Friends of Smedley Park

KOHLS - Springfield/Morton Many thanks to Jason, Store Manager and Nora, Assistant Store Manager and their team for a Day of Service along the Springfield Trail!

The Beauty of Smedley in the Spring.

For younger mountain bikers.

SPRINGFIELD TRAILHEAD SIGN DEDICATION A dedication event will be held on Sunday, April, 25, 2021 at 11:00 am at Jane Lownes Park to dedicate the Springfield Trailhead Signs. The event is sponsored by Springfield Township Parks Board and the Friends of Smedley Park / Springfield Trail. All are invited to participate.

Our Bi-Monthly Park and Trail Maintenance event for tomorrow, January 9th 2021, has had to be cancelled. We look forward to the next scheduled event on Saturday, March 13, 2021

Delaware County Parks Signs - The county created design standards for entrance and informational signs in the various parks. Recent funding has allowed for the manufacture and installation of new signs. Smedley got its turn today. Many thanks to Beth Chapman at the Parks Department who managed the process.

Needle ice along the Mountain Laurel Trail! From wikipedia: Needle ice forms when the temperature of the soil is above 0 C (32 F) and the surface temperature... of the air is below 0 C (32 F). Liquid water underground rises to the surface by capillary action, and then freezes and contributes to a growing needle-like ice column. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Needle_ice See more

Shared from Dan.

Incredible Weather to Enjoy Smedley this Weekend!

CRUM CREEK ARCHAEOLOGY REPORT ON ARCHAEOLOGICAL DATA RECOVERY AT THE LEWIS PAPER MILL SITE In 1986 and 1987, John Milner Associates, Inc. (JMA) conducted data recovery investigations along sections of the Mid-County Expressway for the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT) and the Federal Highway Administration. The Mid-County Expressway (I-476), now popularly known as the Blue Route, was completed and opened to traffic in 1992. However, the artifact collectio...n and archaeological reports went uncompleted. In 2017, the West Chester office of Commonwealth Heritage Group, Inc., the successor firm of JMA, undertook the completion of the draft Blue Route reports and updating of the artifact catalogs and collections to current Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission (PHMC) curation standards. This report presents the purpose, background, methods, and results of the archaeological investigations at the Lewis Paper Mill Site, located in Nether Providence Township, Delaware County, Pennsylvania. The full report can be found at our Smedley Park website: https://www.smedleypark.org/lewis-paper-mill-archaeology

The Beavers https://www.facebook.com/1809428215987344/posts/2688493271414163/?d=n

AQUA and the Power of Nature - It is a little over two years now since AQUA cleared the trees for replacement water pipes through their right-of-way. As part of the clearing they had installed pipes in the Jane Lownes Run stream and covered it with soil in order to create an earthen bridge over the natural run of the stream. They stated that they needed to provide access for machinery to maintain the clearing going forward and that the only access point open to them was fro...m the west side necessitating their decision. FSP, along with the Delaware County Conservation District, met with Aqua in the summer of 2018 to express concern about plans to cover the stream thereby cutting off the natural flow of water and channeling it into the pipes. AQUA understood our concerns and their environmental officer provided assurance that their plan was a sound one. Fast forward the timeline - the past two years of storms and heavy rainfall have clogged up the pipes with silt multiple times creating flooding over the embankments which resulted in washing out the area. This created a dangerous situation both physically and environmentally. The hillside to the west had also slid down into the stream area. AQUA maintained stewardship over the area and, to their credit, cleaned up the messes as much as possible. FSP continued to be concerned and, working with Connor Carey & Karen Wilwol of the Conservation District, we asked if it was possible to get AQUA to remove the pipes and restore the natural run of the stream. Seeing that the force of the water during heavy rains would continue to create problems, AQUA decided to restore the original run. We are appreciative of AQUA taking ownership of the responsibility and their willingness to make things right. We are also thankful to Connor and Karen. Attached are pictures of the past two years to always remind us of the stubbornness and power of Mother Nature. (picture credits to Bob, George & James)

Media-Smedley Connector Trail - Final Public Meeting for the Feasibility Study. For those individuals interested, the final public meeting will be held on November 10, 2020 at 6:00 pm via Zoom. Here is the link: https://www.delcopa.gov//c/MediaSmedleyConnectorTrail.html

SMEDLEY PARK HISTORY - REDUX Every so often, it is worthwhile to bring back older posts for our new friends who may have not been followers for the original. Here are the beginnings of Smedley: Smedley Park was formed in 1937 and named for the first chairman of the Delaware County Park Board, Samuel L. Smedley. He had founded the Park Board just five years earlier in 1932. The park was at first called the Hemlocks and consisted of just 10.5 acres. It was expanded over the y...ears and now comprises 141 acres. The park property on the west side of Crum Creek was originally part of 380 acres granted to Thomas Minshall by William Penn in 1681. Smedley Park was formed from properties once belonging to two unrelated families who both had the surname Lewis. Mordecai Lewis and sons operated the Wallingford Mills, south of Baltimore Pike, which was later called Victoria Plush Mills. Their tract was called the Woodside Farm. Their house is now the Penn State Extension office within the park. The northern portion of what became Smedley Park was known as Pine Ridge. J. Howard Lewis owned this property. He was one of the organizers of the Rose Tree Hunt Club in 1859 and became its first president. Somewhere in or near the park grounds was the grave of his favorite hunting dog, Slasher, who died in 1865. J. Howard Lewis bought the Franklin Paper Mill in 1868. At its peak, it manufactured about 20 tons of paper each week as its five engines cranked away. J.Howard Lewis lived in a mansion on top of the steep ravine above Crum Creek and overlooking the paper mill. His estate was known as Castle Dangerous. The paper mill burned down twice, in 1882 and then again in 1883. Each time J. Howard Lewis rebuilt the mill, but the second time he built it of stone. The paper mill still stood in the park until the Blue Route was finished in 1991, and then it was demolished. The Franklin Paper Mill was originally owned and operated by John Pancoast from 1826 to 1833. The mills operated until 1960 but weren’t demolished until after the contractors for the Blue Route were finished using them for storage. The site of the mill has been converted to baseball fields on the Nether Providence side of Smedley Park. The Blue Route completion in 1991 split the park in half. In the mid-1990s, right-of-way funds were used to refurbish the park, including a restoration of the Lewis House for offices, and the building of an environmental center of redwood construction. Crum Creek passes under the trolley tracks of SEPTA’s 101 line as it flows through the park. This trolley travels between Media and 69th Street Station in Upper Darby.

MAP OF SPRINGFIELD in 1892 when Swarthmore and Morton were officially part of Springfield. Notice the number of mills and quarries along Crum Creek the remnants of which can be seen today. The map also incorrectly labels Darby Creek as Cobb’s Creek on the eastern side of the township.

Litter Cleanup Success- The Friends of Smedley had a successful day cleaning litter along the on-ramp to the Blue Route. We consider this part of our Smedley Park and like to keep it clean. Thank you to the volunteers.

Improvements on the Upper Carriage Trail - we have spoken many times of the washout challenges on the upper carriage trail from the Pine Ridge gully. Over the past theee years it has had to be repaired numerous times. Marc Manfre and the County Parks Department finalized another round of improvements for which we are thankful.

Frisbee Football on a Saturday morning in Smedley.

Autumn in Smedley A beautiful weekend to enjoy in Smedley. Autumn is in the air.