Hatfield House, Philadelphia

The historic Hatfield House, located in Fairmount Park, was constructed in 1760 as a suburban villa, situated in what is now the Nicetown neighborhood of Philadelphia. It served as Catherine Mallon's Boarding School for Girls from 1806 to 1824. In 1838, under the ownership of William J. Hay, significant Greek Revival-style modifications were made, including the addition of an unusual 5-column temple portico. Dr. Nathan L. Hatfield, associated with the University of Pennsylvania, acquired the property in 1854, and his family maintained ownership for the following 75 years.

The house is depicted on the 1843 Ellet Map of Philadelphia County, situated on the south side of Nicetown Road (now Hunting Park Avenue), between the Philadelphia and Germantown Rail Road to the east and the Germantown and Perkiomen Turnpike (now Germantown Avenue) to the west. By 1855, the city's street grid had been outlined, even though only a few of the streets were actually in existence. By 1862, a horse-drawn streetcar line ran a block east of the house.

In 1925, Simon Gratz High School was constructed directly to the east of the house. Major Henry Reed Hatfield generously donated the house to the Fairmount Park Commission in 1929. In 1930, the building was disassembled and moved to its current location at 33rd Street and Girard Avenue, with Architect Erling H. Pedersen from the Philadelphia Museum of Art overseeing the relocation. In 1972, the house earned a place on the National Register of Historic Places.