In 1733, this structure was the Lancaster County home and office of Philadelphia wool merchant, Stephen Atkinson. The building was originally located south of the South Duke Street Bridge in the Sunnyside district of Lancaster in West Lampeter Township on the Conestoga River. Sunnyside was largely undeveloped before 1900.
In fact, the 1875 atlas map displays the area as empty. By the 1930s, Sunnyside was a depressed area. The 1933 Home Owners’ Loan Corporation Residential Security Map of Lancaster redlines the entire Sunnyside neighborhood as unsuitable for mortgage lending.
The building is Germanic in style and has a floor plan like that of the 1719 Hans Herr House.
Today, you can find the Atkinson House in the town of Conestoga as part of The Conestoga Area Historical Society. The first floor is furnished with Lancaster County 18th-century handcrafted reproductions. The basement serves as the Cellar Museum Shop and Bookstore featured in the image above.
A German four-square garden with privy and smokehouse is located to the rear of the house.
The CAHS is dedicated to preserving Penn Manor’s history, which consists of the Conestoga Township, Manor Township, Martic Township, Pequea Township, and Millersville Borough.
When there isn’t a pandemic going on, the museum and gift shop is open Saturday and Sunday mid-April through mid-December from 1:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. Admission is free, but donations are appreciated.
Location of the Steven Atkinson Log Cabin
Click here for the location of the Atkinson House in Conestoga, Pa.
Location of Sunnyside
For those curious as to the location of Sunnyside, here’s an embedded map that shows where the pensiula is in relationship to Lancaster City.
Can t wait to come see this,,,hope it will be real soon. Meanwhile be safe and God Bless
I just discovered this (9/24/2022). I have good reason to believe I am a descendant of this person and could surely benefit from further information regarding Stephen. I know that this Stephen had a son named Stephen as well as other children. This Stephen is from Ireland and came from County Armagh. If there are historians at your site, I would like to confer with them. Please write me at the following email address: