The W.A.S.P.'s of Doylestown is an essay regarding the culture of White Anglo Saxon Protestants that live in Doylestown, as well as the roots of the town. This town's history is rich with folk lore and stories, some of which I have been pleased to have been a part of myself. I will recount my experiences with the culture of youths found in Doylestown as well as provide background of the stepping stones that formed this community. An interview with a Doylestown community member, (born a White Anglo-Saxon Protestant and now an Occultist) Meg Howard provides us with a view into what it is to be a part of the upper-middle class.
Nestled quaintly just above the Mason-Dixon line there lies a small town called Doylestown. It is located in the heart of Central Bucks, Pennsylvania. Cottages date back to the early 16th century: built of stone and brick. These were the homes of the Kirkgoods, the Doyles, the Wells, the Beals and the Merediths. Early as 1735 you could find dirt roads that led through the woods to a hostelry that was run by William Doyles. Late in the 1700's one could find only two or three log cabins in the whole 5350 acres that make up the town. During the mid to late 1800's Doylestown developed some of its best known features. These include its multiple Victorian style homes, its cemetery next to the Mercer Mansion as well as the Mansion itself. Cobblestone roads that were laid down in the 1800's still are in place today: they stand in front of the old Fountain House that has recently been turned into a Starbucks.
The Doylestown Fountain House was originally a Tavern for travelers. A long time local named Grant Stevens recounted the story that at one time, “each stool had a box installed below the bar with a pistol in it. These boxes could only be opened from behind the bar, and if a customer got too rowdy, the justice would be served just as cold as the beer,” (Stevens). Stevens knew Doylestown well, speaking well of the railroad system, which also happened to be where he worked for over fifty years. Despite the coolly dispensed justice in forming a high-brow white society built on capitalism, a different story spills regarding the bestowal of Doylestown upon a man named Cudjo not long before the Fountain House was built in 1758. Ultimately, Doylestown is a haven for White Anglo-Saxon Protestants that has steadily increased in economic class since the 16th Century when this mysterious man “Cudjo” originally owned the Doylestown Proper area.
Ethnically, the scope of Doylestown has stayed rooted in white Christians throughout the history of being built. Those of Scotch-Irish descent were the first to settle this area that lies only one mile away from the very center of the county. As stated, 1735 was the year William Doyles first settled in a cabin of his own in this land; thus the name Doylestown. It is understood that since Doylestown was only eight miles from the church in Deep Run, (built in 1732), Doyles may have settled so that he'd be close to his congregation. During 1942, a neighbor of Doyles named Jeremiah Langhorne passed away. During this year the ethnic percentage of Doylestown landowners were significantly off balance in regard to the rest of the town's history.
As a testament to his will, Jeremiah Langhorne left an emancipated slave named “Cudjo” his entire estate including ten cows, eight horses, twenty sheep and a homestead, (Blanchard, 2004). It is said that Cudjo was the only Black Forefather of Doylestown. All 156 acres that Cudjo was granted upon his master's death have been developed. Doylestown's most prominent buildings stand on the acreage that was Cudjo's right, had he accepted it. The Fountain House was built on Cudjo's land, the Mercer Museum, the County Theatre as well as the location of the last remaining cobblestone roadways that used to lead from Doylestown to Philadelphia. Despite Cudjo's right to this property in the year 1742, five months after he was granted this property he sold it all. A historian named Wilma Rezer explains, “To suddenly be isolated in a vast undeveloped area proved to be too much,” (Blanchard, 2004) “At no time since [the sale] has Doylestown been known for racial or economic diversity,” (2004). Common-folk here maintain that this town is a “generally tolerant, well-educated place,” (Blanchard, 2004).
In my own experience, I've known several African-Americans, Asians and I myself am Hispanic. Tolerance is something that people will say they have towards minorities when the paper approaches them: reality is a much different story. I am lucky, as I happen to look more German than I look Portuguese; therefore I am “white” in the eyes of my peers.
