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According to Benjamin Barnes, a Mercer employee, Mercer liked to attribute the rampant growth of the wistaria to the presence of Rollo at its roots.
Mercer’s love for dogs was not limited to his own pets. His assistant, Frank Swain, liked to tell about the time when Doylestown officials decided that too many dogs were running loose and unlicensed on the streets. The dogcatcher rounded them all up and took them to the town pound. Then notices were printed in the papers, explaining that dogs unclaimed and unlicensed after five days would be destroyed.
When Henry Mercer got wind of this ultimatum, the story goes, he hurried to purchase 50 dog collars and 50 licenses. He attached these to 50 of the impounded dogs and turned them loose on the street. “Now they’re legal,” he explained!
in its development. Her generosity in sharing research data is appreciated. In addition, the author gratefully acknowledges the following people, who have helped in various ways to shape the finished product: Angela M. Conran, Helen H. Gemmill, Nancy Gentile, Terry A McNealy, T. William Kleinsasser, Vance Kohler, Charles Yeske, and Adam Zayas. Charles V. (“Bud”) Swain donated the photograph of Frank K. Swain as a young man, and shared Frank’s story of Mercer and the dog licenses. Charles L. Maddox, Jr. performed his usual photographic magic; pulling images from a variety of faded, old sources, rather like pulling rabbits from hats. The author continues to welcome documented suggestions for additions and corrections to the text.
Acknowledgements:
This chronology has gone through a number of revisions since it was first begun several years ago. An earlier published version, limited to Mercer’s travels abroad, was written in collaboration with Cleota Reed, who also read the current manuscript at different stages
Linda F. Dyke was Assistant Curator at Fonthill for nearly ten years. Her research of the life and collections of Henry Mercer, in conjunction with various Fonthill projects, has generated numerous articles and lectures. She currently lectures in art history at the Bucks County Community College.
Mercer's signed drawing of his hometown. Doylestown, with the courthouse tower as the apex of the composition. The Latin caption states, “The city set on a hill cannot be hidden.
HENRY CHAPMAN MERCER: AN ANNOTATED CHRONOLOGY


Bucks-Mont, Pennsylvania Bucks County Hist Soc - Henry Chapman Mercer (35)
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