Leedom, David, Farm
Why it's listed
Stone farmhouse in Newtown Township, Bucks County, built in stages from the late 18th century, with a one-room stone section, a three-storey stone mansion section datestoned 1802, and a later two-storey frame addition at the west end. Beside it stands a group of early 19th-century outbuildings, including a fieldstone saltbox carriage house, a spring house, a chicken house and a large vertical-board barn. The property is known as Pleasant Retreat and was once one of the showplaces of the Newtown area under the Twining and Leedom families. Its main importance lies in the American primitive painter Edward Hicks, who painted the farm in 1849; he had lived there for ten years as the foster son of Elizabeth and David Twining. The painting is now held by the Abby Aldrich Rockefeller Folk Art Collection. Apart from that association, the farmhouse is regarded as a good representative of the Bucks County stone farmhouse in both materials and form.
Significance in brief: The nomination argues the farm is significant chiefly because Edward Hicks painted it in 1849, one of four Newtown farmscapes by him. The house is also presented as an excellent, typical example of a Bucks County stone farmhouse, and the farm was a showplace and home of prosperous Twining and Leedom family farmers and community leaders.
Machine-generated summary. This summary was generated by a language model from the official nomination document and has not been reviewed line by line by an editor. It may contain errors. Check the source document before relying on any detail. Source: nomination document (PDF) · National Archives catalog entry. NRHP reference 76001609, listed January 1, 1976. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-haiku-5-5, prompt v1.1-2026-10-29, confidence medium).
Key facts
| Address | SW of Newtown off Richboro Rd., Newtown Township, Newtown |
|---|---|
| County | Bucks County |
| Listed | January 1, 1976 |
| Reference number | 76001609 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Areas of significance | Art, Architecture |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | The document states the structure still stands relatively unchanged from its original appearance; no current use is given. |
| Acreage | 1 |
| Coordinates | 40.22195, -74.95660 (NPS GIS) |
What listing means for this property
National Register listing is honorary for a privately owned home: it does not by itself restrict what an owner may do with their own money, and it does not require public access. Restrictions come from local landmark or historic-district ordinances, which are separate (how they differ).
Owner-occupied houses are not eligible for the 20% federal rehabilitation tax credit, which applies to income-producing buildings, but many states offer credits for homeowners. Listing also opens the door to preservation easements and to buying a plaque. Start with what listing means for homeowners, renovating a listed house and selling one.
General information, not legal or tax advice. Rules change; confirm with your State Historic Preservation Office or a qualified adviser.
Sources and further reading
- National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places database (snapshot May 2026), reference 76001609.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q5236458
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.