Before there was GMercyU ...
While Gwynedd Mercy University recently celebrated its 75th anniversary , its grounds have a history long before Mother Mary Bernard Graham founded the then-junior college .
The grounds were originally owned by the Bond family and were known as Willow Brook Farm . The Bond family then sold the grounds to the Taylor Family in 1914 , who renamed the property Treweryn and owned the land until the Sisters of Mercy purchased it to establish the University in 1947 . The Taylor family kept a portion of the land and lived there until 1986 .
Newby Ely , historian and grandson of Elizabeth “ Mag ” Taylor , is working with GMercyU Librarian Jessica Richmond ’ 08 and the Keiss Library to donate artifacts such as films , photos , and portraits related to the Ely and Taylor families and the campus grounds .
Newby visited campus this fall to share stories of his family and explore the much-transformed campus , recalling where he spent time as a young boy .
He spent summers living on campus as a child and said " Those summers were the formative years of my life ." He also fondly recalled running throughout the campus for exercise and family games of hide and seek in Assumption Hall .
You can explore more about campus history on the archives website here :
Left : Historian Newby Ely and GMercyU Librarian Jessica Richmond ’ 08
TODAY 11