Woodmont

Infobox_nrhp | name =Woodmont
nrhp_type = nhl


caption =
location= 1622 Spring Mill Rd., Gladwyne, Pennsylvania
locmapin = Pennsylvania
area = 72 acres
built =1892
architect= Will Price
architecture= Late 19th and 20th Century Revivals, Other
designated= August 6, 1998cite web|url=http://tps.cr.nps.gov/nhl/detail.cfm?ResourceId=1327790203&ResourceType=District
title=Woodmont |accessdate=2008-07-03|work=National Historic Landmark summary listing|publisher=National Park Service]
added = August 05, 1998cite web|url=http://www.nr.nps.gov/|title=National Register Information System|date=2007-01-23|work=National Register of Historic Places|publisher=National Park Service]
governing_body = Private
refnum=98001192"For the town in Connecticut, see Woodmont, Connecticut."

Woodmont is a 72-acre (290,000 m²) hilltop estate in Gladwyne, a suburb of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

In addition to the Gothic revival mansion on its peak, Woodmont includes tennis courts, a swimming pool, stables, several outbuildings, greenhouses, a stream, and walking paths.

Built for one million dollars in 1892 by steel magnate Alan Wood, Jr., the estate is most notably the center of the International Peace Mission movement. Father Divine, a self-proclaimed God, was leader of the movement and given the estate by a follower called John Devoute in 1953. His followers renovated the mansion and placed an American flag prominently in front reflecting Father Divine's patriotism. They also added a well-kept garden like those on previous Peace Mission properties. An open house occurred on September 10, 11, and 12, 1953.

Followers made pilgrimage to the estate to see Father Divine until his death in 1965. All furnishings in Father Divine's rooms, including an antiquated television set, have been left as they were on the day of his death. The estate is now a shrine to his life and a meeting place for his few remaining followers.

It was declared a National Historic Landmark in 1998.citation|title=PDFlink| [http://pdfhost.focus.nps.gov/docs/NHLS/Text/98001192.pdf National Historic Landmark Nomination: Woodmont / The Mount of the House of the Lord] |32 KB|date=1998-03-02 |author=Susan Glassman and Carolyn Pitts |publisher=National Park Service and PDFlink| [http://pdfhost.focus.nps.gov/docs/NHLS/Photos/98001192.pdf "Accompanying 15 photos, exterior and interior, from 1996"] |32 KB]

References

External links

* [http://www.lowermerionhistory.org/photodb/web/html2/242-2.html Photograph at Lower Merion Historical Society]
* [http://www.libertynet.org/fdipmm/contact/contactx.html Father Divine's International Peace Mission Movement, with information on visiting Woodmont]