Langhorne Library
by Jeffrey Marshall
Langhorne was originally Four Lanes End—a name that derives from the fact that the site was at the crossroads for travelers from Philadelphia to the Delaware River and Trenton, New Jersey with the road from Bristol north to upper Bucks County and the Durham Furnace. In the mid twentieth century, the “crossroads” was shifted a block to the east. Route 413, the major road from Bristol to Newtown, Doylestown and beyond, was altered to use Pine Street, a block to the east, of Bellevue Avenue. This move undoubtedly saved the core of the village, but deprives most travelers the opportunity to see the real historic core of Langhorne.
In the early eighteenth century the crossroads boasted a store, a tavern, and s few small houses. According to tradition, a man named Attlee kept the store and people talked of 'going to Attlee's' which became Attleebury or Attleborough. The establishment of the first post office in 1805 officially confirmed the name of Attleborough although it is often noted as Attleboro. The names Attleboro and Langhorne were used for Langhorne Borough, Langhorne Manor Borough and Penndel, causing a lot of confusion. The name Langhorne was chosen in honor of the Langhorne family who owned most of the land in and around the town.
When the current Langhorne's name was changed in 1876 from Attleboro to Langhorne, what is now Penndel retained the name Attleboro. A post office at Penndel was established in 1882, under the name of Eden. The residents never adopted the name Eden as a town name. Penndel Borough was incorporated in 1889 with the name of Attleboro. Citizens petitioned the Court to have the name of the town changed to South Langhorne, the postal authorities having agreed to also change the post office name in 1910. The name Penndel was adopted in 1948.
To finish reading this article about Langhorne, please turn to page 88 in Winter 2013/14 issue of Bucks County Magazine.