Rutledge History
Rutledge was founded in 1885 by a group of Philadelphia businessmen, and incorporated as a Borough in 1887. Here is how the community was described in an 1897 promotional brochure:
“Located ten miles from Philadelphia, on the line of the Central Division of the Philadelphia, Wilmington and Baltimore Railroad, three minutes walk from Morton Station – it is reached in from 20 to 3
0 minutes by 21 trains daily… To the west lies the magnificent Swarthmore College, and to the southeast, three miles away, lies the Delaware River… its school is one of the finest in the county; its houses are neat and attractive, and their owners take great pride in their homes and the adornment of their grounds.”
Since then, there have been a few name changes. The train line is SEPTA’s Regional Rail Media/Elwyn line, which provides 26 trains on weekdays from Philadelphia to what is now called the Morton-Rutledge Station. But in many ways, this description still holds true today. The schools in the Wallingford-Swarthmore School District are still among the finest in the county, and the homes, many of them dating back to the late 1800s, are still kept with pride by their owners.
