{"nrhp_refnum":"09000102","name":"Edgewood","other_names":["Sharpless, Charles, House"],"category":"building","location":{"address":"SE of jct of Co. Rds 15087 & 15221, Birmingham Township","address_restricted":false,"city":"West Chester","county":"Chester County","state":"PA","lat":39.90394173400006,"lon":-75.58909882699999,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1973-03-07","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Architecture","Religion","Military"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A nineteenth-century Gothic Victorian house called Edgewood, built of Serpentine stone from nearby quarries, near West Chester in Chester County, Pennsylvania. The form refers to it as the Sharpless House in its original description.","why_significant":"The nomination argues the house is one of the earliest and most ornate examples of Victorian architecture in the Brandywine area, and a complete break from the surrounding Quaker building traditions. It also stands on a site occupied by an American force under General Stirling during the Battle of Brandywine in 1777.","narrative":"Edgewood is a nineteenth-century house of Serpentine stone, quarried nearby, in Gothic Victorian style in Chester County, Pennsylvania. Its exact construction date is unknown, but a photograph held by the Chester County Historical Society, dated 1846, shows it surrounded by small trees. Deeds show Charles L. Sharpless owned it in 1852. Philadelphian Henry Pepper later made it his country seat, and in 1873 Mary D. Biddle, widow of Colonel Henry J. Biddle, bought it. She founded and largely funded the Dilworthtown Presbyterian Church. Under the Biddles the house was extensively remodelled, including the addition of a four-story tower. The house is regarded as one of the earliest and most ornate Victorian buildings in the Brandywine area, a sharp contrast with the Quaker traditions around it. Its site was occupied by American troops under General Stirling during the Battle of Brandywine on 11 September 1777.","period_of_significance":"19th Century","architect_builder":null,"architectural_style":"Gothic Victorian","criteria":["C"],"status_note":"Altered from its original appearance, with a four-story tower added, later remodelling, a removed parapet and elevator, and the kitchen moved to the first floor; the original site is retained.","vacant_flag":null,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-haiku-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.1-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 17:11:29.370308-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_PA/09000102.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/09000102/084f9de334-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/09000102/084f9de334-1600.webp","licence":"Public domain","author":"Smallbones","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Edgewood_Chester_County_PA.JPG\" rel=\"noopener\">Smallbones</a>, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Edgewood_Chester_County_PA.JPG"},"district":{"nrhp_refnum":"66000660","name":"Brandywine Battlefield","url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/districts/pennsylvania/brandywine-battlefield-66000660/"},"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/71994692","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edgewood_(Birmingham_Township,_Chester_County,_Pennsylvania)","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q5337869"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/pennsylvania/chester-county/edgewood-09000102/"}