720 Morris Ave, Bryn Mawr, PA 19010

Description

Stone pillars and a carved “Garden House” plaque mark the entrance to this exceptional 1.67-acre Main Line Carriage House, where a long tree-lined drive curves toward a house that rewards attention before you reach the door. The architecture tells its own story: the front elevation reads as a French manor — stucco and stone with a grand roof profile, three cupolas, and copper downspouts — while the rear presents a classic Main Line stone Georgian, symmetrical and grounded. A graceful, curved staircase with iron balusters and a wood runner anchors the stone-floored entry hall, setting a tone the rest of the house sustains through hardwood floors, true divided light windows with deep sills, original interior doors, and period woodwork throughout. The formal living room features full paneled walls, a wood-burning fireplace, floor to ceiling built-in bookshelves, wet bar, and French doors opening to the walled brick courtyard. The library sits adjacent with floor-to-ceiling built-in bookshelves, original woodwork, deep sill windows, a second wood-burning fireplace, and two sets of French doors to the courtyard and the rear patio — a room that becomes a passageway between outdoor spaces when the doors are open in summer. The dining room seats twelve comfortably with a large picture window framing the courtyard and is connected to the kitchen through a butler’s pantry and breakfast room. The kitchen is fitted with a Thermador range, SubZero refrigerator, Bosh dishwasher, and inset cabinetry and granite countertops, with a pantry, wine cooler, freezer, and laundry area providing direct access to the bluestone side patio and built-in grill. A separate family room off the kitchen opens to a second rear bluestone patio with morning sun and direct backyard access. The back entry includes a generously sized mud room — with an exposed stone wall and built-in bench and closets — and reads as a proper room before you reach the main entry hall. There is a half bath with original stone floor and seating area adjacent. Upstairs, the primary suite has a vaulted ceiling, porthole window, and built-in bookshelves, connecting two walk-in closets with custom built-ins and a primary bath with marble, soaking tub with jets, full marble tile walls, double vanity with marble countertop, and mosaic tile floor. Four additional well-proportioned bedrooms with original hardwood floors share two full baths, and a media room with built-in entertainment wall, sloped ceiling, and a second porthole window anchors the upper level. Adjacent, there is a laundry room with built in cabinets, bookcases, and linen storage. A full unfinished attic with high ceilings running the entire length of the house represents a significant expansion opportunity that most buyers will not anticipate. The property was originally part of the Colmar Estate, and the carriage house carries that history with a comprehensive renovation in 2005. The private grounds include a walled brick courtyard with decorative pillars for three-season dining, bluestone patios with a flagstone grill base and English bluestone herb garden, and a large flat rear lawn fully screened by mature Norwegian pines and over fifty Belgian arborvitaes. The house is oriented to catch morning sun in the front and evening light on the back patio, the gardens sequence through spring and summer in succession, and the property draws birds, foxes, and the kind of wildlife that signals a properly mature landscape. Three-car garage, Belgian block lined motor court, central air with new compressor (2025), public water and sewer, natural gas, in-wall and ceiling speakers throughout interior and courtyard, two laundry rooms, 5 bedrooms, 3.5 baths. Minutes to public and private schools, Merion Cricket Club, Suburban Square, Ardmore Station, and routes to Philadelphia and New York — a private setting with proximity to everything.