Idlewild Farm Complex
Why it's listed
Idlewild Farm is a group of eleven stone and frame buildings on 26 acres in Bryn Mawr, Lower Merion Township, Pennsylvania. The farmhouse grew from a fieldstone house of about 1700, built by Quaker settler Robert Lloyd, and a larger stone house added about 1740 by his son David. Later stages include a connecting section of about 1825, an east wing of about 1868, and a porch and breakfast room of 1910. A bank barn dating to about 1825 and a dairy barn of 1905 stand nearby. The property was significant as a country gentleman's farm. Under Frances Saunders, who bought it in 1897, it became a productive dairy and model gentleman's farm. The complex is regarded as rare because its buildings and layout still reflect about three centuries of farm use and the turn-of-the-century country estate.
Significance in brief: The nomination argues the complex is the last extant example in the township of a country gentleman's farm or country seat, a type created when Philadelphians converted old Welsh Tract farms into estates along the Main Line. It also cites the architecture as reflecting almost three hundred years of growth of a southeastern Pennsylvania farmstead, and the property as a rare survival only about ten miles from downtown Philadelphia.
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 84003505, listed January 20, 1984. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-haiku-5-5, prompt v1.1-2026-10-29, confidence medium).
Key facts
| Address | 617 Williamson Rd., Bryn Mawr |
|---|---|
| County | Montgomery County |
| Listed | January 20, 1984 |
| Reference number | 84003505 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Period of significance | 1700-1799, 1800-1899 |
| Areas of significance | Architecture, Agriculture |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Still an ongoing farm on a limited basis; no longer a dairy, and some buildings adapted for contemporary living. |
| Acreage | 26 |
| Coordinates | 40.03643, -75.29509 (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 84003505.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q5989181
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.