Photograph by Paul R. Sullivan
On the shores of the Schuylkill River, just beyond the towering skyline of Philadelphia, lies the Sedgeley Club which houses the city’s only operating lighthouse.
The evolution of this charming building began under the leadership of Margaret Longstreth Corlies in the late 1880's. Mrs. Corlies was a leader of a small group of spirited women who enjoyed bicycling and canoeing along the Schuylkill. After a day of physical activity, these lively women longed for shelter, a spot of tea, and a storage facility for their bikes and barges. After much effort, Mrs. Corlies and her small group of women finally convinced the the Park Commission to grant approval for a building to be erected around the lighthouse. When the doors to the boat house officially opened in 1903, bicycles could be stored overnight for ten cents!
Upon the 100th Anniversary of the club, it was declared “We the members of the Sedgeley Club, by our very existence, have become the “Lighthouse Keepers” for Fairmount Park and the city of Philadelphia.” This imposing edifice is acknowledged by the National Historic Preservation Act of 1978 to be an integral part of “Fairmount Park .”
The treasured Light on Turtle Rock and its historically notable surround is maintained by renting the club for private functions.
