Library of Congress, Prints & Photographs Division, PA,9-ANDA,1-40
Impressed with Thomas Walter’s work at Girard College, Nicholas Biddle asked Walter to enlarge and convert the Biddle country home from a farmhouse into something of Greek revival architecture. Andalusia as it would become known, is now a National Historic Landmark and a fine example of Greek Revival architecture in America. Originally built in 1795 as a county seat of the Craig family, Biddle and his wife Jane Craig acquired the property from her parents in 1814. The estate has been visited for over 200 years and is currently a house museum.
The centerpiece of the property is the Greek Revival house designed by Thomas Walter and added to the main building in 1835. The “Big House” as it is known faces the Delaware River. The addition by Walter on the river-facing side is a dramatic Greek Revival design. Its façade is a monumental temple front with a classical pediment and colonnade of Doric capitals surrounding the front and both sides. Additional buildings on the property were also Greek inspired, with a number of romantic out-buildings including a temple-like billiard house and a Gothic Grotto.
Andalusia, "A Remarkable Vision: Explore the History of Andalusia". http://www.andalusiapa.org/about/index.html. Accessed April 19, 2016.
