Cultural & Historic Resources Committee

Sexton's House Project

The Sexton's House, circa 1830, is located across the street from the London Tract Meeting House (now the visitor's center for the Pennsylvania portion of the Preserve). It was built by the congregation as a home for the caretaker of the church and graveyard. The White Clay Watershed Association, in partnership with the Pennsylvania Bureau of Parks, is rehabilitating the Sexton's house for eventual use as an office for the Association and by the London Britain Historical Commission. The Bureau of Parks, which owns the building, has committed $20,000 to cover the cost of materials to be used in the project. The Association, under the leadership of Cyril Caster, is providing the labor.

Current Status of the Rehab Project:

Two dumpsters full of debris have been removed.
The cellar has been partially excavated, a sump pump installed, and a new concrete floor has been poured.
The basement walls have been plastered to help waterproof them.
The back door and window on the first floor, which had been switched at some point in the past, have been moved back to their original locations.
The back wall, which had cracked and bulged out 2.5" over the years (but was still plumb!), has been plastered with wire mesh and stucco to stabilize it.
A portion of the circa 1960 addition has been removed, although its foundation remains. The remainder of the addition is being used as a construction storage area, but will eventually be removed also.
All of the first floor joists have been sistered with new pressure treated joists. A support beam perpendicular to the joists has been installed in the basement. The first floor, which had sagged, has been leveled.
Some brickwork repair has been done under the front and rear eaves. Water from the leaky roof had washed out much of the lime mortar from this area.
A new cedar shake roof has been installed.

Much work remains to be done. Volunteers devote some (but not all) Saturday mornings to the project. If you would like to help out, call Tom Zawislak (610) 274-0482.

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