LOWER MERION — Later this month, the public will have the opportunity to tour one of the Main Line’s oldest buildings.
Merion Friends Meeting, the oldest Friends Meeting House in the Philadelphia region, will host a guided tour of its 1695 National Historic Landmark Meeting House and grounds on Saturday, April 27, beginning at 2 p.m. in the Merion Friends Activities Building, 615 Montgomery Ave.
Actress Pat Jordan will begin the program by sharing the story of Clara Barton, the founder of the American Red Cross and a nurse in the American Civil War. She was also known for her humanitarian work and civil rights advocacy at a time before women were granted the right to vote.
Following her monologue, “Clara” will join the group tours of the Meeting House, burial grounds and the horse sheds and return with the participants to the Activities Building for refreshments and socializing.
The two-hour program is free to attendees with suggested donations. Parking is available in the Activities Building lot at 615 Montgomery Avenue.
Construction of the Merion Friends Meeting House in Merion began as early as 1695 and was completed in 1715, making it the oldest Friends Meeting House in the Delaware Valley.
Its builders were among the first generation of Welsh Quaker converts and the first to settle in the Pennsylvania colony, with some of them arriving as early as 1682.
According to the state historical marker along Montgomery Avenue, William Penn is believed to have visited the site.
The Quaker Meeting of the Religious Society of Friends Meeting is described as a supportive community for its members and a spiritual resource for the community.
Meeting for Worship is held every Sunday from 11 a.m. to noon. For more information about Merion Friends Meeting, the history of Quakerism, the Know They Neighbor Speaker Series and other special events, visit www.merionfriends.org.
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