The above postcard is from about 1910 and shows the Avondale Rd. in Nether Providence Twp. That is Crum Creek on the left.
Important
Please read!!
This will be my last post as History Blogger for the Delco Times. I'm not paid by the Times for my blog. In the last several years I have been taking microfilm from the Times office on Chester Rd. in Swarthmore and reading it at Swarthmore College. The Delco Times moved to Exton last year after merging with other newspapers. The current editor told me the microfilm is now in storage and I will not have access to it to read anymore. The Delco Times Newspaper is online to read but some of the quality is very poor and some years are missing. The reason I was going to Swarthmore was the microfilm reader at the Friends Library. They have the finest one available and it makes old poor-quality microfilm look brand-new and easy to copy. I asked the Delaware Co. Historical Society if I could borrow a roll of Delco Times microfilm from them for a day to continue my blog, but they said no also. I will still be writing Delco Times History and upcoming events etc. and posting as before on the DCHPN and other sites just not as often.
CHESTER
TIMES November 21, 1906
WON BRIDE FROM NOBLEMAN AND THEN FACED A DUEL
After a honeymoon of three months,
spent in traveling through Europe, in which challenges and duels played an
important part. Mr. and Mrs. Joseph A.
Gibbons of Wallingford, returned to this county yesterday and will reach their
new home at Forty-First Street and Baltimore Avenue, Philadelphia, this
afternoon.
Mrs. Gibbons, who is the daughter of Mr.
And Mrs. William M. Brown formerly of Wallingford, but now residing in Geneva,
Switzerland, eloped with M. Gibbons, her school day sweetheart, the day she was
to start for Paris, where her mother had made arrangements for her to marry a
French nobleman, Count Max Bloch. Determined to outwit her parents, and avoid
marrying the Count, Miss Brown went to Philadelphia, met her present husband,
and, journeying to St. James ‘Church, 38th and Chestnut Streets, they became
man and wife, while the rest of the Brown family waited at Broad Street
station, unaware of the ceremony. The
news of the marriage was not broken to the parents until the party, which had
been augmented by Mr. Gibbons, was far out to sea.
THE STORY OF LOVE – Mrs. Gibbons, who
made her debut in the early part of 1901, went to Europe immediately after and
spent two years traveling. While in
Paris Mrs. Brown promised her daughter’s hand to the French nobleman and set
the wedding day for early last September.
The French love affair developed
through an accident to the nobleman as he was leaving the Brown residence in
Paris one evening. Slipping on the step
he broke his leg and was carried back into the house. For six weeks he was nursed by the Brown
family, particularly Miss Brown, and each day his love grew stronger. Upon recovering from the accident he asked
Mrs. Brown for her daughter’s hand and all arrangements were made without the
knowledge of Miss Brown, who was not anxious to gain a title.
Returning to this country the
attentions of Mr. Gibbons proved more fascinating than the courtesies of the
Count and many afternoons spent on the tennis courts at Wallingford, where Mr.
Gibbons had been spurred on to victory time and again by the fair spectator,
added the climax to the school day love affair.
Fearing her own plans might be interrupted, Mrs. Brown decided to leave
America immediately, and start for Paris.
She became hysterical on the steamship
upon learning of the interruption in her plans as she had cabled the Count, who
was sojourning in Brazil at the time, to start for Paris immediately. The father of the bride was overjoyed,
however, when he learned of the hasty marriage of his daughter and complimented
his son-in-law on his courage.
Worse things were to follow,
however. Upon learning of the
interruption in his matrimonial affairs the Count immediately challenged Mr.
Gibbons to a duel, but lost his courage upon the challenge being accepted. Gibbons, having his choice of weapons as the
challenged party, chose revolvers at forty paces, being himself an expert
shot. The Count is dishonor and disgrace
vanished from Paris the day before the duel was to be fought.
HAD CABIN TO THEMSELVES – On November
10, Mr. and Mrs. Gibbons sailed from Paris on the French liner, LaSavole, being
the only first cabin passengers on the liner.
They had the whole first cabin and promenade deck to themselves, and the
captain’s dinner was given for their exclusive benefit. Although they were the only passengers, the
formality that distinguishes the various functions on the French liner was not
in the least abated. “It was just like a
private yacht,” declared Mrs. Gibbons upon arriving in New York yesterday.
In Paris they purchased a jaunting car
and hitched to it Mrs. Gibbons’ favorite horse, a full-blooded mare from
Arabia. The jaunting car is a commodious
vehicle, with plenty of room for baggage, and this, together with twenty-three
trunks, fourteen dogs, sixteen birds and Mrs. Gibbons’ enormous wardrobe of
fifty-seven suits of Parisian out they brought on LaSavole.
Mr.
Gibbons is a son of George W. Gibbons, the prominent Democratic leader of
Philadelphia, and a brother of Wallington Gibbons, who holds the championship
for tennis in Delaware County. He is a
prominent member of the Delaware County Club and has been a leader in the Main
Line social circles for the past few years.
DCHPN Monthly
*Chilling Reality: Chester County's Arctic Explorers Jan 24, 7:00 PM – 8:00 PM
Zoom- registration required
Join CCHC's Ellen Endslow to learn about the treacherous adventures of four Chester County residents and Arctic explorers, covering an 80 year time span. At times thrilling, terrifying, and inspirational, you will be sure to walk away from this program with a deeper knowledge of local history.
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*Lucia Allais: The Protective Image Jan 26, 12:00 PM Fisher Fine Arts Library, Kleinman Forum, 220 S 34th St, Philadelphia, PA 19104 During World War I and World War II, innumerable monuments across Europe were systematically protected behind elaborate structures of wood, sandbags, brick, sometimes even concrete, and then photographed in this armored state. This lecture explores the history of these protective works. | | |
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*Marian Anderson's Timeless Relevance Jan 26, 2:00 PM – 3:30 PM
Winsor Room- Radnor Memorial Library, 114 W Wayne Ave, Wayne, PA 19087
Join Emile “Joe” Henwood, author of the book Remembering a Great American Hero Marian Anderson: The Lady from Philadelphia in a celebration of the life of American singer and humanitarian Marian Anderson.
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*The Future at 40: Preservation Pennsylvania Honor Awards Jan 26, 4:00 PM – 5:30 PM
Zoom- registration required
Presentation of Pennsylvania's highest preservation honors with a keynote address on the future of historic preservation. The event will include the presentation of the commonwealth’s two most prestigious historic preservation awards.
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Heritage Commission Preservation Awards Call for Nominations The Heritage Commission traditionally sponsors the Annual Preservation Awards each May during National Preservation Month. Awards are bestowed to those who have contributed to retaining and maintaining our County’s heritage through a construction project, a special program or project, a planning effort, or a publication. Additional awards are granted to an individual and young person who has contributed significantly to our heritage. The Leedom B. Morrison Award recognizes a construction or special project in Chester City. The legacy award recognizes a long-term business in a historic resource. The Call for Nominations for 2022 Awards is active now. Submissions are due by 4 pm on February 25, 2022. Click here for more information and the registration form Rockdale Memorial Day Parade needs your help! The Rockdale Memorial Day Parade has been going on since 1881 but is in danger of going away due to Covid related financial difficulties, along with a decline in membership of Vets. A newly formed non-profit, Board driven, entity has offered to work with the VFW members and oversee all finances and logistics of the Rockdale Memorial Day Parade moving forward. Find out more and help donate here. They're also looking for a fife and drum corps to march, so if you have a contact, let Dave know (contact details on the GoFundMe page) America 250 PA Delco America250PADelco is an official partner to America250PA. Help celebrate over 250 years of American history in Delaware County! The America250PADelco committee is an official county partner to America250PA, and is looking for organizations and individuals to help commemorate the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence. Our mission is to engage all Delaware County residents in the commemoration of the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence by providing and supporting experiences, now through 2026, that ignite imaginations, elevate diverse stories, inspire service, and highlight the American founding and 250 years of American history through Delco’s unique lens. Follow us on social media: Facebook Twitter Instagram Website Email: info@america250padelco.org DCHPN Survey We would like to start having DCHPN meetings again, and would like to arrange one for early next year to discuss Heritage Tourism, America250 and other things. There is also an opportunity for a Website workshop from Penn State Brandywine. Please fill out this survey about both of these opportunities. Delco Heritage Tourism If you are with a Delaware County Historical Organization, you may have received a survey by the Heritage Tourism Task Force about Heritage Tourism in Delaware County. This survey is for all organizations that host events and/or have sites to visit so that Visit Delco, PA can help promote your group, including free marketing materials and photos. Please fill it out as soon as you can. https://arcg.is/1Knzim is the link to the survey. Fill out one survey per site and/or organization (so if you are responsible for two sites, fill it out twice). Thanks! Urge Your Senators to Support Improvements to the Historic Tax Credit! As a result of your efforts, provisions to improve the historic tax credit were included in the initial drafting of the infrastructure legislation under development in the House of Representatives. On September 15, the House Ways and Means Committee approved its piece of the Build Back Better legislation, which included all of the provisions of the Historic Tax Credit Growth and Opportunity Act (HTC-GO). Disagreement over the size of the infrastructure legislation, however, likely means it will be reduced and certain provisions will be cut. Take action now to let your senators know you support the historic tax credit provisions proposed by the House of Representatives and that you want to see them included in the Senate bill. With sustained advocacy, the preservation community will be well-positioned to take advantage of a very rare opportunity to substantially improve and modernize the federal historic tax credit. Urge your senators to include improvements to the historic tax credit as part of the Build Back Better legislation making its way through Congress. |
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