{"nrhp_refnum":"79002204","name":"Lunn's Tavern","other_names":["The Wilkins Property"],"category":"building","location":{"address":"PA 896","address_restricted":false,"city":"Strickersville","county":"Chester County","state":"PA","lat":39.73513647400006,"lon":-75.79343751799996,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1979-10-25","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Commerce","Politics/Government","Architecture"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A tavern building in Strickersville, Chester County, Pennsylvania, built around 1760 as a two-story stone house with an 1830 brick addition attached perpendicularly. It was licensed as a tavern in 1766 by Thomas Lunn.","why_significant":"The nomination argues the tavern's long commercial operation from the 1760s to about 1810 and its association with Thomas McKean, who wrote a notable letter as President of Delaware while stopping there on September 26, 1777. The letter links the names of three Delaware signers of the Declaration of Independence. The building is also presented as an example of late colonial tavern architecture in the region.","narrative":"Built around 1760 as a two-story stone house in Strickersville, Chester County, Lunn's Tavern grew into a tavern after Thomas Lunn bought the lot in November 1758 and received a license in 1766. Lunn had petitioned for it in 1764, noting that the township's business was conducted there. The tavern operated under the Lunn family, with a nephew, William Lunn, running it from 1793 to 1797, and Thomas Lunn resuming in 1798. His widow, Phoebe Lunn, continued until 1800, and other operators ran it until 1810. In 1830 a brick addition was attached perpendicular to the original section, and the building was later stuccoed. Its best-known event came on September 26, 1777, when Thomas McKean, then President of Delaware, stopped there and wrote a letter to George Read in Philadelphia. The letter describes Delaware's situation and McKean's resignation request, and it links three Delaware signers of the Declaration of Independence.","period_of_significance":"c. 1760-1810","architect_builder":null,"architectural_style":null,"criteria":["A","C"],"status_note":"Exterior described as stuccoed with a standing seam metal roof over original shingles; condition marked good in the form.","vacant_flag":null,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-haiku-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.1-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 17:11:29.694299-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_PA/79002204.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/79002204/8e33f13d6b-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/79002204/8e33f13d6b-1600.webp","licence":"Public domain","author":"Smallbones","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Lunns_Tavern_Chesco_PA.JPG\" rel=\"noopener\">Smallbones</a>, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Lunns_Tavern_Chesco_PA.JPG"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/71998299","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lunn%27s_Tavern","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q6704407"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/pennsylvania/chester-county/lunns-tavern-79002204/"}