Summerseat | |
%2c_Morrisville_(Bucks_County%2c_Pennsylvania).jpg) Summerseat | |
   | |
| Location | Clymer St. and Morris Ave.,Morrisville, Pennsylvania |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 40°12′29.1″N74°46′46.5″W / 40.208083°N 74.779583°W /40.208083; -74.779583 |
| Area | 2 acres (0.81 ha) |
| Built | c. 1770 |
| Architectural style | Georgian |
| NRHP reference No. | 71000685 |
| Significant dates | |
| Added to NRHP | July 17, 1971[2] |
| Designated NHL | July 17, 1965[3] |
| Designated PHMC | January 27, 1949[1] |
Summerseat, also known as theGeorge Clymer House andThomas Barclay House, is ahistoric house museum at Hillcrest and Legion Avenues inMorrisville, Bucks County, Pennsylvania. Built about 1765, it is the only house known to have been owned by two signers of theUnited States Declaration of Independence,Founding FathersGeorge Clymer andRobert Morris, and as a headquarters of GeneralGeorge Washington during theAmerican Revolutionary War. The house is now managed by the Morrisville Historical Society, which offers tours. It was designated aNational Historic Landmark in 1965.[3][4]
Summerseat is located west of the central business district of Morrisville, sharing a property with Patriot's Park at the junction of Hillcrest and Legion Avenues. It is a2+1⁄2-story masonry structure, built out of a combination of brick and stone. Its front and sides are brick, while the rear wall is stone. The main facade faces east, and is five bays wide, with a center entrance framed by pilasters and a fully pedimented gable. The interior follows a traditional center-hall plan, with four rooms on each floor. The interior retains some original features, despite having had non-residential uses.[4]
The house was built about 1765 byAdam Hoops[5], and was owned by his son in lawThomas Barclay at the end of 1776, whenGeorge Washington occupied it as a military headquarters during the dark days of theNew York and New Jersey campaign of theAmerican Revolutionary War. After the war the house was purchased byRobert Morris, a signer of the Declaration of Independence, and the principal financier of the war effort. Morris fell upon financial hard times owing to failed real estate speculation, and sold the house in 1806 toGeorge Clymer, another signer of the Declaration.
The house was restored in 1931 and converted for use as a school administrative building in 1935.[4] Summerseat is now owned and operated as a house museum by the Historic Morrisville Society. The house is open to the public for tours on the first Saturday of each month from 10:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. Admission is $7.00 per person, children under the age 12 are free.
