1683, 1939
William Penn, R. Brognard Okie
Morrisville, Pennsylvania, USA

The founder of colonial Pennsylvania, William Penn was a prominent and respected Englishman and a leading figure in the Society of Friends (Quakers). Although he only lived there for two years, Pennsbury Manor was his dream come true. He began building it in 1683 as a home for himself and his first wife, but was soon forced to go to England and was not able to return for 15 years. During that time, he wrote detailed letters to his overseer explaining exactly how the manor should be built, and finally moved into Pennsbury with his second wife in 1699.

The manor was an expression of Penn's belief in the wholesomeness of country life. It was easily accessible by water, but not by road. The three-story, red brick mansion included spacious rooms, wide doorways, casement windows, and a great hall and great room (dining room) large enough to entertain many guests.

William Penn left for England in 1701, fully expecting to return, but politics, poverty, and old age ensured that he never saw Pennsbury Manor again. When Penn died in 1718, the burden of administering Pennsylvania fell upon his wife and overseer. The house fell into ruin and, bit by bit, the entire property was eventually sold off.

In 1932, nearly 10 acres of the original property was presented to the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. The Pennsylvania Historical Commission hired an archaeologist/anthropologist and a historical architect who, after painstaking research, rebuilt Pennsbury Manor on the original foundations. This reconstruction was possible thanks to archaeological evidence and William Penn's detailed letters of instruction to his overseers over the years. The William and Mary style house was finished in 1939, and the following year the Commonwealth purchased thirty adjacent acres for landscaping.