About three hundred yards from what is now Glen Foerd, there stood a tavern and ferry operated by John Risdon, and many people traveling up and down the river stopped there for refreshment. Sportsmen came for hunting and fishing as well. One regular visitor to this tavern was also a frequent guest of William Biddle, whose estate, Andalusia, was only two miles upriver. This gentleman’s name was Charles Macalester.

Charles Macalester’s Scottish father became a naturalized citizen in 1786. He was a commander of merchant ships for many years until he could own his own vessel, and eventually he became one of the leading merchant traders of his day. In 1825, he planned to retire, but was persuaded to accept the presidency of the Insurance Company of the State of Pennsylvania. He was director of the Bank of North America, founded the Mariners Church of Philadelphia and The Marine Bible Society, and was vice president of the St. Andrew’s Society. It was no wonder that his son, Charles, born in 1798, would have an excellent education and enter the world of finance.

The natural beauty along the banks of the Delaware was the impetus for son, Charles Macalester, to settle here. Young Macalester became a well-known businessman and broker in the Philadelphia firm of Gaw, Macalester and Company, and was highly thought of by those who chose him as guardian of their estates. His force of character and sterling integrity led many to seek his advice. In 1834, 1835 and 1837, Macalester was appointed government director of the Second Bank of the United States in Philadelphia. Most significantly, he was also friend, financier and advisor to eight United States presidents from Andrew Jackson through Ulysses S. Grant. Officer and cabinet posts were offered to him, but he preferred to remain independent. Of his many philanthropies, the most important locally was the founding of the Philadelphia Presbyterian Hospital, and the Macalester Presbyterian Church which stood opposite the upper gates of Glen Foerd. He established the Macalester College in Minnesota, and was president of the St. Andrew’s Society from 1864 until his death in 1873.

When he retired from the world of high finance, he embarked upon the real estate development on the Delaware, purchasing the Risdon tavern and all of the land that had been Poquessing (i.e. place of many mice). A brother-in-law, Hopkins, bought and enlarged the tavern, eventually demolishing it and building in its place a grand new hotel to accommodate its ever-growing popularity.

In 1850, Macalester divided, plotted and sold off large pieces of his land, officially founding the village of Torrisdale, (now spelled Torresdale) naming it after his family’s estate in Scotland. Holding onto one section of the land for his own residence, he built a riverfront country summer house on the site about 1850, and called it Glengarry, after a Scottish ancestral home. He retained this particular segment along the river because of the quiet shade of the magnificent trees, left there by John Risdon.

Macalester further enhanced the beauty of the plantation by adding more rows of equally handsome trees along the bank of the river. The landscaping of the grounds was outstanding. The property began at the entrance to the Poquessing Creek, the highest land in the area. Steep steps were placed from the top of the hill and ran down alongside the creek to the river’s edge where the creek empties into the Delaware. At the top of the steps, overlooking a wide expanse of the river, and guarding the entrance to the estate, stood a life-size statue memorializing the beloved Macalester family dog, a Newfoundland named Little Ugly. Later, when the estate was rented to a University of Pennsylvania enthusiast, the dog received a red and blue painted coat as encouragement to the University crew during the college rowing races. The Delaware was the site of these colorful events before the Henley Course was officially established on the Schuylkill River.

Torresdale village became a very fashionable Victorian resort, and Glengarry was the scene of many gala affairs. During the summer, many heads of state and other dignitaries traveled from Washington to be the guests of Macalester and his only daughter, Mrs. Lily Macalester Laughton, a famous Washington hostess, who had been married to a Belgian diplomat. The daughter of that marriage, Camille, was married to Jose de Pedrosa, a Spanish marquis, by Archbishop Ryan, in the back parlor of Glengarry. This was not the first house in this village that the Macalesters occupied, nor was it the only house he owned. His winter address was 1016 Spruce Street in Philadelphia, and his house in Washington, D.C. became the Russian Embassy. After her father’s death, in 1873, Mrs. Laughton continued residence at Glengarry until her death in 1891.

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