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Study dates Bensalem’s Grouden buildings to 1742, revising earlier 1680s estimate
Summary
Oxford dendrochronologists told a Bensalem audience that wood samples from the Grouden house and kitchen mainly date to winter 1741–42 and spring 1742, meaning the buildings were likely built in 1742 rather than the previously believed 1680s; a ruin’s last counted ring was 1718, and organizers plan further sampling and archival follow‑up.
Clint Flack of the Mercer Museum introduced results from a dendrochronology study on the Grouden buildings that indicate the main house and its kitchen were likely constructed in 1742, not in the 1680s as previously thought.
"Grouden is an extremely important historical set of buildings here in Bucks County," Flack said, explaining the museum’s work with Bensalem Township and the Bensalem Historical Society to document the site.
Michael Cuba of the Oxford Dendrochronology Laboratory described taking just over 30 samples across three structures and said most timbers from the house and kitchen were cut in the winter of 1741–42, with some cut in spring 1742. "So it is most likely that construction happened during 1742," Cuba said, summarizing the laboratory’s interpretation.
Cuba noted a separate ruin on the property yielded samples without bark edge, which prevents a precise felling date; the last ring counted in that structure was 1718, indicating it could not have been built before that year but that additional samples are needed to determine a construction date. "The last ring counted that we have is 1718," he said, adding that further sampling when weather allows could extend the sequence.
The laboratory team described methods and quality checks used to rule out recycled or replacement timbers: multiple samples were taken from each phase of construction to look for repetition and to ensure the dated rings reflected original material rather than later repairs.
Cuba also discussed construction evidence visible on-site, including axe-hewn summer beams and pit-sawn joists, and argued many of the timbers were likely felled and worked on the property rather than transported from distant sawmills. He recommended further noninvasive study — such as thermal imaging — to locate original framing beneath later floor and roof work.
Attendees described new archival material provided by visitors from England who say they descend from Joseph Grouden; Flack and others displayed photographs and a 1702 manuscript lease referencing Lawrence Grouden and said copies will be distributed to the historical society. Organizers said they will pursue additional samples and archival follow-up tied to those documents.
A member of the historical society who was introduced during the presentation said the results confirm the presence of these buildings during the Revolutionary War era and that the findings open opportunities to search the larger property for an earlier settlement site once attributed to the 1680s.
The presenters thanked the team and the historical society and said they will share copies of the newly acquired documents and continue limited seasonal sampling to refine the dates.
