This is the Oldest Building in Pennsylvania

Have you ever wondered how old the oldest building in Pennsylvania is? Being one of the original 13 colonies of the United States, there are certain to be dozens of old buildings floating around Pennsylvania. You might be thinking this building is in Philadelphia built by colonists, but according to Curbed Philadelphia, the oldest building in PA was actually built by Swedish settlers.

Although Philadelphia is one of the oldest cities in America and is home to dozens of historical landmarks and monuments, you won’t find the oldest building in Pennsylvania there. Curbed Philadelphia informs us that the oldest building in PA, named The Lower Swedish Cabin, is actually located on Creek Road in Drexel Hill, Pennsylvania, and was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1980.

The Lower Swedish Cabin is not only the oldest building in Pennsylvania, but it is also one of the oldest log cabins in the United States. It was built around 1640 and used as a Swedish trading post with the local indigenous peoples. Curbed Philadelphia says that they would trade simple tools, furs, and native crafts, and once the Swedish and other settlers left, a filmmaker named Siegmund Lubin used the location for movies from 1904 to 1906. Eventually, the cabin was used as a private residence and then as a Girl Scouts meeting place before being abandoned, Curbed Philadelphia reports.

Today the oldest building in Pennsylvania, at nearly 400 years old, “stands relatively unaltered from when it was originally built”, says Curbed Philadelphia. The building even hosts tours every Sunday from 1:00-4:00 pm from May-October.

The Lower Swedish Cabin - Historical Site [Drexel Hill, Pa] (1080p HD) from J.Pac Productions on Vimeo.