2023 will mark the Sesquicentennial (150th Anniversary) of Ardmore, so to speak. 50 years ago, the local newspapers and businesses made a big deal over what they called the “Ardmore Centennial.”
They even formed an “Ardmore Centennial Corporation,” which organized several community events and published a 54-page commemorative booklet.
The booklet included a history of Ardmore by Ben (Uncle Ben) Kramer, the editor of the Main Line Chronicle. The Main Line Times also published their own large “special edition” insert to commemorate the Centennial.
As Kramer noted in his write-up, 1873 marked the year that the Pennsylvania Rail Road decided to change the name of its Athensville Station, and shortly after that the Village of Athensville, well established for several decades saw its name changed to Ardmore. So what they were really celebrating in 1973 was the 100th Anniversary of the renaming of Athensville to Ardmore.
Still, accepting the premise that 1973 was the year of the Ardmore Centennial, then this year is presumably the town’s Sesquicentennial. However, the Ardmore Business Association hasn’t indicated that they plan to commemorate the “Ardmore Sesqui.”
