Crum Lynne is an unincorporated community in Ridley Township, Delaware County, tucked between Chester, Essington, and Ridley Park along US Route 13, better known here as Chester Pike. It grew up around the Pennsylvania Railroad in the 1800s, and it still has its own SEPTA Regional Rail station plus some of the most affordable housing in the county within easy reach of I-95 and Philadelphia International Airport. If you want a genuine small-town feel with the train, the highway, and the airport all genuinely close by, Crum Lynne rewards a closer look.
A lot of the good stuff here is compressed: the commute math, the school zoning, the parks list, and the honest comparisons to Boothwyn, Upper Chichester, and the other Delco towns on your shortlist. For the full breakdown, jump over to my complete Crum Lynne community guide after this read.
A Railroad Town Named for a Village in Wales
Crum Lynne began as Leiperville, named for Thomas Leiper, the businessman who built one of the first railroads in the United States to haul stone from his quarries down to Crum Creek. The community took the name Crum Lynne in the 1870s, inspired by Crumlin, Wales, the hometown of the mother of a Pennsylvania Railroad vice president; the railroad picked the name for its new station, and a station town grew up around the tracks.
By 1906, promoter James F. Dougherty opened the Colonial Hotel on Chester Pike, and it became a noted training stop for boxers of the era. Jack Dempsey trained at the hotel in 1918, and the building anchored the town through the decades. That blend of railroad history and everyday neighborhood life still shapes the streetscape along Chester Pike and Ridley Avenue, where brick twins and bungalows sit under mature shade trees. The deeper story of the Leiperville era and the landmarks still standing is in my complete Crum Lynne community guide.
The Commute: Your Own Train Station, I-95, and the Airport
Location is Crum Lynne's superpower. The Crum Lynne SEPTA station at 350 West Ridley Avenue is a stop on the Wilmington/Newark Line, a direct rail ride into Center City Philadelphia, and it sits along the Amtrak Northeast Corridor. It connects to SEPTA Bus 114 as well, and because the station is walkable from much of the community, there is a real car-free option for commuters who prefer the train.
Drivers are just as well served. Philadelphia International Airport is about 6 miles away, usually under 15 minutes at the wheel, which makes Crum Lynne one of the closest residential communities to PHL in all of Delaware County. Center City is roughly 16 miles north, about 35 to 40 minutes in typical commute traffic, and I-95 is minutes from most homes for runs to Wilmington and points south. The route-by-route breakdown, including the airport bus options, is in the full commute guide.
What Housing Costs in Crum Lynne
Crum Lynne's housing stock is mostly early 20th century: brick twin homes with two to three bedrooms, plus bungalows and modest colonials, many with front porches and original details. Homes.com puts the median home price around $208,000, and estimates across other sources generally land between roughly $180,000 and $260,000 depending on size and condition. Renovated twins in good shape tend to trade in the low $200,000s.
With roughly 3,800 residents, Crum Lynne is one of the more affordable communities within a short drive of the airport, and for buyers priced out of Ridley Park, Folsom, or Media, it is a genuine entry point into Delaware County homeownership. For what sells in the current market and what a brick twin really costs to own, use my Crum Lynne community guide as your starting point.
Schools: Ridley School District Serves the Area
Crum Lynne is served by the Ridley School District. Most local families are zoned for Eddystone Elementary School (K-5), which sits on East 9th Street in neighboring Eddystone, just over the Ridley Township line. Students then move on to Ridley Middle School for grades 6 to 8 and Ridley High School in Folsom for grades 9 to 12.
School fit is personal, and I always walk families through the specific buildings, bus stops, and programs that match their kids. The full district rundown, including nearby private options and how Ridley compares to the Chichester School District serving Boothwyn and Upper Chichester, is in the complete Crum Lynne guide.
Parks, Soccer, and a Local Burger on Chester Pike
Outdoor life is closer than the town's industrial-era history would suggest. The John Heinz National Wildlife Refuge at Tinicum, the largest freshwater tidal marsh in Pennsylvania with miles of trails and boardwalks, is a short drive up the road, and Ridley Creek State Park in Media offers more than 2,600 acres of trails, creeks, and picnic areas about 15 minutes north.
For a big night out, Subaru Park, home of the Philadelphia Union, sits in Chester about 4 to 5 miles away, roughly 10 minutes by car. And for a local bite without leaving town, Zac's Hamburgers has been grilling on Chester Pike at 1505 Chester Pike in Crum Lynne itself for years, a genuine neighborhood spot. The park-by-park and eat-by-eat rundown is in the Crum Lynne community guide.
Who Crum Lynne Is a Good Fit For
Crum Lynne suits airline workers and frequent flyers who want a quick airport run, rail commuters who like walking to their own station, first-time buyers who want brick-and-mortar character at an entry-level price, and anyone who wants a genuinely friendly town where longtime locals and newcomers mix. It is the kind of community where neighbors talk over the fence, kids bike to the ball field, and you can be at the airport gate in well under half an hour from your front door.
If you are weighing Crum Lynne against towns you have already toured around Upper Chichester, the combination of transit, airport access, and affordability is hard to match anywhere else in southeastern Delaware County.
A Friendly Railroad Town Ten Minutes from the Airport
Crum Lynne delivers a surprising combination: a piece of real Pennsylvania Railroad history, one of the closest residential communities to the airport in the county, a transit station at the end of the street, and home prices that stay low enough for first-time buyers. It is welcoming, well-located, and a little bit overlooked, which is exactly why it is worth a drive-by this fall.
When you are ready to look seriously at Delaware County homes, I would love to help. As a Realtor licensed in Pennsylvania and New Jersey, I guide buyers across Delco, from 115 Louise Dr in Upper Chichester to railroad towns like Crum Lynne that hug the airport. Call me at 267-977-0304, or book a quick chat, and let me show you around. You can find more buyer and seller reads at AndreRichardson.com.
Andre Richardson
Realtor · HomeSmart Realty Advisors · PA RS349905 · NJ 1969348