Alden House Apartments
formerly
Colonial Café
101 North Seventh Street
Colonial Cafe postcard image: Pezzanite Collection
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101 N. 7th St- 2026 Perkasie Historical Society
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Walter Baum Painting of 7th St. Perkasie, PA.
The apartment building at 101 North Seventh Street was constructed in 1901 for Jacob A Lewis. The building is believed to have been designed by Lansdale architect, Milton Bean. Lewis was originally going to construct a building on this site for his butcher shop. Instead, his friend P.S. Cressman persuaded him to open the butcher shop next to his American House Hotel on Seventh Street.
Reuben Gilbert purchased the property in 1908 and opened a restaurant on the first floor named The Colonial Café. After a few years, Gilbert sold the building to P. Darwin Benner who continued to operate the Colonial Café. Benner converted the separate stable building into apartments and added an addition for a store along the Seventh Street side of the building.
The apartment building at 101 North Seventh Street was constructed in 1901 for Jacob A Lewis. The building is believed to have been designed by Lansdale architect, Milton Bean. Lewis was originally going to construct a building on this site for his butcher shop. Instead, his friend P.S. Cressman persuaded him to open the butcher shop next to his American House Hotel on Seventh Street.
Reuben Gilbert purchased the property in 1908 and opened a restaurant on the first floor named The Colonial Café. After a few years, Gilbert sold the building to P. Darwin Benner who continued to operate the Colonial Café. Benner converted the separate stable building into apartments and added an addition for a store along the Seventh Street side of the building.
P.D. Benner Restaurant postcard - Perkasie Historical Society Collection
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1915 December 22 Central News Colonial Café Landenberger Bros, Free Musical Concerts in main room advertisement
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In 1940 P. Darwin Benner closed the Colonial Café and opened a coffee shop in the basement along Arch Street. The former Colonial Cafe became the office for Mahlon Keller Insurance.
Mark Fehr, an employee of Benner’s, became the owner of the coffee shop in 1946. A group of local businessmen formed The Breakfast Club and would meet at the coffee shop every morning. Mark Fehr closed the coffee shop in 1970.
Today the building is the Alden House Apartments. The former stable building is also a rental property at 107 and 109 North Seventh Street.
Reference Perkasie Historical Society archives
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