history of the Monastery Stables
In 1683, William Penn visited the area to meet the Lenape Indians - the first inhabitants of the Wissahickon - and to formally purchase the land from them. The only remembrance of the Lenape in the Wissahickon is a statue of a crouching Native American on what is now called "Indian Rock." The statue was erected in 1902 by Mr. and Mrs. W. Henry.
The Monastery that stands today was built in about 1747 by Joseph Gorgas and is on the same site where the Brethren Church was started in America. In 1719 Peter Becker, along with Johannes Gumre and his wife Anna, moved to the area and struggled to unite the 20 families that had come together. Finally, they were able to organize themselves into a church and on Christmas day of 1723 they gathered along the Wissahickon to baptize six new members of the church. This was the first Baptist baptism in America. Then, the 23 of them returned to Gumre's cabin for feet washing, holy communion, and the lord's supper (also known as a love feast). Thus, the Brethren Church started in the new world.
After Gumre moved away, he sold the land to his son, who in turn sold it to Benjamin Shoemaker in 1742. Four or five years later Shoemaker sold it to John Gorgas Jr., who gave the section on the river to his brother Joseph. Joseph then built a three-story mansion, a barn, and a paper mill. Because of his connection with the Baptists, Joseph Gorgas allowed them to stay with him. This is probably why it's referred to as a Monastery. In 1761, the land was sold to Edward Milner for 1500£. Milner sold it to Peter Care in 1775 who fought in the Revolutionary War. Care sold the land to John Livezey in 1805. Livezey then sold it to a man named Lonstreth who used the mill again. Lonstreth sold the land to Joshua Garsed who manufactured flax thread on the property. He lived in the house and made many changes to the building, including, taking down the balcony that went around the second story and changing some of the interior. In 1841 the property was purchased by John H. Brock and James H. Hart, and they sold it to Elizabeth Wiest in 1843. When she died, the property went to her children Frances W. Wiest and Mrs. Charles Thompson Jones. And finally in 1852 they sold it to William Gordon Kitchen. After William died, the City of Philadelphia bought the land to add to land for Fairmount Park.
Today the Fairmount Park Conservancy is responsible for the site. Through long-term leases with the conservancy, the Boarders and Stewards of the Monastery have dedicated significant resources in an effort to preserve the buildings, structures and grounds for future generations.