Mecca of all things Chester County, the keystone and beating heart of our American story. It embodies all that our nation has been, and all it still can be.
Over the centuries a long and fascinating tale has unraveled on this land, and the story goes on forever.
Long before colonization, the Lenape flourished here. This land bore witness as the Lenape and their ways were uprooted by colonization and the principals of Quakerism, a dynamic shift no less staggering than when the crown was supplanted by the Declaration of Independence. This place got involved on the side of right as the scourge of human bondage ignited the struggle to make all men and women free. Spacklman-Davis Farm sat quietly and watched as agrarian life gave way to cities and industry, as the 20th Century invited the World to War not once but twice, and as hundreds of acres of farmland around it were gobbled up in search of the "perfect suburbia", Spackman-Davis Farm ducked out of sight, nestled behind ancient trees, in just the right stretch of a curve in the road where if you weren't looking for it, you wouldn't see it. This "place" has given all of itself in the name of progress, and somehow it has survived. Spackman-Davis Farm in Caln Township is a true heritage site, an irreplaceable treasure nearly lost, ready to be rediscovered.
To walk among its acres is to be at one with time. Along its long, winding entrance drive, if you listen closely the rhythmic clip-clop of horses still echo. Under the centuries old Willow Trees you can hear whispers of stories that predate our nation - tales of courage and freedom, spirit and faith, peace and joy.
Jane Edge Park never lived here, but will always be remembered as the 18th century woman who won the rights to "her" land. She and husband Thomas owned a great deal of property throughout Caln, most famously the original Ship Inn, Glen Isle, now the Orangery Restaurant. The Parks ran the Ship Inn until the time of Thomas' death. Prior to Jane's remarriage in [insert year] she managed to separate hundreds of acres to the west in Caln from her endowment as part of a "Prenup", unheard of in a time when the man was in charge of all affairs. By doing so she was able to will that land to her son {insert]. It's believed the original structure on the land was a log house he built. The Ship Inn went on to serve as a hospital for Colonial Soldiers wounded in the Battle of the Clouds, and later became the home and "underground rail station" of noted abolitionist Dr. Eschelman.
Of Isaac Spackman, the indentured servant who fled the Hessians and built a farm and family legacy that would stand the test of time and his Quaker values handed down to son Thomas that led to his abolitionist moment with neighbor Gravner Marsh in helping freeman Richard Gibbs escape the evil hands of slave hunters. Tales of Thomas' widow Hannah Spackman's steady leadership to supply the Union Army during our dark days of civil war, daughter Amanda's contributions to the early days of Public Education, her brother's involvement with the steel industry. All the women who refused to let the family farm fall out of their hands, and the couple who brought it back to the Spackmans under the guise of "Davis".
A A former slave was spirited away to freedom, a widow fought to keep the farm producing to help the Union Army defeat Confederates. When her sons either died or left for the city, her daughter becamein the farm sat quietly and watched and became our nation grew from , in a way, back again -
Meanwhile, in Uwchlan there resided former indentured servant Isaac Spackman and family. His debt completed, they found a new encumbrance when waves of Hessians soldiers began raiding their land. The band of Quakers sought safety in a more quiet area of Caln, and purchased "Spackman farm" from Mr. Park in the year [insert]. A prefect location for a Quaker, his new land bordered the Caln Friends Meetinghouse (1726), now listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Isaac built the oldest eastern section of his stone house in 1757 or 1767, though the stone marker at the top of the east side is inscribed with 1776, most probably an error during an early restoration project. The Large Stone & Frame Bank Barn came in 1804. A three story embankment building also dating to 1804 was used as a smokehouse, a spring house and 1-room schoolhouse. The home's western addition was constructed in 1809. If you look closely at the southern frontage of the farmhouse you can see the faint color disparity between the "old" and "new" sections. The Beehive oven still exists, though no one has baked a pie in it for too long. It's believed the oven was once enclosed by a shed to the north of the house, but an 1850's northern extension brought the house to the oven, and it is now indoors, beside a massive stone cooking hearth.
His son Thomas assisted well known abolitionist and Underground Railroad Conductor Gravner Marsh on at least one documented trip to freedom. Though Thomas did not live to see the end of that evil institution, the family thrived under his widow Hannah's steady hand during the Civil War by providing the Union Army with everything from leather, to wood, to meat, and corn. At Hannah's death, her erstwhile son Isaac had already left the farm for the city. Her daughter Amanda (one of a pair of twins Eileen and Amanda) would keep things going. Amanda was also one the the most well known early educators in Caln Township, and taught at school with her childhood friend Anna [insert]. Isaac died young, while Amanda lived to the age of 83. After she passed, the land was sold to investors who planned to rent it as a summer escape for wealthy city dwellers. That plan lasted until the stock market crash of 1929. Not long after, Pennrose Davis and his wife Mary purchased the farm. And this is one of those serendipitous happenings. It seems Pennrose had a great grandmother who was the sister of the original Isaac Spackman. With the stroke of a pen, the family farm was once again in the hands of a "Spackman". The property for 220 years. Owned by the Township’ the CTHC recognizes it as one of our most recognizable and important historic resources. It was also listed as an Historically Significant Property in the 2017 Comprehensive Plan.
