Greenwood Farm
Why it's listed
Greenwood Farm occupies a 3.64-acre tract in Tredyffrin Township, Chester County, where an 18th-century stone farmstead was reworked over the 19th and early 20th centuries. The main house began as a stone dwelling sometime before 1798 and was expanded in the early 1800s with a two-bay wing. Around 1915, the Heckscher family, who had owned the property since 1874, had the house remade in the Colonial Revival style, adding dormers, a pent roof and Corinthian columns, and laid out a swimming pool, tennis court and other grounds for leisure. The estate also includes an 18th-century stone bank barn bearing incised 1793 inscriptions, a 19th-century stone carriage house, and a mid-19th-century frame tenant house. The property is regarded as an outstanding example of the Colonial Revival reworking of Pennsylvania stone farmhouses, and it retains much of its early twentieth-century character.
Significance in brief: The nomination argues the farm is significant under Criterion C for architecture as an outstanding example of the Colonial Revival remodeling of Pennsylvania stone farmhouses, a pattern that developed in suburban areas in the early twentieth century. It retains almost all features of the ca. 1915 Colonial Revival work, and its barn, tenant house and parts of the main house retain nineteenth-century appearance. It is also described as a locally important illustration of farms converted into gentleman's estates.
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 96001196, listed October 24, 1996. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-haiku-5-5, prompt v1.1-2026-10-29, confidence medium).
Key facts
| Address | 888 West Valley Dr., Tredyffrin Township, Wayne |
|---|---|
| County | Chester County |
| Listed | October 24, 1996 |
| Reference number | 96001196 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Period of significance | ca. 1790-1940 |
| Architectural style | Federal; Colonial Revival |
| Criteria |
|
| Areas of significance | Architecture |
| Level of significance | State |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | The kitchen wing was updated ca. 1940 and the billiard hall and a service wing were demolished ca. 1940; the buildings are described as contributing and the property is in use as a dwelling. |
| Acreage | 3.6 |
| Coordinates | 40.06756, -75.42366 (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 96001196.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q5605020
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.