Tonner family

The Glen Foerd estate was built circa 1850 by Charles Macalester, founder of Torresdale and Financial Adviser to eight United States Presidents. The estate, which Macalester called "Glengarry," was renamed by Robert H. Foerderer (1860-1903) when he purchased it in 1893.

Robert H. Foerderer, son of Edward and Augusta Julia (Oehme) Foerderer, was well known in Philadelphia for his self-titled leather manufacturing and tanning business, Robert H. Foerderer, Inc. Robert built a large plant in the Frankford section of Philadelphia in 1892 to produce his trademark "Vici Kid" leather, which was soft and supple enough for use in gloves and shoes. Foerderer also participated in several local clubs, served as the president and director of the Keystone Telephone Company, and was elected to the United States Congress in 1900.

Robert married Caroline Fischer (1861-1934) in 1881, and the couple had two children: Florence and Percival. Robert Foerderer died in 1903 at the young age of 43. His wife Caroline remarried to Enos Artman, and devoted the rest of her life to philanthropic work for the Artman Lutheran Home and the Philadelphia Orchestra. She died in 1934.

Percival Edward Foerderer was born in Philadelphia on October 25, 1884. Percival began working at his father's company in an entry-level position, but became president within five years. Two years later, he married Ethel Tillyer Brown (1885-1981). They had three daughters together, and lived in a palatial estate named "La Ronda" which they built in Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania. Percival and Ethel were heavily involved with Thomas Jefferson Hospital, and the "Foerderer Pavilion" on its campus is named in honor of them. After Percival's death in 1969, a portion of the estate was sold to nearby Villanova University.

Florence Foerderer married William Tonner, and they had two daughters together: Marjorie and Carol. William Tonner, the proprietor of a hosiery mill in Lansdowne, was also a "gentleman farmer" who bred cattle and kept a large herd of prize-winning Ayrshires. Florence was an avid collector of art and assembled one of the most extensive private collections of prints in the country. She donated a world-class collection of William Blake works to the Philadelphia Museum of Art upon her death. She also amassed a valuable collection of Bibles, including Martin Luther's own Latin Bible from which he translated, and the first Bible ever printed in America.

When Florence Tonner died in 1972, ownership of the Glen Foerd estate passed to the Lutheran Church of America. In 1988, it reverted to the City of Philadelphia. The Glen Foerd Conservation Corporation, a non-profit organization dedicated to the preservation and restoration of Glen Foerd, now administers the property in cooperation with Philadelphia Parks and Recreation.

Bibliography :

"Glen Foerd History." Accessed September 28, 2011. http://www.glenfoerd.org/.

Majewicz, Cary. Finding aid for Foerderer family papers, Historical Society of Pennsylvania, collection 3102. Processing complete April 2008. Accessed September 28, 2011. http://www.hsp.org/sites/www.hsp.org/files/migrated/findingaid3102foerderer.pdf.

From the guide to the Foerderer and Tonner family papers, circa 1870-1970, (Glen Foerd on the Delaware)