Historic Structure Report: Deshler-Morris House, Independence National Historical Park: Architectural Data Section

Adlerstein, Michael; Snell, Peter

The Deshler-Morris House is an imposing historic structure which offers a broad and varied opportunity for interpretation. Its primary significance is that it was the residence of President George Washington for one summer and one fall, as well as the site of a number of Cabinet and staff meetings important to his Presidency. The physical structure demonstrates the evolutionary nature of how a prosperous German-American's home expanded and grew to meet the changing needs of its owners over the span of two centuries, a separate theme of significant interpretive value. Lastly, the house occupies a key location on Market Square in Germantown. Historically, this was a wealthy neighborhood with a long exciting past including a major Revolutionary War battle. After a period of deterioration, Germantown is experiencing a regenerative process. Discovering, assessing, and upgrading its historic structures has been an important stimulus for new growth. Laced with 18th century structure sand hidden gardens, Germantown has been designated a historic district. The immediate neighbor of the Deshler-Morris House is the Bringhurst House, also a NPS property. These two houses, together with the Ashmead House are the only 18th century structures facing Market Square. The houses are approximately seven miles from the visitor center of Independence Park. Therefore, visitor access , security , fire protection ,and general maintenance are management concerns of high priority. The park acquired the Bringhurst House with the intention of adaptively restoring it to serve as a caretaker's residence and as a visit or orientation center for the Deshler-Morris House. Orientation to the history of Germantown as opposed to the general orientation of the Independence National Historical Park main visitor center to 18th century Philadelphia, is essential to understand the role of the Deshler-Morris House in American history. As detailed in this report, I recommended the full restoration of the 1750s and 1772 sections of the house to their appearance in 1793-4 when George Washington resided there. The 1850s and the 1880s section of the house should have been fully restored to their original appearance, if funding permits. If not, they should have been repaired and stabilized to allow their use as kitchen or storage space. All sections of the structure should have been heated, air conditioned, and equipped with fire and intrusion detectors in the manner least obtrusive and damaging to historic fabric.

Historic Structure Report: Deshler-Morris House, Independence National Historical Park: Architectural Data Section

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