Join us on Wednesday, May 14th as Ken Samen shares with us about the history of Beaver College based on his recent publication Beaver College and Arcadia University.
The legacy of Arcadia University began in 1853, when Sylvania (Jones) Stevens and Juliet A. (Poundstone) Avery, along with several other students, left their family homes and accompanied Rev. Sheridan Baker to the Beaver Female Seminary in Beaver, Pennsylvania. After graduating in 1856, they were the first students to receive diplomas from the seminary. This book concentrates on the Glenside, Pennsylvania, campus up until the school’s name and status change to Arcadia University in 2001 and covers the many shifts in the school’s name and location.
Author Ken Samen will further delve in the early history and founding of the school by introducing William Harrison and his family, focusing on their significance to the Glenside property, and discuss the hiring of renowned architect Horace Trumbauer to design Grey Towers and other historic campus structures. Included will be an explanation of the acquisition of the Glenside property by Beaver College in 1962, describing the changes and adaptations made to the property to make it suitable for academic use. Mr. Samen will provide an overview of what life was like for a typical student on the Glenside campus after the transition in 1962, and will reflect on the lasting impact of these historical developments on the current identity of Arcadia University.
A brief Society business meeting will occur prior to the start of the lecture.
Lectures are free and open to the public both in-person in The John Barnes Room at Abington Friends Meeting and on Zoom. Login details will be posted on the website the day of the event or email the Society at
b2xkeW9ya3JvYWRoaXN0b3J5IHwgZ21haWwgISBjb20= to be added to the mailing list. Lectures are not recorded for later playback.
The lecture series is sponsored by a grant from the Jenkinstown Lyceum. For more information, please call the Old York Road Historical Society at 215-886-8590.
Also check out other Meetups in Jenkintown, Arts events in Jenkintown, Literary Art events in Jenkintown.
