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Spruce Hill Historic District Added to the Philadelphia Register
At its meeting on July 12 the Philadelphia Historical Commission voted in favor of adding the Spruce Hill Historic District to the local register and approved two new construction projects that will each lead to the demolition of historic industrial buildings. The Spruce Hill Historic District, Southeast Quadrant, is comprised...
Young People’s Continental Congress to Put Fresh Eyes on the Nation’s Founding
The 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence is on July 4, 2026. The many scheduled events leading up to the sequential include the Young People’s Continental Congress (YPCC) presented by Carpenters’ Company and National History Day. YPCC kicks off this week and is set to recreate the events of the First Continental Congress.
UArts Closure Will Bring Change, but It’s Not the First Time
With the University of the Arts (UArts) announcing its abrupt closure this month, several blocks of South Broad Street might soon look different than they do today. The university’s real estate portfolio includes buildings with origins that span 100 years and are scattered along a five-block stretch of Broad Street, plus a few either east or west of it.
When Hot Dogs Threatened the Wissahickon Valley
The Wissahickon Valley has just about everything one could want in a park. There’s the beautiful sight of light filtering through the leaves of a towering oak, then reflecting off of the gently flowing creek below. In summer comes the sweet songs of the wood thrush and scarlet tanager. Year round, dozens of miles of rugged trails, coated with the sparkling dust of Wissahickon schist crushed underfoot, invite visitors to take it all in. But where, they may ask, are all of the hot dogs?
Queen Anne Home and Arts and Crafts Interior Listed on the Local Register
The Philadelphia Historical Commission approved two distinctly different nominations to the Philadelphia Register of Historic Places and reviewed two requests for construction on previously designated sites at its meeting on June 14. The home at 3343 West School House Lane in East Falls was built in 1896 and designed by...
Fleisher Art Memorial: Welcoming Immigrants Since 1898
We tend to take Fleisher Art Memorial for granted. It is where we may have gone as kids and returned as adults to make jewelry, paint, or try our hand at ceramics. Yet, we often forget the unique history and mission of this South Philly institution, which has been serving the needs of a constantly changing immigrant community for over 126 years.
In Germantown, a 152-Year-Old Cathedral Connects Communities Through Worship
The Cathedral Basilica of Saints Peter and Paul, a well known and impressive structure in the heart of Center City that most residents are likely familiar with, is not the only minor basilica in Philadelphia. Tucked away in the eastern section of Germantown is another impressive cathedral which shares the same papal designated title as a minor basilica: the Shrine of Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal.
A New Home is in the Works for the African American Museum Of Bucks County
The barn at Boone Farm’s and the surrounding 32 acres in Middletown Township have been empty for over 50 years. Now, the structure is being renovated and the farm will be the future site of the African American Museum of Bucks County. In 2020, County commissioners Diane Marselia, Robert...
A New Book Illuminates the Life and Work of a Forgotten Architect
For several years, a team of historians, archivists, and photographers have been working to return a forgotten architect to the historical record. Not just any architect: Minerva Parker Nichols (1862-1949) was the first woman to establish an independent architectural practice and she did that in Philadelphia. An exhibition at the...
Places to Save: Spring 2024
Editor’s Note: A version of this story was published in the Spring 2024 issue of Extant, a publication of the Preservation Alliance for Greater Philadelphia. Location: North Front and Cooper Streets, Camden, New Jersey. Built: 1924. Threat: Demolition. Built in 1924 for the Victor Talking Machine Co., Building No....
Op-Ed: Preserve Cultural Legacy, Too, Through Rebuild
Editor’s Note: A version of this story was published in the Spring 2024 issue of Extant, a publication of the Preservation Alliance for Greater Philadelphia. Rebuild was billed as a generational chance to reinvest in and rehabilitate our parks, recreation centers, and libraries–many historic but few designated–and the program may be former Mayor Jim Kenney’s most positive preservation legacy. While preservation is not an explicit Rebuild objective, it is one of its outcomes. Rebuild represents a renewal of our collective commitment to stewarding the city’s legacy public assets, honoring their civic promise, their enduring programs, the deep and generational community relationships they support, their historic architecture, and quality public design. That’s just the kind of layered preservation our current moment demands. To date, however, Rebuild’s focus has been largely physical. The task ahead is to foreground forms of cultural preservation as part of Rebuild’s projects.
Four New Additions to the Local Register and One Demolition
At its meeting on May 10, the Philadelphia Historical Commission added four buildings to the Philadelphia Register of Historic Places. It also approved the demolition of an industrial property located within the city’s oldest historic district. 1200-08 South Broad Street was erected in 1954 for the Order of the...
Restoration Role Model: The Battery
Editor’s Note: A version of this story was published in the Spring 2024 issue of Extant, a publication of the Preservation Alliance for Greater Philadelphia. The imposing power plant formerly known as the Delaware Generating Station, which was built in 1917 and in operation until 2005, is being transformed by developer Lubert-Adler Partners and the Strada design firm into a riverfront destination with residences, workplaces, and event spaces. Strada Principal Christopher Kenney spoke with Extant about how the firm reimagined new purposes for the industrial- era leviathan and the massive spaces within.
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Hidden City Philadelphia of CultureTrust is dedicated to exploring Philadelphia’s urban landscape in all its complexity through journalism and public history.
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