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Hi Jim - I would like to get Elizabeth's address if you have it. I saw a copy of her book in the Swarthmore College Friends Library in Swarthmore, PA.
Also - Here is a two-page item that may be of interest to you. The Darby Borough Historical Preservation Society in Darby, PA, is trying to save The Bunting House. Details follow. For more info you may want to contact their president, Lindy Wardell, at LFWardell@AOL.com.
Thank you.
This early colonial home was built by Samuel Bunting, a Quaker who came to Darby in 1722, and a member of the largest landholding family in Colonial Darby. Built according to the Penn Plan the house is listed in the Pennsylvania Inventory of Historic Places and the Delaware County Historic Survey. According to Quaker history the house was started in 1699 and finished by 1724 with later additions. The middle part of the building is thought to be the original part of the house, the front facing Main Street a later addition. Research is still being done but as of today it is known that when completed it contained 14 rooms and 12 fireplaces.
Bunting purchased or inherited the house by his marriage to Martha Fearne, the granddaughter of John Blunston and Joshua Fearne who were founding families. Most of the 3000-acre property on which this house was built had been purchased from Michael and John Blunston who emigrated to Darby from England in 1682.
Now boarded up and neglected, stripped of its original grandeur, this house and lot was a part of the original Bunting property that encompasses the land now owned by BVM Church, the Darby Swim Club and the development known as Lansdowne Park and other areas of Darby that the Bunting family owned.
The Bunting family lived in this house until at least 1940 when the last family members moved out. Known for its hospitality, some older residents still remember the elegant garden parties held there. The family played a part in the Underground Railroad movement, as did other Quakers in Darby, and between the original part of the house and the front part was a stairwell that is said to have been used to hide slaves until they could be transported to a safe place. Buntings were early officials of the Borough and active participants in the social life, education and businesses of the town, including being original members of Fire Company #1 organized in 1775.
The Bunting house is a story of the Borough of Darby. Its additions indicate the way the early families planned and prospered. After the family left the house and succeeding owners inhabited it, it became the Bunting Friendship Freedom House. The NAACP purchased the house, which became a non-profit group begun by Ethel Smiley during the sixties and served the community again as a place for the community to come together. Recreation programs for the children and adults in the community were held at the house and a senior center was built next door. The Friendship Freedom House served the community during an era of turmoil and promoted good relationships and understanding between the black and white residents of the community. Their library contained books on black history and tutoring programs took place there concerning home economics, educational courses and dance classes. The work of the Friendship Freedom House benefited the community in many ways. The Bunting house has been a part of the community through every era of the Borough’s history.
When the Friendship Freedom House was discontinued the house fell prey to vandals and much of the interior has been damaged. It is the hope of the Darby Borough Historical Society that in conjunction with the renewal of their town that this property can be saved and once again serve Darby residents as a cultural center. There is room for a small amphitheater and ample off street parking. Preservation and restoration would transform this historic block of Main Street and bring awareness to the 318-year-old history of the Borough. Music, theater and other cultural activities could take place here. The Bunting House is one of the most important historical buildings in the Borough and Darby’s Main Street is one of the most important historic areas in Delaware County.
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