Valley Forge Military Academy and College (VFMAC) is a private boarding school (grades 7–12) and military junior college in Wayne, Pennsylvania. It follows in the traditional Military academy, military school format with army traditions. T ...

* Villa Maria Academy (girls) * Woodlynde School (co-ed) Parochial schools *

Archbishop John Carroll High School Archbishop John Carroll High School is a four-year secondary school part of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Philadelphia, located in Radnor, Pennsylvania, on a 55-acre campus. The school currently enrolls approximately 685 students (2024). Hi ...

* SS Colman-John Neumann School (Pre-K–8) * St. Aloysius Academy (Boys, Pre-K–8) * St. Katharine of Siena School (Pre-K–8) * St. Margaret's School (Pre-K–8) * St. Monica's School (Pre-K–8) * St. Norbert's School (Pre-K–8) * St. Patrick's School (Pre-K–8)

Higher education

Bryn Mawr College Bryn Mawr College ( ; Welsh language, Welsh: ) is a Private college, private Women's colleges in the United States, women's Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania, United States. Founded as a ...

* Eastern University * Harcum College *

Haverford College Haverford College ( ) is a private university, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Haverford, Pennsylvania, United States. It was founded as a men's college in 1833 by members of the Religious Society of Fr ...

* Immaculata University * Penn State Great Valley School of Graduate Professional Studies *

Rosemont College Rosemont College is a private Catholic university in Rosemont, Pennsylvania, United States. Founded in 1921 as a women's college by the Sisters of the Holy Child Jesus, the undergraduate program opened to male students beginning in fall 2009. ...

Saint Joseph's University Saint Joseph's University (SJU or St. Joe's) is a Private university, private Jesuits, Jesuit university in Philadelphia, Lower Merion Township, Pennsylvania, and Lancaster, Pennsylvania. The university was founded by the Jesuits, Society of J ...

* St. Charles Borromeo Seminary * Valley Forge Military Academy and College *

Villanova University Villanova University is a Private university, private Catholic Church, Catholic research university in Villanova, Pennsylvania, United States. It was founded by the Order of Saint Augustine in 1842 and named after Thomas of Villanova, Saint Thom ...

In popular culture

Film

1940–1989

*'' The Philadelphia Story (1940)'' *'' Kitty Foyle (1940)'' *'' South Pacific (1958)'': Character "Lt. Joe Cable, USMC" is from Ardmore *'' The Young Philadelphians (1959)'' *'' The Happiest Millionaire (1967)'' *'' Obsession (1976)'' *'' Grease (1978)'': Loosely based on Radnor, PA *'' Taps (1981)'': Filmed at VFMA, featuring scenes in Wayne (at Farmers Market and North Wayne Avenue) *'' Trading Places (1983)'' *'' Mannequin (1987)''

1990–present

* ''Downtown (1990)'': Set in Bryn Mawr and filmed in Philadelphia *'' Philadelphia (1993):''

Tom Hanks Thomas Jeffrey Hanks (born July 9, 1956) is an American actor and filmmaker. Known for both his comedic and dramatic roles, he is one of the most popular and recognizable film stars worldwide, and is regarded as an American cultural icon. Ha ...

's character celebrates Thanksgiving at his family home in Lower Merion *'' To Wong Foo, Thanks for Everything! Julie Newmar (1995)'': The setting for

Patrick Swayze Patrick Wayne Swayze ( ; August 18, 1952 – September 14, 2009) was an American actor, singer, songwriter, and dancer. Known for his romantic, tough, and comedic roles in blockbusters and cult films, Swayze was nominated for three Golden Glob ...

's character's family home is Bala Cynwyd, with those scenes filmed in

Montclair, New Jersey Montclair is a Township (New Jersey), township in Essex County, New Jersey, Essex County in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Situated on the cliffs of the Watchung Mountains, Montclair is a commercial and cultural hub of North Jersey and a diverse ...

. *'' Wide Awake (1998):''

M. Night Shyamalan Manoj Nelliyattu M. Night Shyamalan ( ; born August 6, 1970) is an American filmmaker. His films often employ supernatural plots and twist endings. The cumulative gross of his films exceeds $3.3 billion globally. Shyamalan has received vario ...

movie, filmed at his alma mater, Waldron Mercy Academy *'' The Sixth Sense (1999)'': The wake scene was set in Bryn Mawr. *'' In Her Shoes (2005)'':

Toni Collette Toni Collette (born Collett; 1 November 1972) is an Australian actress, singer, and songwriter. Known for her work in television, blockbusters and independent films, her accolades include a Primetime Emmy Award and a Golden Globe Award, wit ...

's character attends a Main Line wedding and jokes about what she should wear. *'' Pride (2007)'' *'' Dare (2009)'' *'' Happy Tears (2009)'' *'' Tenure (2009)'' *'' The Art of the Steal (2009):'' Documentary chronicling the acquisition and emigration of the Barnes art collection from Merion to Philadelphia. *''

The Lovely Bones (film) ''The Lovely Bones'' is a 2009 supernatural drama film directed by Peter Jackson from a screenplay he co-wrote with Fran Walsh and Philippa Boyens. It is based on Alice Sebold's 2002 novel of the same name. The film stars Mark Wahlberg, Rac ...

'' *'' Foxcatcher (2014)'' * ''Split (2016)''

Literature

*'' A Stranger Is Watching'': The main character's murdered wife Nina grew up in a wealthy Philadelphia Main Line Family. In the book, it mentions that Nina went to Bryn Mawr College. *''Blackbird Sisters'', mystery novels by Nancy Martin *'' Bobos in Paradise'', by David Brooks *'' Official Preppy Handbook'', by Lisa Birnbach *The ''

Pretty Little Liars ''Pretty Little Liars'' is an American Mystery fiction, mystery teen drama television series created by I. Marlene King, which aired on Freeform (TV channel), Freeform from June 8, 2010 to June 27, 2017, based on the novel series Pretty Little L ...

'' series, by

Sara Shepard Sara Shepard (born April 8, 1977) is an American author. She is known for the bestselling ''Pretty Little Liars (book series), Pretty Little Liars'' and ''The Lying Game (book series), The Lying Game'' book series, both of which have been turne ...

, which uses the fictional Main Line suburb of Rosewood as its setting. *''Pterodactyls'', by Nicky Silver. The play is set in a Main Line house. *''

Song of Solomon The Song of Songs (), also called the Canticle of Canticles or the Song of Solomon, is a biblical poem, one of the five ("scrolls") in the ('writings'), the last section of the Tanakh. Unlike other books in the Hebrew Bible, it is erotic poe ...

'', by

Toni Morrison Chloe Anthony Wofford Morrison (born Chloe Ardelia Wofford; February 18, 1931 – August 5, 2019), known as Toni Morrison, was an American novelist and editor. Her first novel, ''The Bluest Eye'', was published in 1970. The critically accl ...

. The character First Corinthians is educated at Bryn Mawr College. *''

The Catcher in the Rye ''The Catcher in the Rye'' is the only novel by American author J. D. Salinger. It was partially published in serial form in 1945–46 before being novelized in 1951. Originally intended for adults, it is often read by adolescents for its theme ...

'', by J.D. Salinger. Valley Forge Military Academy (where Salinger attended for two years) is the basis for Pencey Prep. Additionally, the protagonist, Holden Caulfield, believes Jane Gallagher to have gone to Shipley, a Main Line private school. *'' The It Girl'', by Cecily von Ziegesar *'' The Lovely Bones'', by Alice Sebold *'' The Man of My Dreams'', by Curtis Sittenfeld *'' The Badge of Honor Series'', by W.E.B. Griffin. The main character, Matt Payne, is from Merion. *''

Americanah ''Americanah'' is the third novel by Nigerian writer Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie. It was published on May 14, 2013, by Alfred A. Knopf. It won the National Book Critics Circle Award for fiction in 2013. ''Americanah'' recounts the story of a youn ...

'', by

Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie (born Grace Ngozi Adichie; 15 September 1977) is a Nigerians, Nigerian writer of novels, short stories, poem, and children's books; she is also a book reviewer and literary critic. Her most famous works include ''Purple ...

. The main character gets assaulted by a tennis coach in Ardmore and subsequently works as a nanny on the Main Line (possibly Merion) *'' Luckiest Girl Alive'', by Jessica Knoll, which uses the Main Line and the fictional Bradley School, based on The Shipley School, as its setting *'' The Ginger Barnes Main Line Mysteries'', by Donna Huston Murray, take place in the Philadelphia Main Line. * ''That Summer'' by Jennifer Weiner

Television

*''

All My Children ''All My Children'' (often shortened to ''AMC'') is an American television soap opera that aired on American Broadcasting Company, ABC from January 5, 1970, to September 23, 2011, and on The Online Network (TOLN) from April 29 to September 2, 2 ...

,''

Soap opera A soap opera (also called a daytime drama or soap) is a genre of a long-running radio or television Serial (radio and television), serial, frequently characterized by melodrama, ensemble casts, and sentimentality. The term ''soap opera'' originat ...

which aired from 1970 to 2011, set in a fictional suburb of Philadelphia, named Pine Valley and modeled after the town of Rosemont. *''

Broad City ''Broad City'' is an American television sitcom created by and starring Ilana Glazer and Abbi Jacobson. It was developed from their independent web series of the same name, which was produced between 2009 and 2011. The sitcom, like the web serie ...

'': Co-creator and co-star Abbi Jacobson is from Wayne. *'' Made'' *'' My Super Sweet 16'' *''

One Life to Live ''One Life to Live'' (often abbreviated as ''OLTL'') is an American soap opera broadcast on the American Broadcasting Company, ABC television network for more than 43 years, from July 15, 1968, to January 13, 2012, and then on the internet as ...

'' *'' Thirtysomething'' *''

'', as with the book, set in fictional Rosewood based on the city Rosemont, Pennsylvania and modeled after the town of

Wayne, Pennsylvania Wayne is an unincorporated community centered in Delaware County, Pennsylvania, United States, on the Main Line, a series of highly affluent Philadelphia suburbs located along the railroad tracks of the Pennsylvania Railroad and one of the ...

. *''

How to Get Away with Murder ''How to Get Away with Murder'' is an American legal drama thriller television series that premiered on the American Broadcasting Company (ABC) on September 25, 2014, and concluded on May 14, 2020. The series was created by Peter Nowalk and pro ...

'' *''

Mad Men ''Mad Men'' is an American historical drama, period drama television series created by Matthew Weiner and produced by Lionsgate Television. It ran on cable network AMC (TV channel), AMC from July 19, 2007, to May 17, 2015, with seven seasons ...

'': Betty Draper,

Don Draper Donald Francis "Don" Draper, born Richard "Dick" Whitman, is a fictional character and the protagonist of the AMC television series ''Mad Men'' (2007–2015), portrayed by Jon Hamm. At the beginning of the series, Draper is the charismatic yet en ...

's wife in seasons

one 1 (one, unit, unity) is a number, numeral, and glyph. It is the first and smallest positive integer of the infinite sequence of natural numbers. This fundamental property has led to its unique uses in other fields, ranging from science to sp ...

through

three 3 (three) is a number, numeral and digit. It is the natural number following 2 and preceding 4, and is the smallest odd prime number and the only prime preceding a square number. It has religious and cultural significance in many societies ...

, is said to be from Lower Merion Township and to have attended Bryn Mawr.

Notable residents

Arts

* Tory Burch, fashion designer and New York City socialite * Albert C. Barnes, physician, chemist, businessman, art collector, writer, educator, and founder of the Barnes Foundation *

Walter Annenberg Walter Hubert Annenberg (March 13, 1908 – October 1, 2002) was an American businessman, investor, philanthropist, and diplomat. Annenberg owned and operated Triangle Publications, which included ownership of ''The Philadelphia Inquirer' ...

, newspaper and magazine publisher (

Triangle Publications Triangle Publications Inc. was an American media group based first in Philadelphia, and later in Radnor, Pennsylvania. It was a privately held corporation, with the majority of its stock owned by Walter Annenberg and his sisters. Its holdings ...

), ambassador, billionaire, philanthropist * Gloria Braggiotti Etting, author, photographer, hostess, and wife of artist Emlen Etting

Business

Ronald Perelman Ronald Owen Perelman (; born January 1, 1943) is an American banker, businessman, investor, and philanthropist. MacAndrews & Forbes Incorporated, his company, has invested in companies with interests in groceries, cigars, licorice, makeup, ca ...

, billionaire, controlling owner of

MacAndrews & Forbes MacAndrews & Forbes Incorporated is an American diversified holding company wholly owned by billionaire investor Ronald Perelman. Current investments include leading participants across a wide range of industries, from cosmetics and entertainme ...

and Revlon * J. Howard Pew, son of Joseph N. Pew, founder of

Sun Oil Company Sunoco LP is an American master limited partnership organized under Delaware state law and headquartered in Dallas, Texas. Dating back to 1886, the company has transformed from a vertically integrated energy company to a distributor of fuel ...

, and co-founder of

The Pew Charitable Trusts The Pew Charitable Trusts is an independent non-profit, non-governmental organization (NGO), founded in 1948. Pew's stated mission is to serve the public interest by "improving public policy, informing the public, and invigorating civic life". ...

* John B. Thayer, cricketer, Pennsylvania Railroad VP (lost on the ) * Edward T. Welburn, Vice President of Global Design,

General Motors General Motors Company (GM) is an American Multinational corporation, multinational Automotive industry, automotive manufacturing company headquartered in Detroit, Michigan, United States. The company is most known for owning and manufacturing f ...

* John C. Bogle, founder and CEO of the Vanguard Group *

Alexander Cassatt Alexander Johnston Cassatt (December 8, 1839 – December 28, 1906) was the seventh president of the Pennsylvania Railroad (PRR), serving from June 9, 1899, to December 28, 1906. Family and early life Alexander Cassatt was born on December 8, 1 ...

, former president of the

* Clement Acton Griscom, prominent 19th-century American shipping magnate, businessman, whose home, Dolobran in Haverford is noted for its architecture

Entertainment

David Boreanaz David Paul Boreanaz (; born May 16, 1969) is an American actor, television producer, and director known for playing the roles of vampire-turned-private investigator Angel (Buffy the Vampire Slayer), Angel on The WB/UPN supernatural fiction, supe ...

, actor *The family of Georg Ludwig von Trapp, the family depicted in ''

The Sound of Music ''The Sound of Music'' is a musical with music by Richard Rodgers, lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II, and a book by Howard Lindsay and Russel Crouse. It is based on the 1949 memoir of Maria von Trapp, '' The Story of the Trapp Family Singers''. ...

'' *

Chubby Checker Chubby Checker (born Ernest Evans; October 3, 1941) is an American singer and dancer. He is widely known for popularizing many dance styles, including the Twist, with his 1960 hit cover of Hank Ballard & The Midnighters' R&B song " The Twis ...

, musician * Gideon Glick, actor *

Patti LaBelle Patricia Louise Holte (born May 24, 1944), known professionally as Patti LaBelle, is an American Rhythm and blues, R&B singer and actress. She has been referred to as the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Godmother of Soul". LaBelle began ...

, musician *

Teddy Pendergrass Theodore DeReese Pendergrass (March 26, 1950 – January 13, 2010) was an American Soul music, soul and R&B singer and songwriter. He was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Pendergrass lived most of his life in the Philadelphia area, and initial ...

, musician *

, film director * Abbi Jacobson, co-star and co-creator of

Comedy Central Comedy Central is an American Cable television in the United States, cable television channel, channel owned by Paramount Global through its Paramount Media Networks, network division's Paramount Media Networks#MTV Entertainment Group, MTV Ente ...

television series ''

'' * Kate DiCamillo, children's book author * Anne Francine, actress and singer

Military and government

* Henry H. "Hap" Arnold, Commanding General of the U.S. Army Air Forces during World War II;

General of the Army Army general or General of the army is the highest ranked general officer in many countries that use the French Revolutionary System. Army general is normally the highest rank used in peacetime. In countries that adopt the general officer fou ...

General of the Air Force General of the Air Force (GAF) is a five-star general officer rank and is the highest possible rank in the United States Air Force. General of the Air Force ranks immediately above a general and is equivalent to General of the Army in the Unit ...

John Hickenlooper John Wright Hickenlooper Jr. ( ; born February 7, 1952) is an American politician, geologist, and businessman serving as the Seniority in the United States Senate, junior United States Senate, United States senator from Colorado since 2021. A mem ...

, governor of Colorado *

Alexander Haig Alexander Meigs Haig Jr. (; 2 December 192420 February 2010) was United States Secretary of State under President Ronald Reagan and White House chief of staff under Presidents Richard Nixon and Gerald Ford. Prior to and in between these cabine ...

, U.S. Secretary of State,

White House Chief of Staff The White House chief of staff is the head of the Executive Office of the President of the United States, a position in the federal government of the United States. The chief of staff is a Political appointments in the United States, politi ...

Supreme Allied Commander Europe The Supreme Allied Commander Europe (SACEUR) is the commander of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization's (NATO) Allied Command Operations (ACO) and head of ACO's headquarters, Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe (SHAPE). The commander is ...

Charles Thomson Charles Thomson (November 29, 1729 – August 16, 1824) was an Irish-born Founding Father of the United States and secretary of the Continental Congress (1774–1789) throughout its existence. As secretary, Thomson prepared the Journals of the ...

, secretary of the

Continental Congress The Continental Congress was a series of legislature, legislative bodies, with some executive function, for the Thirteen Colonies of British America, Great Britain in North America, and the newly declared United States before, during, and after ...

from 1774 to 1789 * Harris Wofford, former U.S. senator from Pennsylvania *

David Eisenhower Dwight David Eisenhower II (born March 31, 1948) is an American author, public policy fellow, lecturer at the University of Pennsylvania, and eponym of the U.S. presidential retreat Camp David. He is the grandson of President Dwight D. Eisenhowe ...

and Julie Nixon EisenhowerBennett, Kitty
"Where Are They Now? Julie and David Eisenhower"
''AARP Bulletin'', December 22, 2010. p. 1. * Oscar Goodman, mayor of Las Vegas, Nevada *

Anthony Wayne Anthony Wayne (January 1, 1745 – December 15, 1796) was an American soldier, officer, statesman, and a Founding Father of the United States. He adopted a military career at the outset of the American Revolutionary War, where his military expl ...

, US Army officer and statesman

Science

* Bill Folger, Founder, American Society for the Adoption of the Metric System *

Pete Conrad Charles "Pete" Conrad Jr. (June 2, 1930 – July 8, 1999) was an American NASA astronaut, aeronautical engineer, naval officer, aviator, and test pilot who commanded the Apollo 12 mission, on which he became the third person to walk on t ...

NASA The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA ) is an independent agencies of the United States government, independent agency of the federal government of the United States, US federal government responsible for the United States ...

astronaut An astronaut (from the Ancient Greek (), meaning 'star', and (), meaning 'sailor') is a person trained, equipped, and deployed by a List of human spaceflight programs, human spaceflight program to serve as a commander or crew member of a spa ...

; third man to walk on the Moon *

Andy Hertzfeld Andrew Jay Hertzfeld (born April 6, 1953) is an American software engineer who was a member of Apple Computer's original Macintosh development team during the 1980s. After buying an Apple II in January 1978, he went to work for Apple Computer fr ...

, computer scientist (

Apple An apple is a round, edible fruit produced by an apple tree (''Malus'' spp.). Fruit trees of the orchard or domestic apple (''Malus domestica''), the most widely grown in the genus, are agriculture, cultivated worldwide. The tree originated ...

) * Hilary Koprowski,

polio Poliomyelitis ( ), commonly shortened to polio, is an infectious disease caused by the poliovirus. Approximately 75% of cases are asymptomatic; mild symptoms which can occur include sore throat and fever; in a proportion of cases more severe ...

vaccine pioneer

Sports

* Mark Herzlich, NFL football player *

Kyle Eckel Kyle Richard Eckel (born December 30, 1981) is an American former professional football fullback who played in the National Football League (NFL). He was signed by the New England Patriots as an undrafted free agent in 2005 and won Super Bowl ...

, NFL football player *

Julius Erving Julius Winfield Erving II (born February 22, 1950), commonly known by the nickname Dr. J, is an American former professional basketball player. Erving helped legitimize the American Basketball Association (ABA), and he was the best-known player ...

Hall of Fame A hall, wall, or walk of fame is a list of individuals, achievements, or other entities, usually chosen by a group of electors, to mark their excellence or Wiktionary:fame, fame in their field. In some cases, these halls of fame consist of actu ...

NBA The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada). The NBA is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Ca ...

basketball player *

Kobe Bryant Kobe Bean Bryant ( ; August 23, 1978 – January 26, 2020) was an American professional basketball player. A shooting guard, he List of NBA players who have spent their entire career with one franchise, spent his entire 20-year career with t ...

, Hall of Fame NBA basketball player *

Richie Ashburn Don Richard Ashburn (March 19, 1927September 9, 1997), also known by the nicknames "Putt-Putt", "the Tilden Flash", and "Whitey" (due to his light-blond hair), was an American professional baseball player and television sports commentator. He pl ...

baseball player with the

Philadelphia Phillies The Philadelphia Phillies are an American professional baseball team based in Philadelphia. The Phillies compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East Division. Since 2004, the team's home stadium has ...

and Phillies broadcaster * Hobart "Hobey" Baker, amateur hockey and football player, member of the

Hockey Hall of Fame The Hockey Hall of Fame () is a museum and hall of fame located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Dedicated to the history of ice hockey, it holds exhibits about players, teams, National Hockey League (NHL) records, memorabilia and National Hockey Le ...

Kyle Korver Kyle Elliot Korver (born March 17, 1981) is an American professional basketball executive and former player who is the assistant general manager for the Atlanta Hawks of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for ...

, NBA basketball player *

Allen Iverson Allen Ezail Iverson ( ; born June 7, 1975) is an American former professional basketball player. Nicknamed "The Answer", he played 14 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as both a shooting guard and point guard. As an NBA rook ...

, Hall of Fame NBA basketball player * Jeffrey Lurie, owner of the

Philadelphia Eagles The Philadelphia Eagles are a professional American football team based in Philadelphia. The Eagles compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East division. The team plays its ...

football team * Emlen Tunnell, member of the

Pro Football Hall of Fame The Pro Football Hall of Fame is the hall of fame for professional football (gridiron), professional American football, located in Canton, Ohio. Opened on September 7, 1963, the Hall of Fame enshrines exceptional figures in the sport of profes ...

as a player, born in Bryn Mawr * John Spagnola, former NFL football player * Andy Reid, head coach of the NFL's Philadelphia Eagles and the Kansas City Chiefs * Edward M. Snider, chairman of

Comcast Spectacor Comcast Spectacor is an American sports and entertainment company and division of Comcast based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It owns the Philadelphia Flyers of the National Hockey League, the Philadelphia Wings of the National Lacrosse League ...

Philadelphia Flyers The Philadelphia Flyers are a professional ice hockey team based in Philadelphia. The Flyers compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference (NHL), Eastern Conference. The team play ...

* Jay Wright, head coach of the

Villanova Wildcats men's basketball The Villanova Wildcats men's basketball program represent Villanova University in men's college basketball and competes in the Big East Conference of NCAA Division I. Their first season was the 1920–21 season. Named the Wildcats, Villanova is a ...

team

References

Notes Further reading * * * {{authority control American upper class Geography of Philadelphia History of Philadelphia Regions of Pennsylvania Transportation in Philadelphia Upper class culture in Pennsylvania