Two Rose Valley homes built for the founder of the town are up for sale, writes Sandy Smith for Philadelphia Magazine.

This is only the fifth time they’ve been sold.

The homes are an outgrowth of a utopian colony established in 1901 on 80 acres surrounding a burned down mill.

The colony didn’t last but it led to Herbert Walton building most of homes for architect Will Price between 1910 and 1930.

Walton built a storybook cottage and forge for himself around 1924.

The 3,026 square-foot cottage, the larger of the two houses, served as his residence; the smaller one was where he ran his iron forge.

Sand from nearby Ridley Creek was used to make the stucco that covers its walls.

Several rooms contain wood-burning fireplaces. A basement garden room has Mercer tiles. There’s also a patio and a koi pond.

The most dramatic space is found in the forge, which now contains a one-bedroom apartment and studio.

The tall hearth fireplace in its living room served as Walton’s forge. Stained-glass windows frame the fireplace.

This is one of the first open-market sales in the borough in quite some time.

Read more about these two homes here.

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