PHILADELPHIA HISTORICAL COMMISSION COMMITTEE ON CERTIFICATION MINUTES 3 March 1981 Present: Edward Pinkowski, Chairman of the Committee on Certification and Member, Philadelphia Historical Commission Janet S. Klein, Vice-Chairman, Philadelphia Historical Commission John O. Higgins, Chief, Area Planning Division, City Planning Commission Herbert W. Levy, A.I.A., Chairman, Architectural Committee Hyman Myers, A.I.A. The seventh meeting of the Committee on Certification met at 2:30 p.m. on Tuesday, 3 March 1981, in Room 1313, City Hall Annex. 3416-3418 Baring Street This is a three-story double house erected in the early 1860s on the southwest corner of 35th & Baring Streets. Its style resembles that of the Italianate. Similar in design to several certified buildings along Baring Street, this structure reflects the overall residential character of the mid-19th Century neighborhood of Powelton. The design is attributed to Samuel Sloan. Mr. Levy commented that the form was ill-written, especially in its architectural description and requested that the staff of the Commission contact the author and request that future forms submitted be more concise and correct in details. The Committee unanimously recommended the certification of 3416 & 3418 Baring Street. 315 317-321 N. Broad Street - Packard Motor Corporation Building The Packard Motor Building, erected 1910-1911 from the designs of Kahn & Wilby of Detroit, stands seven stories high at the southeast corner of Broad and Wood Streets. The Packard Motor Car Company originally built it as a show room and assembly building. The structure's significance stems both from its architectural merit as one of the finest industrial buildings erected in Philadelphia in the early 20th century and its historical association with the automotive production industry in this city. The Packard Motor Corporation Building appears on the National Register of Historic Places. The Committee unanimously recommended the certification of 317-321 N. Broad Street, the Packard Motor Corporation Building. COMMITTEE ON CERTIFICATION -2- 3 March 1981 3730-3740 Ludlow Street - Church of the Saviour Charles M. Burns, Jr., extensively altered an existing mid-19th Century church on this property in 1889. His work included a new tower and facade. 13 years later, fire destroyed all but the new facade and the church hired Burns again to design a new church building. This church dominates the 38th Street landscape with its Italian Romanesque appearance. Through its architecture, painting and sculpture, the church preserves the artistic traditions of several of America's most important designers of the late nineteenth and early
facade and the church hired Burns again to design a new church building. This church dominates the 38th Street landscape with its Italian Romanesque appearance. Through its architecture, painting and sculpture, the church preserves the artistic traditions of several of America's most important designers of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. The Church of the Savior documents both Burns' championship of the Romanesque Revival and his ability to fully integrate historical detail into a unified and wholly original design. The Church of the Savior appears on the National Register of Historic Places. The Committee unanimously recommended certification of 3730-3740 Ludlow Street - the Church of the Saviour. 3723-3725 Chestnut Street - Church of the Savior Parish Building & Rectory After the 1902 fire, the Church purchased this double house. Burns designed a new parish building and extensively altered the house for a rectory. The two buildings stand three and a half stories high with brownstone facades. These buildings appear on the National Register. The Committee unanimously recommended certification of 3723-3725 Chestnut Street, Church of the Saviour Parish Building and Rectory. 2101-2199 Fairmount Avenue - Eastern State Penitentiary This building has appeared on Philadelphia Historical Commission rolls for almost twenty years. No record presently exists regarding its certification although some early records of the old Historic Values Committee have been lost. This Haviland-designed structure, erected between 1823 and 1836, signaled a radical shift in prison design which influenced architects of over 200 prisons throughout the world. For this reason, this building became one of the first structures placed on the National Register in 1966. It has also been designated a National Historic Landmark and been recorded by the Historic American Buildings Survey. The question was put to Mr. Higgins whether the Planning Commission would oppose ratification. He opined that the structure should be protected in as many ways as possible. The Committee unanimously recommended certification of 2101-2199 Fairmount Avenue, the Eastern State Penitentiary. [HANDWRITTEN NOTES: A superscript "D" appears in the top right corner of the page after the date "3 March 1981".] COMMITTEE ON CERTIFICATION -3- 3 March 1981 260-262 E. Girard Avenue - The Green Tree Tavern This building, erected in the 1840s by Joseph Singerly, anchors a row of four similar buildings, three of which have undergone major alterations over the last twenty years. The Tavern possesses no real architectural distinction, exhibiting a vernacular Italianate style found
260-262 E. Girard Avenue - The Green Tree Tavern This building, erected in the 1840s by Joseph Singerly, anchors a row of four similar buildings, three of which have undergone major alterations over the last twenty years. The Tavern possesses no real architectural distinction, exhibiting a vernacular Italianate style found elsewhere within the city. It has served for over 125 years as a local hostelry in Kensington, making it one of the oldest hotels in the city. The Green Tree Tavern appears on the National Register. After some discussion, the Committee, recognizing the historical merits of the tavern, voted 4 - 1 to recommend certification of 260-262 E. Girard Avenue, the Green Tree Tavern. Mrs. Klein opposed. 200 block S. Orianna Street - Bell's Court Bell's Court, erected between 1813 and 1815, demonstrates one of the many ways Philadelphians crammed living space into a limited area. Thomas Burley, a paper hanging manufacturer..by trade, developed the lot behind 269-271 S. 4th Street into a 14 foot wide court with four houses on each side. The southern four houses were demolished during the early 20th Century. The northern side was restored in 1961 by W. Nelson Anderson. Bell's Court has appeared on the PHC register for approximately 20 years. Plaques have been awarded to at least two of the dwellings. The Committee unanimously recommended certification of Bell's Court. 2101 Pine Street - Martha Garvin House Attributed to Thomas N. Frazier, 2101 Pine Street has sat in its Georgian Revival splendor since 1895. With the exception of the addition of the fire escape and the removal of the paneled shutters, the exterior has remained largely unaltered. For its detail and form, the architecture drew directly from the rich architectural heritage of 18th Century Philadelphia. The house also reflects the establishment of an upper-class neighborhood in an area noted for its undeveloped lots, warehouses and factories little more than 30 years earlier. The Committee unanimously recommended certification of 2101 Pine Street, the Martha Garvin House. 315-317 S. 22nd Street - the Neill-Mauran House Like 2101 Pine Street, this Wilson-Eyre designed structure represents the growth of the Rittenhouse Square neighborhood from an industrial wasteland to an upper-class residential neighborhood. Erected in 1890, it stands both as an early example of the Medieval Revival style and of the eclecticism associated with Eyre during his early years. The National Register listed this building in 1980. The Committee
of the Rittenhouse Square neighborhood from an industrial wasteland to an upper-class residential neighborhood. Erected in 1890, it stands both as an early example of the Medieval Revival style and of the eclecticism associated with Eyre during his early years. The National Register listed this building in 1980. The Committee unanimously recommended certification of 315-317 S. 22nd Street - the Neill-Mauran House. [HANDWRITTEN NOTES: Located in the upper right corner of the page, next to the "Martha Garvin House" heading: "AKA 340 S. 21st St"] COMMITTEE ON CERTIFICATION -4- 3 March 1981 4201-4245 Spruce Street - The Philadelphia Divinity School The plan and execution of the individual buildings of the Philadelphia Divinity School must not be regarded as separate structures but as part of the whole integrated scheme as originally conceived by the architects. The first group of buildings,as designed by Zantzinger, Borie & Medary in 1919-1921, include the William Bacon Stevens Library, built in 1922, St. Peter's House (the Deanery), built in 1924, St. Paul's House, built in 1925, and St. Andrew's Collegiate Chapel, built in 1926. After World War II, the Divinity School in 1951 commissioned C. Zantzinger, of Zantzinger and Borie, to design Memorial Hall, completed in 1952, and several years later the Borie & Smith firm designed Hart Hall, completed in 1955. Both of the latter buildings were designed in sympathy with the earlier structures and continued the tradition of the Tudor Gothic style. Founded in 1857 as a diocesan training school for Episcopal priests, the Philadelphia Divinity School received its charter in 1862 and located in several places before settling at the Spruce Street site in the 1920s. The school has since moved to New England. The Architectural Record in 1923 cited the complex "one of the most significant architectural undertakings in the course of erection in America." The Committee unanimously recommended certification of the following buildings of the Philadelphia Divinity School: The William Bacon Stevens Library St. Peter's House St. Paul's House St. Andrew's House Memorial Hall Hart Hall 5500 Wessahickon Avenue - Alden Park Alden Park consists of six high-rise apartment towers of various complex shapes arranged in three groups of three, two and one, placed on some 30 acres overlooking the Wessahickon and Monoshone Valleys. Edwin Rourck designed these structures in 1925 which combined the Le Corbusian idea of a city of towers in a garden setting with the style and detail
various complex shapes arranged in three groups of three, two and one, placed on some 30 acres overlooking the Wessahickon and Monoshone Valleys. Edwin Rourck designed these structures in 1925 which combined the Le Corbusian idea of a city of towers in a garden setting with the style and detail of traditional architecture. The most prominent of the tower clusters is the Manor, fronting on Wissa- hickon Avenue, with three 9-story towers grouped around a handsome octagonal one-story hall. The Kenilworth, located on the Wessahickon Valley banks, consists of 2 Y-plan towers, one of 13 stories, the other of 14 stories, at- tached to a one story entrance hall. The 12-story single-towered Cambridge sits on School House Lane. Included in the complex of buildings are two ga- rages and an indoor swimming pool building which conforms in architectural character to the other buildings. Alden Park has been placed on the National Register. The Committee unanimously recommended certification of the following buildings of Alden Park: 5500 Alden Park Manor, 5500 Wessahickon Avenue The Kenilworth 2979 W School House Lane The Cambridge, 2967 W. School House Lane The Manor garage The Cambridge garage The swimming pool building [HANDWRITTEN NOTES: 1. Located in the right margin next to "The Kenilworth" entry: "5500" with a pen mark and "2979 W School House Lane" written in handwriting (appears to be a correction or clarification) 2. Located in the right margin next to the Alden Park Manor entry: "5500" written in handwriting] COMMITTEE ON CERTIFICATION - 5 - 3 March 1981 Awbury Arboretum "Awbury" is important to the developmental history of Philadelphia as the country seat of one of the city's most prominent Quaker families, the Copes; as a document of the continuing evolution of Quaker taste; as a collection of significant country houses and as an important alternative to the usual pattern of urban land development. The architectural evolution of Awbury is of equal significance for it represents nearly a century of taste of one important Quaker family and its descendants. The first group of houses was built in the mid-19th Century marking a transition from the vernacular country house to a more sophisticated suburban residence of the sort championed by A.T. Downing. The next generation of buildings took the form of grey stone picturesque houses that reflected Gothic taste but eschewed the flamboyant ornament and detail of high-style mid-Quaker contemporaries. The next significant generation
from the vernacular country house to a more sophisticated suburban residence of the sort championed by A.T. Downing. The next generation of buildings took the form of grey stone picturesque houses that reflected Gothic taste but eschewed the flamboyant ornament and detail of high-style mid-Quaker contemporaries. The next significant generation began around 1900 and includes a group of handsome Colonial Revival houses of brick and local stone that confirm the regional selection of the colonial mode. The Committee unanimously recommended certification of the following buildings of Awbury Arboretum: 6120 Ardleigh Street - The Francis Cope House; a 2½ story, 3-bay Gothic Revival house with a large front porch erected c. 1852 6130 Ardleigh Street - The Thomas P. Cope House; a 2½ story, 5-bay stone house erected c. 1860. Front porch has been removed. 6118 Ardleigh Street - Stables; a 2-story, Gothic Revival structure since converted into a residence, erected c. 1852 1011 E. Washington Lane - Caroline Cope House; a 2½ story, 5-bay colonial house erected 1793 with a one-bay addition placed on the side and rear from the designs of Carl Ziegler in 1912. 943 E. Haines Street, a.k.a. 5923 Devon Place - John S. Haines House; a 2½ story, 5-bay house c.1860 originally similiar to the Thomas Cope House but with later alterations, additions and a wood porch on the front and sides. (1600 block E. WASH. LANE) - Jonathan Evans House; a 2½ story, Victorian Gothic house designed by Addison Hutton in 1875 1010 E. Washington Lane - Alexis T. Cope House; a 2½ story, Victorian Gothic residence attributed to Addison Hutton, erected c. 1882 6012-6014 Chew Avenue - Margaret Cope House; a 2½ story, slate, tile and shingle covered double house designed by Cope & Stewardson c. 1887 6120 Sprague Street - Scattergood House; a 2½ story, 7-bay stone house designed in the English Country style by Brookie & Hastings c. 1909 999 E. Haines Street - Kimber House; a 1½ & 2½ story, 6-bay house de- signed in the Arts & Craft style by Edmund B. Gilchrist in 1914 [HANDWRITTEN NOTES: Bracketed handwritten notation in the left margin: "(1600 block E. WASH. LANE)" preceding the Jonathan Evans House entry.] COMMITTEE ON CERTIFICATION - 6 - 3 March 1981 There being no further business, the meeting adjourned at 4:10 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Jefferson M. Moak Research Historian