The Devon Preparatory School site was originally owned by Philadelphia publisher, art collector, and socialite Charles Matthew Lea, who built his mansion in 1913 that was later to become Calasanctus Hall. Lea, son of historian Henry Charles Lea, inherited his fortune from the Lea & Febiger publishing firm, the oldest publishing company in the United States. The firm's best known title was the American edition of Gray's Anatomy, which they began publishing in 1859. The original 20-acre tract on the east side of Valley Forge Road was expanded in 1920, with the purchase of an additional 83 acres. This consolidated property was known as Westthorpe Farm. The main entrance to Westthorpe Farm was at the intersection of Conestoga Road, Valley Forge Road and Hunters Lane where large stone pillars still stand. A number of stone pillars that originally formed a southern fence line remain partially in place along West Conestoga and Upper Gulph Roads. The current entrance to Devon Preparatory School, on Valley Forge Road, was the service entrance to the mansion. An outbuilding from Westthorpe Farm still stands northeast of the intersection of Upper Gulph and Hunters Lane. The 25-room Westthorpe mansion, designed by Brockie & Hastings, was the home of Charles M. Lea until he died in 1927. His widow, Charlotte Augusta Lea, remained at the mansion until her death in 1945. The property was then sold to Alexander Shand, a developer, who built one of the first post-World War II developments of homes known as the Shand Tract, on Steeplechase Road and Hunters Lane. Shand sold the mansion to Joseph Lerner, who had hoped to make it a psychiatric hospital. Because of neighborhood opposition to his project, Lerner sold the property to the Piarist Fathers in 1955.
Winter: Basketball, Indoor Track, Bowling, Squash, and Swimming.
Spring: Baseball, Lacrosse, Track and Field, Tennis, and Crew.
Clubs and activities
Devon Prep has over 20 different extracurricular activity groups. Some of them include: Mock Trial, Model United Nations, Science Olympiad, Diplomacy Club, Film Club, German-American Exchange Program, Devon Dialogue, Calasanctian, Ballroom Dance, Art Club, Debate Club, Campus Ministry, Chess Club, Ping-Pong Club, Computer Club, and Frisbee Club. There is an elected Student Council, honor societies, and an Academic Challenge Team. Musical groups for students include Jazz Band, Choral Tide and Rip Tide. There is an annual Fall Drama and Spring Musical.
In the summer, Devon Prep hosts a Summer Enrichment Program. Throughout the two sessions students participate in sports and dramatic arts camps as well as various other courses. They attend classes including algebra readiness, digital photography, painting and sculpting, video production, study skills, web building, and history explorations. The sports camps include baseball, soccer, track, golf and basketball.
Notable alumni
Mark Malseed ’93 - co-author of The Google Story and a named collaborator, with author Bob Woodward, on the #1 New York Times non-fiction bestsellers Plan of Attack and Bush at War.
