Historic Quaker Houses of Philadelphia

Houses built by Quaker Carpenter Joseph Wetherill
in Society Hill
1767 to 1811. A Sample:

Above: 246 Delancey Street. Built ca. 1767 by Joseph Wetherill, house carpenter. Image source: Lee J. Stoltzfus.

Above: Description of 246 Delancey Street by Philadelphia Register of Historic Places.

Joseph Wetherill (1740 - 1820) was a Quaker builder and lumber merchant in Philadelphia. In 1764 he married Anna Canby of Solebury Township, Bucks County, in the Philadelphia Monthly Meeting. He became president of the Friendship Carpenters' Company in 1774.
During the Revolutionary War, Wetherill was less neutral in his position than some of the more resolutely anti-war Friends. In 1774 he was elected to the Committee of 66. He was a delegate to the Provincial Convention the next year. During the war he assisted the Committee of Safety in building mills to manufacture gunpowder.
Wetherill joined The Carpenters' Company and became its treasurer in 1797. After the Revolution he was a lumber merchant.

 401 - 407 Pine Street
Built by Joseph Wetherill ca. 1792:

Above: 401 - 407 Pine Street. Built ca. 1792 by Joseph Wetherill, lumber merchant. Image source: Lee J. Stoltzfus

Above: Description of 401 - 407 Pine Street by Philadelphia Register of Historic Places.

 239 - 241 Delancey Street
Rowhouses built for Joseph Wetherill ca. 1811:

Above: 239 - 241 Delancey Street. Built as part of a row ca. 1811 for Joseph Wetherill. Image source: Lee J. Stoltzfus

Above: Description of 239 - 241 Delancey Street by Philadelphia Register of Historic Places.

 Joseph Wetherill:
Treasurer of the Carpenters’ Company
From 1797 to 1805:

Above: Carpenters’ Hall, headquarters of the Carpenters’ Company. Image source: Lee J. Stoltzfus

  Above: Carpenters’ Hall, completed in 1775, is home to the Carpenter’s Company, the oldest extant craftsman guild in the U.S. The Carpenters' Company was founded in 1724. Many of its early members were part of the Quaker community. Notable early members of the Carpenters’ Company who were Quakers include Samuel Rhodes, Thomas Nevell, Robert Smith, and Owen Biddle.
The Company’s ethos echoed Quaker principles, emphasizing fairness in pricing, ethical business practices, and skilled craftsmanship.

Joseph Wetherill
Financed the Head House (Fire-Engine House) in 1804:

Above: The Head House (fire-engine house) at today’s Head House Square. Photograph by Montgomery P. Simons ca 1866. Image source: Library Company of Pennsylvania.

  Above: Joseph Wetherill played a pivotal role in the development of the Head House at today’s Head House Square on South Second Street. In 1804 he encouraged the City of Philadelphia to construct this fire-engine house. He supported the project by loaning the city $1,000, which was a significant contribution at the time.
The Head House, completed that same year, is a Georgian-style brick firehouse with Federal-style ornamentation. Its cupola once housed a firebell.