The Main Line

The Philadelphia Main Line, known simply as the Main Line, is an informally delineated historical and social region of suburban Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Lying along the former Pennsylvania Railroad’s once prestigious Main Line, it runs northwest from downtown Philadelphia parallel to Lancaster Avenue (US Route 30).

The railroad first connected the Main Line towns in the 19th century. They became home to sprawling country estates belonging to Philadelphia’s wealthiest families, and over the decades became a bastion of “old money”. Today, the Main Line includes some of the wealthiest communities in the country, including Lower Merion Township, Radnor Township, Gladwyne, and Villanova.  Today, the railroad is Amtrak’s Keystone Corridor, along which SEPTA’s Paoli/Thorndale Line operates.

THE TOWNS OF THE MAIN LINE

Ardmore

Ardmore is a suburb on the west side of Philadelphia, within Lower Merion Township in Montgomery County and Haverford Township in Delaware County. Originally named "Athensville" in 1853, the community and its railroad station were renamed "Ardmore" in 1873 by the Pennsylvania Railroad, on whose Main Line, west out of Philadelphia, Ardmore sits at Milepost 8.5.

Bala Cynwyd

Bala Cynwyd lies in the Welsh Tract of Pennsylvania and was settled in the 1680s by Welsh Quakers, who named it after the town of Bala and the village of Cynwyd in Wales. A mixed residential community made up predominantly of single-family detached homes. 

Berwyn

At times, the village has been called Cocheltown, Reeseville, Glassley and Gaysville. The town received its present name in 1877 during the celebration of its centennial when one of the Welsh settlers proposed to name the village after the Berwyn Hills overlooking the Valley of the Dee River in Denbighshire, Wales.

Bryn Mawr/Rosemont

The neighborhood of "Beaupre" in Rosemont was once the 200-acre estate of the same name, built for Alexander Cassatt's son, Robert. The original mansion still stands and is part of Rosemont Presbyterian Village, and the original French iron gates flank entrances from Conestoga Road and South Ithan Avenue.

Devon

Devon is known for the Devon Horse Show, the oldest and largest outdoor multi-breed horse competition in the United States. The event is held in late May to early June and lasts ten days.
It was also home to the Valley Forge Music Fair from 1955 to 1996, hosting hundreds of famous musical and comedy acts.

Gladwyne

Like the rest of the region, Gladwyne, known until 1891 as "Merion Square", originally was settled by Welsh Quakers beginning in 1682. It was given its new name to lessen confusion with the many "Merions" in the area, including the town of Merion, Lower Merion Township, and Upper Merion Township, and in imitation of the Welsh names of adjoining towns, although its new name was meaningless in Welsh. 

Haverford

Haverford's name is derived from the name of the town of Haverfordwest in Wales, UK.
Today, Haverford is most notable for being the site of Haverford College and one of the United States' oldest country clubs, the Merion Cricket Club.

Havertown

Haverford Township was founded by Welsh Quakers in 1681 on land purchased from William Penn. The settlers named their new home after Haverfordwest, Wales, UK. The township is home to many historic sites. The Grange Estate, entertained the Revolutionary War figures George Washington and General Lafayette.

Malvern

The area was originally settled by Welsh immigrants in the 17th century who bought land from William Penn. Malvern is the site of the Paoli Massacre, which occurred September 20, 1777, during the American Revolutionary War under the command of General Anthony Wayne of nearby Easttown

Narberth

Narberth is located on a parcel of land originally deeded to Edward Rees (which later became “Prees” and eventually “Price”), who arrived from Wales in 1682. A portion of this original tract became the 100-acre (0.40 km2) farm of Edward R. Price, who founded Elm as a Quaker-friendly town in 1881.

Newtown Square

The first mention of the township was in 1684, when Thomas Norbury and John Humphrey were appointed collectors of the "Levie for the cort house and Prison for ye Township of Newtowne". Newtown Square was the name used for the townstead with the majority of early settlers being Welshmen.

Paoli

The town of Paoli grew around an inn kept in 1769 by Joshua Evans, whose father bought 500 acres from William Penn in 1719 near the current site of the Paoli Post Office. Evans named his inn after General Pasquale Paoli, a Corsican, after Paoli had received the 45th and final toast at a Saint Patrick's Day celebration.

Penn Valley

Lower Merion was settled in 1682 by Welsh Quakers and in 1713 became a township with about fifty residents. In 1930, the areas of the township known as "Fairview," "Crow's Hill," and "Bowler's Woods" were incorporated as "Penn Valley".

Radnor

The community of Radnor was founded in 1686 at the Radnor Friends Meetinghouse, which was located on Conestoga Road, a bypass of Lancaster Avenue connecting Devon and Bryn Mawr. During the Revolutionary War, the meetinghouse was used as an outpost for General George Washington's Continental Army

Villanova

A suburb of Philadelphia. It straddles Lower Merion Township in Montgomery County and Radnor Township in Delaware County. It is located at the center of the Philadelphia Main Line, a series of highly affluent Philadelphia suburbs located along the original east-west railroad tracks of the Pennsylvania Railroad.

Wayne/St. Davids/Strafford/Chesterbrook

Wayne's development began when a railroad stop called Cleaver's Landing was established. It was renamed Wayne Station after General Anthony Wayne. Wayne extends into both Tredyffrin Township in Chester County and Upper Merion Township in Montgomery County. 

Wynnewood

Wynnewood is a suburban unincorporated community, west of Philadelphia, that straddles Lower Merion Township, Montgomery County and Haverford Township, Delaware County, Pennsylvania, United States. It was named in 1691 for Dr. Thomas Wynne, William Penn's physician and the first Speaker of the Pennsylvania General Assembly. 

 

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