Upsala (mansion)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Upsala | |
|---|---|
| U.S. National Register of Historic Places | |
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| Location: | 6430 Germantown Avenue Germantown, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA |
| Coordinates: | Coordinates: |
| Area: | < 1 acre |
| Built/Founded: | 1798-1801 |
| Architectural style(s): | Federal |
| Added to NRHP: | January 13, 1972 |
| NRHP Reference#: | 72001174[1] |
| Governing body: | Cliveden, Inc. |
Upsala is a historic mansion in Germantown, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania that was the site of the American encampment during the Battle of Germantown.
Upsala was built in 1798 by John Johnson, III, the grandson of the builder of the nearby John Johnson House, who is said to have bought the land in 1766. It stands directly across Germantown Road from Cliveden, Benjamin Chew's mansion. Although he was raised as an English-speaking Quaker, Johnson was descended from one of Germantown's earliest settlers, Dirk Jansen. Johnson married Sally Wheeler in 1801 and together they had nine children at Upsala.
Dirck (or Dirick) Jansen owned the land before 1775. The older, back part of the house was built around 1745. John Johnson Sr. is said to have bought the land in 1766. There is speculation over whether father or son owned the house first. John Johnson III, inherited the property in 1797 and built the front section of the house.
It was the site of the encampment of the Continental Army at the Battle of Germantown in 1777.
[edit] References
- ^ National Register Information System. National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service (2007-01-23).
[edit] Further reading
- Marion, John Francis. Bicentennial City: Walking Tours of Historic Philadelphia. Princeton: The Pyne Press, 1974.
- Moss, Roger W. Historic Houses of Philadelphia: A Tour of the Region's Museum Homes. Philadelphia: Univ. of Pennsylvania Press, 1998.
- Tinkcom, Harry A. and Margaret B. and Grant Miles Simon, Historic Germantown: From the Founding to the Early Part of the Nineteenth Century. Philadelphia: The American Philosophical Soc., 1955.
[edit] External links
- Article at UShistory.org
- Listing at Philadelphia Architects and Buildings
- Photographs at the Historic American Buildings Survey
- Philadelphia's Historic Northwest Coalition, Historic Sites - link to Upsala museum tour information
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