Orthodox Quaker Meetinghouse Viewscape

This parcel is located at the corner of East Watson and North Bellevue Avenues. This building was originally constructed in 1841 as a meetinghouse for the Orthodox Friends, which had split from the Society of Friends Meeting that is located on West Maple Avenue. When the Quakers reconciled, the property was sold in 1921 for use as a private residence.

In the summer of 1997, alarmed by a developer’s plan to surround the Meetinghouse with duplexes, thereby eradicating its grandiose viewscape from Bellevue Avenue, Langhorne Open Space once again sprang into action. Within a year, LOSI negotiated an agreement with the developer to purchase a conservation easement to the expansive front yard for the Borough of Langhorne. LOSI raised $25,000 which was combined with grant funding from the Bucks County Open Space Program to purchase the easement.

Today the historic stone structure remains a private home. Development is permanently prohibited on the large front lawn, and the viewscape fronting the meetinghouse is preserved for future generations.