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Part-time Content Writer Wanted
A picture (of a preserved Bucks County farm) is worth a thousand words, and we need someone to help us write them! Heritage Conservancy is in search of a part-time Content Writer.
To view the full job description, click
HERE
.
To apply, please submit a cover letter, resume, and salary requirements to Alexandra Dashkiwsky at adashkiwsky@heritageconservancy.org.
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Guided Tours of Aldie Mansion
85 Old Dublin Pike
Doylestown, PA 18901
Which local gentleman did William Mercer choose as the model for the
World War I Memorial that is currently located in the center of Doylestown?
Find out this and more during an
Aldie Mansion guided tour!
Contact Sandy at 215-345-7020 ext. 103
to schedule a tour. Click HERE for
more information.
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Bird Blitz at Bristol Marsh
Saturday, October 14th
6:00 AM to 8:00 PM
Bristol Marsh Nature Preserve
350 Basin Park
Bristol, PA 19007
Are you an avid birder? Do you enjoy learning about birds and beautiful natural areas? If so, then join Heritage Conservancy and Silver Lake Nature Center for a Bird Blitz at Bristol Marsh. Join us for a day surveying all the birds at Bristol Marsh, enjoy a guided hike or both!
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Bellwood Preserve Tree Planting
Thursday, October 19th
10:00 AM
Heritage Conservancy's Bellwood Preserve
Northampton Township, PA
(map and directions available)
Help us to plant 100 trees and shrubs at our 100-acre property in Northampton Township to improve the riparian buffer.
We'll build cages to help protect
the trees from local deer.
Click
HERE for more information,
or contact Shannon at sfredebaugh@heritageconservancy.org or 215-345-7020 ext. 104 to register.
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Croydon Woods Nature Preserve
Fall Cleanup
Saturday, November 4th
(Rain date November 11)
10:00 AM to Noon
Heritage Conservancy's
Croydon Woods Nature Preserve
Croydon, PA
As the summer comes to a close,
Croydon Woods Nature Preserve will need a good cleanup. Help us remove trash and get the area in great shape for everyone to enjoy during the autumn season.
Click HERE for more information, or contact Shannon at 215-345-7020 ext. 104 or sfredebaugh@heritageconservancy.org
to register.
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Christmas at Aldie
Sunday, December 3, 2017
5:00 PM to 8:00 PM
Aldie Mansion
85 Old Dublin Pike
Doylestown, PA 18901
Kick off the holiday season with us at our home in historic Aldie Mansion for a black tie optional fundraising event that includes cocktails, dinner and hors d'oeuvres prepared by Jeffrey A. Miller Catering!
Christmas at Aldie will also be the start of
our 60th year anniversary celebration!
Click HERE for more information or to purchase tickets.
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Registered!
A gem of a home recently landed on our Register of Historic Places. Located on Mallard Circle in Warminster, PA, Dennis and Catherine Avayou's house is a large, stone, Federal-style building with flanking stone wings. The main portion of the house is of the side hall design, having a wide stair hall that extends from the front to the back of the house. Dating back to the early 1800s, the home and its surrounding property were originally used for farming.
The farm once contained a stone barn, a grain house, a stone wagon house, a hog pen, and corncrib. Today, the remaining house, springhouse, and milk vault serve to represent a quintessential example of Federal-style architecture and give a nod toward Bucks County's agricultural history.
The two-story springhouse on the property is built into a bank directly in front of the kitchen. Springhouses were used to keep water clean, and they were also used as a source of refrigeration; the placement of this springhouse near the kitchen aligns with its purpose of providing fresh water and refrigeration.
The Avayous purchased this house in 1993. Like a scavenger hunt that helps to tell the story of their home, they have discovered interesting artifacts along the way. Pieces of pottery and stoneware, a horseshoe, and a two-cent piece dating back to 1864 are just some of the items left behind by previous tenants through the centuries.
Research in local archives also helps to piece together the history of their home. In a "For Sale" posting in an 1876 edition of The Bucks County Intelligencer, the property is described as being in "a prime state of cultivation, and contains about 18 acres of heavy oak, hickory, and chestnut timber. Also, a quantity of all kinds of fruit."
By investigating previous owners of the home, it shows that Wharton Sinkler, an affluent local, owned the Avayous' home from 1920 to 1963. Sinkler lived in the Wharton Sinkler Estate in Wyndmoor, Montgomery County, which he gifted to the University of Pennsylvania upon his death in 1967. UPenn used his estate as a conference, events, and wedding venue until 2002 when it was sold; the mansion now stands on 18 acres of preserved land.
Learning the history of an old house often adds to the property owners' appreciation of it, and it helps to provide a deeper understanding that they are stewards in protecting their historic home for future generations. Heritage Conservancy offers periodic programs on how to learn about the history of an old building. Keep an eye out for the next one in 2018.
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A community hike at Heritage Conservancy's Fuller/Pursell Preserves
On Friday, September 15th, we held a hike at our Fuller/Pursell Nature Preserves in Springfield Township to celebrate the recent acquisition of the Jerry Pursell Nature Preserve. Representatives from the Township and the Bucks County open space program joined the Conservancy and a number of neighbors to appreciate the land that the partnership worked so well together to protect.
Heritage Conservancy staff members were on-hand during the hike to answer questions about the properties and to
provide free guided tours to highlight the diversity of this community treasure.
An important feature of the Fuller Preserve is an American chestnut tree nursery. Before the 20th century, American chestnut trees dominated the eastern United States. Unfortunately, in the early 1900s, widespread blight reduced the American chestnut to near extinction. Heritage Conservancy partners with The American Chestnut Foundation in an effort to introduce disease-resistant hybrids. American and Chinese chestnut trees have been planted, crossed, and grown in the nursery atop the Fuller Preserve since 2003.
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This summer, 1,000 community members joined us at Concerts in the Garden, our five-part summer concert series held at Aldie Mansion. That is nearly double the amount in attendance at last year's concerts!
It was wonderful to see so many of you enjoying the historic legacy of the mansion while soaking up the local music emanating throughout the gardens. It truly is a magical experience on a nice summer evening.
A large focus throughout the series was engaging with our audience more and getting to know all of you better. Many of you were already members, and 30 of you became members while at a concert! We hope that you'll join us at another event throughout the year.
Our concert series continues to grow each year thanks to community support. Thank you to our Concerts in the Garden presenting sponsor The Provident Bank Foundation and our other sponsors who made this success possible.
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At a time of political change, one thing is clear and consistent: Americans strongly support saving the open spaces they love. Since 1958, Heritage Conservancy has been doing just that for our community. And, since 2008, it has been doing so as an accredited land trust. Heritage Conservancy is proud to welcome an additional 17 land trusts into the growing network of accredited land trusts across the nation.
Our accreditation affirms our organization's commitment to excellence, trust, and permanence in the community. As we embark on our 60th year anniversary in 2018, this confirmation means that much more.
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Any time of year is perfect for a wedding at historic
Aldie Mansion!
Visit our
for details.
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