The Osmond/Newhart House

This house, located on the south side of West Ferry Street in what once was called Coryell's Ferry, now New Hope, has witnessed 225 years of history. Previously, it was used as an active commercial store and has now reverted to solely being a residence. It can be seen on a map, created by Benjamin Parry himself in 1798, and was marked “the House of J. Osmond”.

The eastern portion of the Osmond/Newhart house located at 75-77 West Ferry Street served as a provisions store from 1866-1924, supplying families of the Lepanto Mill workers. This mill was one of multiple mills in New Hope at this time. The store closed shortly after the mill closed. The 2 ½ story sand plaster over fieldstone Osmond/Newhart house is now a two-home residence. 


West Ferry Street was known years ago as York Road, connecting Manhattan and Philadelphia.  Many travelers passed by this house on one of the oldest stagecoach routes on the East Coast. 


Multiple changes have been made to the structure over the years. However, two front doors and 6/6 glass paned windows are felt to be original. Exposed beams in the dining room include some made from the boards of disassembled canal barges. The remnants of two outhouses remain in the backyard. Made of brick, the outhouses were once sources of pride before indoor plumbing was installed following World War II. 

A second-floor addition over a porch at the eastern end of the building features an exterior wall painting that can easily be seen from the street. It was created by New Hope hair stylist Steven Giovanniello and is suggestive of “Manchester Valley” by New Hope folk artist, Joseph Pickett. The original by Pickett is now hung in the Museum of Modern Art in New York, thanks to a 1931 purchase by Abby Aldrich Rockefeller.

Former owners include well-known New Hope names such as Beaumont, Maris, Ely, Neely, and Magill. Since 1925 three generations of Newharts have now successively lived in this home. Grandparents of the current owner/occupant David Newhart, initially bought the house for $1550 as a home for their family. David’s grandfather, Ernest Newhart, was a stone mason and a tax collector, and a combined sign for those occupations hangs on the hallway wall. David grew up in the house and is the steward of several generations of unique New Hope keepsakes, including rarely seen copies of the New Hope Gazette from the 1950s, the first Bucks County Playhouse program from 1939, and a three-legged chair from the restaurant that preceded the space now occupied by Sneddon’s in Lambertville.

Many thanks to David Newhart for sharing his home and its history with us.

The Parry Mansion Museum Archives Team is a team of passionate and energetic volunteers who bring diverse, professional backgrounds to advance our archives with programs such as this monthly series “Beyond the Door,” and individual and community research request fulfillment and so much more. Many thanks to the Archives Team!

Beyond The Door

Buttonwood Street Home was Once a Stable across Bridge Street at the Old Hip-Roof House

January 17, 2025
Buttonwood Street in New Hope is just one block north on Chestnut Street from Bridge Street. This article will focus on one home on Buttonwood, but also remark on other interesting properties nearby. The subject home on Buttonwood was once a stable located on the Bridge Street property now known as the Wedgwood Inn Bed and Breakfast. The inn is clearly visible from Buttonwood Street. At a recent visit to the property on Buttonwood the current owner related that the stable was built in 1833, and at least partially supporting that assertion was the hand-hewn post and beam construction found under the walls during modern renovations. Such construction was most common from the mid-17th to the mid-19th centuries. As stated in our earlier "Beyond the Door" article about the Wedgwood Inn, the building now housing the inn was constructed in 1870 on the stone foundation of an earlier "old hip-roof" house built in 1720. The Buttonwood property owner says the stable was moved to its current location in the 1940's or 1950's and then was used by a blacksmith, and later an upholsterer. In 1958 it was converted to a home. If the stable dates to 1833, it must have been present during the time of both the original 1720 house as well as the still extant 1870 building now housing the Wedgwood Inn. 

Parry‘s General Provisions Store

October 30, 2024
Situated directly across Main Street from New Hope Historical Society’s Parry Mansion is one of the oldest surviving buildings in New Hope, now housing several commercial ventures including Farley’s Bookshop. The New Hope Historical Society (NHHS) archives include a copy of Margaret Bye Richie’s extensive and well-documented review of historic buildings in New Hope for her 1987 academic dissertation in the University of Pennsylvania Department of American Civilization. In it, she noted that the northern portion of the building was built circa 1748 and was represented on Benjamin Parry’s 1798 map as “No. 21”, while the southern portion was built circa 1830 near the time of the canal construction. Her 1980’s conversation with local architect Donald Hedges quoted him that in 1940 a sign stating “Parry’s General Store” still hung on the building. The Parry Store was likely the first provisions store in New Hope. 

Canal-side House Pre-dates the Canal

August 2, 2024
New Hope Historical Society archives volunteers recently met with Ernie Bowman at the historic home he shares with his wife Dee Dee at 116 New Street. This home is the south side of a stone double house that was built facing east over 200 years ago, before the construction of the Delaware Canal which now borders the home in its backyard. After the canal was built and New Street was constructed the front door was changed to the west side of the house facing New Street. Due to the slope of the land towards the canal, the original second floor became the first floor entering from New Street. The original first floor was transformed into an above-ground basement with an outdoor entrance facing the canal. Ernie Bowman believes prior to the canal being built by 1834, that the future towpath near the house may have been used as a carriage path. New Hope Historical Society archives files indicate the house was likely built by Joshua Vansant. When Ernie and Dee Dee purchased the home in 1982, much of the original woodwork inside the home was intact and to this day has never been significantly altered. Although the 1983 nomination form for the National Register of Historic Places for the “New Hope Village District” lists the house as being built in 1805, during renovations of the now basement level, a penny from 1817 was discovered under the floor, perhaps indicating that as the date of construction. 
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