Birmingham Township.

his Lycense to keep a publick house as heretofore have don, and Desired me to signifie to the Court my Inclination to Gratifie them in there desire and to shew myself willing to serve my frends in Genrall, as well as soport of myself, if the Court thought fitt to Grant it mee, and these are to Request of theis honourable Court to Grant my frenns the prayer of their petion and also to Take into their Prudent Consideration what measures to Take abought the Boate to Render it as servicable to Travelors as heretofore have been."

The number of petitions and the sly reference of Chads, that there might be some difficulty at the ford if his license was not granted, was too much for the justices, and the above-mentioned application of Chads bears this indorsement: "Allowed according to ye Prayer of ye Petition." In 1743 the license was renewed and so continued to him until 1746, when he was succeeded in business by James House, who rented the premises to whom the license was extended, - he giving security to perform all things relating to the ferry over "Brandewine" according to agreement with the commissioners and assessors. It was continued to House until 1752, when he in turn gave place to Amos Harvey, who became the landlord of the inn. To the latter license was annually allowed until the year 1756, when his name disappeared from the records. Henry Hays was granted license in 1757, but whether it was for this tavern I cannot as yet determine; but in 1767, William Berlin received license for the "Chad's ford" Tavern, and annually thereafter was on the list until 1772, when Joseph Davis petitioned and stated in his application that it was for the premises "formerly John Chads' where a tavern has been for thirty years." Davis was the landlord of the hostelry at the time of the battle of Brandywine, although the county records for that year are missing respecting licenses, for in 1778 Gideon Gilpin is granted license for the tavern, and the petition sets forth that he succeeds Joseph Davis in business. To Gilpin license is annually allowed by the court of Chester County until the date of the creation of Delaware County, his last application being presented in the year 1789. At that time Gilpin was the landlord of the house now known as Gen. Lafayette's headquarters, in which no license has been had for nearly a century.

I lose all trace of the old tavern at the ford until 1806, when Benjamin Davis, in his petition, states that "Brandywine Creek is in the township, and from the present way of crossing said creek, when the waters are high, travellers are often detained, which for that, as well as many other causes, renders a house of public entertainment necessary at that locality," - a course of reasoning that resulted in a decision such as he desired from the court. I know that in 1800 Benjamin Ring had license for an inn in Birmingham, - the old Washington headquarters; that he was refused license in 1802, when a remonstrance from the "inhabitants in and near Concord" against his house was presented to court. In the following year, 1803, Joshua Ring obtained leave to keep a public-house after a previous petition in the same year had been rejected, and in 1805, in his application, Ring gives the name of the tavern as the "United States Arms, on the road from Chester to Lancaster." In addition, in 1807, Thomas Monks petitioned for license for a house in Birmingham, which had been formerly kept by Benjamin Ring & Son. His application was met with a remonstrance from Isaac G. Gilpin, who stated that he was a resident of the township, that he knew Monks and the house he kept, that "the entertainment for travellers and others at said house is not good, and by no means such as the public ought to expect on so public a road." Petition was rejected, although the preceding year the court had recommended Thomas Monks to the Governor as a proper person to have license, and thereafter the "United States Arms" disappeared as an inn in Birmingham. The house and farm became the property of Eli Harvey, as before mentioned.

John Way, in 1807, prayed that license might be granted him at the old Chad's Ford Inn (this tavern was the hipped-roof house at Eli Harvey's), and as an additional reason for the location of a public-house at that point, urged that "Brandywine creek by the present way of crossing is often impassable from the frequent great freshets therein." The court gave approval to his petition, and Way remained there until 1810, during which time he built the present tavern house, when Thomas Burnett succeeded to the business until 1817, when he gave place to Jacob Smith, Jr. The latter remained at the tavern only one year, for in 1818 Thomas H. Bullock had license for the house, which he states is commonly known as the "Rising Sun." In 1823, John Norrett was landlord for one year, but in 1824 Thomas H. Bullock returned to his former station, and in 1828 the latter was succeeded by Nathan S. Burnett. In 1830, Ezra Lamborn, who called the house the "Chad's Ford Inn," was landlord, and continued such until 1834, when Jones Eavenson rented the premises, still retaining the old name. The following year Eavenson associated Joseph D. Valentine in the business, and the firm received the license in 1835 for the "sign of the Bridge." In 1836, John Entreken was authorized to keep the public-house at Chad's Ford, and in 1838 Milton Stamp was landlord of the "Bridge Inn, near the Eastern end of Bridge." Stamp, however, did not secure the grace of the court without a struggle, for a remonstrance signed by George Brinton, Jr., William Painter, Samuel Painter, Harlan Webb, Eli Harvey, Chalkley Harvey, Joseph P. Harvey, and Robert Frame was presented, alleging that the inn was unnecessary, as the locality was well supplied with public-houses at reasonable distances from each other, and stating that they believed "the mode and manner of keeping said public-house has