Demolition of Stratford mansion starts with artifact removal

Carol Comegno, Cherry Hill Courier-Post
·3 min read

STRATFORD — Crews have begun dismantling the front of a vacant historic mansion ahead of demolition to make way for senior housing.

Workers drilled Tuesday into the marble trim to chisel out an upper story cornerstone carrying the 1844 erection date of the Sarah and Ephraim Tomlinson Mansion. It much later served as a private school.

Some of the oldest bricks, the wooden porch columns and a few other original exterior elements of the structure also will be removed for preservation along with interior artifacts that already have been salvaged, according to project manager A&E Construction.

The mansion at 710  W. Laurel Road is the oldest house in Stratford, centerpiece of the Stratford Borough seal and is listed on both the state and national registers of historic places. The home last served as the Stratford Classical Christian Academy, which closed in 2015.

Workers drill and chisel out trim on the third story of the historic Ephraim Tomlinson Mansion in Stratford. The former home and school, listed on The National Register of Historic Places, is to be torn down for senior housing.
Workers drill and chisel out trim on the third story of the historic Ephraim Tomlinson Mansion in Stratford. The former home and school, listed on The National Register of Historic Places, is to be torn down for senior housing.

The developer, Integrity Community Partners (ICP) Stratford GP, LLC, is proceeding with a borough-approved plan to tear down the mansion using a demolition permit issued locally a year ago. Newer school buildings in the rear of the 11-acre property already have been demolished.

No state or federal review is required to demolish the mansion. In its place ICP plans to build 191 units of assisted, independent living and "memory care" four to five stories high.

Workers remove marble trim and a date stone Tuesday from the Ephraim Tomlinson Mansion in Stratford. The historic building will be demolished after removal of some exterior artifacts so 191 units of senior housing can be built.
Workers remove marble trim and a date stone Tuesday from the Ephraim Tomlinson Mansion in Stratford. The historic building will be demolished after removal of some exterior artifacts so 191 units of senior housing can be built.

The plan moved forward when the developer withdrew a request for a state wetlands permit to direct runoff water into an adjacent branch of Big Timber Creek. The state Department of Environmental Protection indicated it would not approve that plan unless the mansion was saved.

The developer has said the mansion is structurally unsound though its engineering study also concluded the house would be eligible for preservation grants that could help repair and save it. The house had been altered over the years, so some of it is not original.

"We started carefully removing the oldest and original historical artifacts. We already removed some things — nails, doors, trim — from the interior in consultation with the borough historian and are storing them in a container here on the property," said Marisa Santora, A&E assistant project manager.

She said the developer will display them in a room that will be dedicated to telling the history of the mansion.

More: Tomlinson mansion on 2021 endangered historic sites list 

"We will have a structural engineer tell us where some of the original brick can be incorporated into the new building, whose façade will replicate that of the mansion," Santora said.

Anthony Santora, Marisa Santora's father, is the former Stratford Joint Land Use Board chairman who left the board after the project surfaced two years ago. He is both president of A&E Construction and a principal in Integrity Community Partners and also the party that applied for the demolition permit.

This is the artist rendering of a senior housing complex proposed for the historic Ephraim and Sarah Tomlinson mansion property on Laurel Road in Stratford. It could include a columned replica with some original house sections (center of the design). The house is on the national and state registers of historic places.
This is the artist rendering of a senior housing complex proposed for the historic Ephraim and Sarah Tomlinson mansion property on Laurel Road in Stratford. It could include a columned replica with some original house sections (center of the design). The house is on the national and state registers of historic places.

In January the land use board unanimously approved a revised site plan application for the development.

Borough historian Carole Dadino said she did accompany a knowledgeable contractor in a building walk-through to determine what was original and in good enough condition to save. She also said the developer has promised to light the new cupola at night after it is erected and is still determining the history of the home's fireplaces to see if they should be salvaged.

"That said, my heart is broken after working so hard to save the mansion over the past six years," she added.

Current Land Use Board chair Mike Mancini earlier this year took to social media to defended the board against online criticism, saying the project would benefit the borough.

"To us its just just an old building providing no benefit to our town. I don’t need to know the history. Wouldn't change my mind if George Washington slept here. If it doesn't  benefit the taxpayers I see no reason to save it," he wrote on the Save the Tomlinson Mansion Facebook page.

Carol Comegno loves telling stories about South Jersey life, history and military veterans for the Courier Post, Burlington County Times and The Daily Journal. If you have a story to share, call her at 856-486-2473 or email  ccomegno@gannettnj.com.

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This article originally appeared on Cherry Hill Courier-Post: Oldest artifacts removed from South Jersey mansion before demolition