Harold Carter Pike, a 1910 graduate of Cheltenham High School, served a state-record 53 years of continuous service to Cheltenham Township from 1914 to 1967.

Affectionately known as “Mr. Cheltenham,” Pike served as Cheltenham’s very first township manager and secretary and helped the community adapt from the horse-and-buggy era to modern times.

According to local historian Chuck Langerman, the budget was in the black during 39 of the 40 years he served as township manager. Only once in 1932, at the height of the Depression, did the ledger show a deficit. He also coined the slogan, “It’s Great to Live in Cheltenham Township” and was largely responsible for the Cheltenham Township library system and the township park system.

Pike served in the state legislature and was active in numerous sports and community activities. He was a reporter for the Jenkintown Times Chronicle and Philadelphia daily newspapers.

He received numerous honors during his tenure, among them the erection of a bronze bust in the township building in 1975. The municipal services building was named in his honor.

From 1941 to his death in 1978, Mr. Pike lived in the Richard Wall House at 8128 Old York Road. According to Cheltenham Township records, Mrs. Pike, the last resident, left a widow in 1979. In 1980, the building was placed under the aegis of the Cheltenham Township Historical Commission.

Pictured below is the Richard Wall House and 1940 Cheltenham High School graduate and field hockey star Betty Steinmetz with Pike looking on:

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Photos: Cheltenham Township, Pennsylvania House of Representatives Archives