Introduction

There are 2 ways of searching for images in the collection, Quick Search and Advanced Search. Quick Search allows you to look for words or phrases in any part of the data associated with the images. If you want to search for records with two words or phrases enter the second word or phrase in the second box. Be aware that entering common words such as Paoli, Berwyn, or Railroads will result in a large number of images being retrieved. Make your query as specific as possible. For example only searching using the term Paoli will retrieve over 100 images. A focussed query of Paoli ( in the first box) and railroad (in the second box) will retrieve less than 30 images. If you are having problems finding an image contact Mike Bertram at mike@the2nomads.org.

Quick Search

Advanced Search

For more focussed searching use the ADVANCED SEARCH option.

Note

Many of the photographs in this database are not owned by the Tredyffrin Easttown Historical Society, rather they are privately owned. Occasionally permission to display photographs is withdrawn and the images are taken out of the database. This happened with a set of photographs of the Devon Horse Show.

Donations

Click for information on the donated collections in the database

Updates

August 2023: The depth of the Valley Forge image collection was enhanced by the addition of 30 postcard images.

June 2023: 18 Berwyn Fire Company photos from a 1969 booklet; 14 photos of Elda Farm, Chesterbrook; and 4 photos of Wilson family added.

April 2023: 46 photos of 18th century currency added.

March 2023: 30 photos of monuments in Valley Forge Park added.

July 2022: 20 images were added, mainly of local buildings. The photos came from the booklet, The Main Line Beautiful, 1928.

June 2022: 27 digital images of a 1949 fire company parade in Paoli donated by George Pyle jr. were added to the database.

February 2022: 30 digital images donated by Dede Perry were added to the database.

February 2022: 51 digital images donated by Robert Cohen were added to the database.

February 2022: nearly 600 images from the Suburban Times have been added to the database. Greg Pritchard found the photos, digitized them and donated relevant ones to TEHS.

February 2021: 130 images from the Garber, Burns, & Pyle families donated by Spencer Pyle have been added.

February 2021: 94 images from photos and postcards donated by the estate of Michael Morrison have been added.

December 2020: 61 architectural drawings from the Strafford Village development were added.

July 2020: 90 photographs from old Valley Forge Park Guides have been added

May 2020: 65 photographs by Lucy Sampson, c. 1917, have been added

October 2019: 10 photographs by Joel Fry, have been added

September 2019: 16 images of school children, mainly from around 1900, have been added

July 2019: 39 images related to Fritz Lumber have been added

April 2019: 40 images from Donna Waldeyer’s time as a local reporter in the 1970s have been added

January 2019: 197 images from Herb Fry’s postcard collection, have been added

August 2018: 112 images, recent donations to the Society, and 85 photos from the TE History Club trips collection, have been added

July 2018: 22 images of Glenhardie Farms by John Kelly have been added to the database.

November 2017: 14 miscellaneous images have been added to the database; mainly postcards of the Valley Forge area.

November 2016: 315 photographs from a report on historical resources impacted by the Turnpike widening have been added; 69 drawings of historical buildings have also been added.

September 2016: 359 photographs from Archives Book 2 and 125 from Book 3 have been added.

May 2016: 360 photographs from Archives Book 1 have been added.

March 2016: 133 photographs from Archives Book 13 have been added.

December 2015: A browsing interface was added to the database. 164 photographs from Archives Book 5 have been added. Some miscellaneous photographs have been added including a group of Easttown School #2 (Ogden School) images.

November 2015: Photographs were added which have been donated by Dave Mosbruger (Schools); Greg Russell (house on Homestead Road); Anna Sicalides (Potter Farm); James Sundman (Paoli Local); Penny Washington (see articles in latest Quarterly); Lancaster Avenue, Berwyn (1930 photos and 2015 retakes).

September 2015: 91 photographs from Archives Book 4 have been added.

June 2015: 6 historic photographs, digital copies donated by Lee Kirts, of Valley Forge village and its inhabitants have been added. 3 of the photographs are from 1878. 25 photos of the Continental Can Company and its employees; 62 photos of Newhall on Crestline Road; and 42 photos from George Moran.

May 2015: 47 photographs of springhouses and other secondary buildings by Meg Fruchter have been added. 50 photographs from the Paoli Post Office Scrapbook have been added.

April 2015: 80 photographs of mansions built in the local area in the late 19th and early 20th centuries have been added. An additional 107 photographs of the Devon Horse Show have also been added to the database. If you search on 'devon horse show' you now get over 300 hits!

February 2015: Another 133 images of the Devon Horse Show and Country Fair have been added. 7 of the images, donated by Greg Prichard, are of the 1899 show. The remainder cover the Show and Country Fair over the many years of their existence. These images were input by Heidi Sproat and Mike Bertram.

December 2014: 23 aerial images of the Devon Horse Show have been added. These consist of 2 groups, a set from the 1920s and 1930s taken by the Dallin Aerial Survey Company, and another set taken in 2009 by Roger Thorne from similar orientations as the older photographs. These images were input by Heidi Sproat and Mike Bertram.

October 2014: 21 images have been added from the Sharp family collection. A group of these photographs are of the Hawthorne estate near Leopard. Another group is of an unknown location (possibly near Kennett Square). These images were input by Heidi Sproat and Mike Bertram.

July 2014: 106 images from a presentation created by Jim Brazel on the Chester Valley Railroad have been added to the database. You can see all the images through the new section (above) on donations.

A new condensed report format is now used for those reports with a large number of images. The maximum number of images displayed in a report has been increased to 200.

June 2014: Images of photographs and postcards from the Herb and Barbara Fry collection have been added to the database. There are over 130 images in total, including 16 Julius Sachse images from the 1880s, and 73 Lucy Sampson images from the early 1900s.

May 2014: 58 photographs from Matthews Ford of Paoli have been added to the collection. If you enjoy vintage cars you will love these photos. Any help on identifying the models will be gratefully received. Use the search term Matthews Ford to see the photos.

Please note that this will always be a work in progress. Contact Mike Bertram at the2nomads@gmail.com with any corrections, questions, and/or comments.