As it starts the next phase of its environmental improvement plan, the Bucks County Historical Society is set to remove approximately 15 dead trees from its Fonthill property in Doylestown Township, the society announced.
While Fonthill Castle is privately owned by the BCHS, some of the trees are located along North and East streets in Doylestown Borough. BCHS officials said they are working with both the township and the borough in the significant tree removal project. The felling of the trees is set to begin Tuesday.
Arborists with John B. Ward & Co. are conducting the removal that will include one Eastern White Pine, one red maple and three ash trees along North Street. Along East Street, five ash, one red maple, and two oak trees will be taken down, according to the BCHS. Other areas of tree work in this multi-phase project include the intersection of Swamp Road and East Court Street, as well as an area behind Fonthill’s Welcome Center.
All the trees being removed were identified by Brandywine Urban Forestry in a comprehensive assessment and management plan the BCHS called for earlier this year, the BCHS said in a statement. The trees, officials said, “will be removed in the interest of public service, with additional work to be done in the future.”
The iconic 69-acre Fonthill Castle property is a National Historic Landmark and was the home of Henry Mercer, an archaeologist and famed tile maker. Architectural Digest recently named the castle #4 of 18 of the most beautiful castles in the country, the BCHS said.
The tree removal is part of a larger initiative the historical society began in 2019 when it solicited a master plan for the Fonthill grounds. Completed last year, the BCHS said, the plan features “six exciting Fonthill Castle projects to benefit the community and the environment, with the Woodlands Management Project the priority.”
The goal, said the historical society, “is the healthy restoration and responsible rehabilitation of the Fonthill Castle woodlands and property.”
In a statement, Kyle McKoy, president and CEO of the BCHS, said, “As stewards of Henry Chapman Mercer’s legacy, the Bucks County Historical Society is not only responsible for caring for the building and objects left behind, but for fulfilling Mercer’s vision of keeping the privately owned grounds open to the public so everyone can enjoy the region’s natural beauty, native trees and species, and so we can offer educational opportunities for generations to come.”
The work, said the BCHS, is being funded by several private donors.
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