Historic farmhouse for rent in the middle of Stroud Preserve!
Media, Pa. – The farmhouses of Chester County, with their distinctive greenish serpentine stone, are part of the region’s charm and are a remnant of its agricultural past. Natural Lands Trust is offering the rare opportunity to live in one of these iconic structures—the circa 1740 farmhouse at Georgia Farm—located in the center of the 571-acre Stroud Preserve.
The stone farmhouse was built by Thomas Worth in 1740 on property inherited from his father, an English Quaker who had purchased 500 acres of “Penn’s Woods” in 1682 from William Penn himself. Worth situated his house in the center of the property facing south, overlooking a tributary of the Brandywine Creek and a view of the valley. Remarkably, the view of gently rolling hills and woodlands is much the same today as it was nearly 275 years ago, thanks to the permanent protection of a conservation easement on the land.
The original farmhouse was a modest, two-story, two-bay structure built of locally quarried serpentine stone with a slate roof. Additions constructed between 1835 and 1850 more than tripled the size of the house and included an eastern wing and a two-story summer kitchen with a beehive oven on the northern side of the house. In 1890, yet another addition gave the home its present L-shape, and a porch was added to the south-facing front.
Inside, the house maintains much of the original fine-quality woodwork. There are five bedrooms, 4.5 bathrooms, and five fireplaces. The kitchen and all bathrooms have been updated. The house is listed as a contributing structure of the Worth-Jefferis Rural Historic District on the National Register of Historic Places.
In 1990, the farmhouse, outbuildings, and 332-acres of land were bequeathed to Natural Lands Trust, establishing the Stroud Preserve. Since then, the preserve has grown in size through donations and purchases of neighboring properties. Stroud Preserve is one of 42 nature preserves owned and managed by Natural Lands Trust.
To inquire about the property, please contact Scott Wendle, vice president of preserve stewardship, at 610-353-5587 ext. 314 or swendle@natlands.org. The rent is $3,750 per month plus utilities. An open house is scheduled for Saturday, August 2, from 1:00-4:00 p.m.
Natural Lands Trust is the region’s foremost land conservation organization and is dedicated to protecting the forests, fields, streams, and wetlands that are essential to the sustainability of life in eastern Pennsylvania and southern New Jersey. Since its founding in 1953, Natural Lands Trust has preserved more than 100,000 acres, including 42 nature preserves totaling more than 22,000 acres. Today, millions of residents enjoy the healthy habitats, clean air and water, bountiful recreational opportunities, and scenic beauty provided by the lands the organization has preserved. For more information, visit www.natlands.org.