When driving into this historic village, this is the first historic home to be seen. It is in back of the World War memorial, to the rear of the town green. Built as a home by a saddler, Allen Lippincott, around 1808, with additions over the following 15 or so years. The house has a fieldstone exterior, both original structure and later additions, with a wood frame and plaster interior.
The front door and the mantles and staircase of the house are notable for especially fine carved details. Many narratives describe the front door as the nicest in the county. Although built for and originally used as a home, with use of an office addition, it was used as an office by Dr. Henry Lippincott, a son of Allen Lippincott. [The Lippincotts were also a prominent family in the West Jersey area (Marlton, Cherry Hill, Moorestown, Mt. Laurel) during the same era.] The filing of plans to raze this structure and possibly replace it with a service station sparked the founding of Historic Fallsington, Inc. in 1953, which owns it currently.
About the Historic District
Fallsington is an authentic 300-year-old quaker settlement. This village pre-dates other Friends historic districts by at least 50 years. Little known, and underrepresented in history books, it is one of the best existing examples of authentic pre-colonial life in America. There is a decent history of this village found in a nice book called The Buried Past: an Archaeological History of Philadelphia By John L. Cotter, Daniel G. Roberts, Michael Parrington. It can be found on Google Books which can be found SOURCE
HERE (page 363-367). One last interesting note, looking at Google Earth, it is clear to see this village, via Main Street, was at one time connected to the Lincoln Highway.
District Nomination Form Narrative
In 1971, the Village of Fallsington was placed on the National Register of Historic Places. This nationally-registered historic district takes its name from nearby "Falls of the Delaware." Immediately surrounding the historic district is a neighborhood of residences of various ages, circa 1700's to 1990's. This old stone home is one of thirty structures which make up the historic district, and certainly one of the oldest. It is one of the five most important for the district and always receives the most description based on its importance. The following
expanded text is excerpted from the original district nomination form submitted to the Department of Interior in 1971.
Burges-Lippincott House, ca. 1768. Bought by Historic Fallsington, Inc., in 1953, when the organization was formed "in a crisis" to save the lovely old house from possible ruin. For many years it served as its headquarters. Its commanding position at the end of the square, and its beautiful woodwork make it one of the focal points of the village. Its name derives from its first owner, Daniel Burges, a descendant of Samuel Burges, who gave the Meeting House land across the square; and Dr. Henry Lippincott, a much-loved family doctor, who added the southern wing for his office in the mid-nineteenth century. An 1858 map contains a sketch of the house, considered important even then.
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Address
139 Yardley Ave
Levittown, PA 19054-1118
(215) 295-4449