Pew family’s Rocky Crest mansion in Gladwyne now $4.9M

A palatial stone mansion in Gladwyne with ties to the Pew family has re-listed for just under $5 million, after undergoing an $850,000 pricechop.

Known as Rocky Crest, the 13-bedroom home was the Main Line estate of Joseph Pew, Jr., one of the sons of the founder of Sun Oil Company who later helped establish Pew Charitable Trusts. The expansive 13,500-square-foot property sits on 15 acres, and dates back to about 1908.

Pew, his wife Alberta, and their four children lived at Rocky Crest while Pew was vice president of the family-owned company, a role he took on at age 26. But it’s his wife, Alberta, who was known for her love of gardening and nature. That interest is evident in Rocky Crest’s formal gardens and terraces, which were designed by Thomas Sears, the same landscape architect who redesigned Washington Square.

And 5.9 of the 15 acres are preserved to perpetuity by the Natural Lands Trust.

The actual home is equally extravagant. It’s split into two wings, with five bedrooms and their individual bathrooms on one side and the master suite located in the other wing. All of the bedrooms look out to the grounds.

Also on the grounds is a “nearly” Olympic-sized pool, a pool house, a tennis court, and a carriage house with two 1-bedroom apartments inside. The stables has been converted into a wine-tasting room with an enormous 1,000-bottle cellar.

The asking price of Rocky Crest is $4,999,999. Annual property taxes are $108,816.

• 650 Dodds Lane [Kurfiss Sotheby’s International Realty]
• The Pews: Using wealth to promote social responsibility [Main Line Times]