There have been several items in the news regarding Wayne History in the past month:
• Ever since Main Line Land Rover took over the former Wayne Ford property on Lancaster avenue, they have been trying to convert the back half of that property into luxury condominiums. This land was originally home to the Wayne Iron Works, founded about a century ago. Ever since then, that land has been zoned as industrial space, even after the Iron Works left in the 1960's. The dealership now operates out of part of the old Iron Works building, and presumably, if the plan goes through, that building will be torn down and a new building of condominiums built.
• The Wayne Station renovation is picking up. Notably, many of the station's windows and doors have been replaced. The "Amtrak" style steel doors have been replaced with historically accurate wooden doors with large windows. The new exterior windows include those in the station's trackside tower, which had been boarded up for years. One other new renovation involves the station's brickwork. In what may be either a cost-cutting or time saving move, some sections of the station's brick exterior have been painted a reddish brick-like color. One of the original goals of the renovation project was to do masonry work, though it's strange that this unfortunate route would be taken.
• After a year of little progress, work on the P&W trail seems to be back on track. This article in Main Line Life reported that work would begin this winter with completion expected in Autumn 2004. Though nobody should hold their breath that it will truly be completed in the predicted time (it's a whole year after the first planned completion), it's good that the plan is still a priority for the township. When asked by Wayne History Online if the they plan to note the locations on the trail where stations and other landmarks once were, Radnor Township replied that they have no such plans currently, though such an idea had been considered in the past. It is therefore still a possibility. When asked about the preservation of the old station ruins along the trail, the Township said "the ruins most likely will stay intact unless they become dangerous during or as a result of the construction of the trail."
• In early December, almost on the anniversary day of the tragic Caley Nursing Home fire in 1973, a fire broke out in one room of the Wayne Nursing Home. Caley became Wayne Nursing Home soon after the fire thirty years ago, which killed more people than almost any other disaster on the Main Line. This December's fire was much less devastating than the first fire there, yet it's uncanny that it happened so close to the anniversary. The Wayne Nursing Home was originally the mansion "Woodlea," the home of William Wood. After the 1973 fire, the building's appearance was greatly altered from its original Victorian design, though certain elements of the original appearance are still visible.
