PhilaPlace

Cecil B. Moore

Lisa Costello of The Historical Society of Pennsylvania — Tue, 16 Apr 2013 14:39:07 +0000

Cecil B. Moore was one of the most significant civil rights leaders in Philadelphia. His last residence was located at 1708 Jefferson Street. In 1974, Moore bought the house from Raymond Pace Alexander, the first African American judge in Philadelphia. Both Moore and Alexander played important roles during the civil rights movement within Philadelphia. However, Moore’s civil right campaigns and modern leadership style were more aggressive than the older generation of activists. During the mid-1960s, he was able to make a more personal connection within the black community than other civil rights leaders. His ability to connect was partly due to his streetwise attitude and, to help him gain support from the average minority community, his hard work to present an image as an ordinary man. Despite appearances, however, Cecil Bassett Moore came from a middle class family. He was born in 1915 in West Virginia. Moore always valued his educational opportunities. His positive early educational experience motivated him to further his education. After high school, Moore attended Bluefield College. Following his graduation from college, he chose to enlist in the Marine Corps and serve overseas during World War II. By the end of his service, he had gained the …

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The Philadelphia Tribune

Lisa Costello: The Historical Society of Pennsylvania — Tue, 16 Apr 2013 14:33:21 +0000

The Philadelphia Tribune located at 520 South 16 Street Philadelphia, Pennsylvania is one of many historic landmarks within the city. Since the birth of America the city of Philadelphia significantly shaped American society and culture. From the establishment of the Continental Congress that signed the Declaration of Independence to the temporary capital of the United States, Philadelphia became a central location for social equality and political activism. This gave rise to the establishment of many black businesses. Originally titled The Weekly Tribune is now know as The Philadelphia Tribune is the oldest surviving black newspaper in the country. Christopher James Perry Jr., an African- American journalist and businessmen, was the founder of the Tribune. Perry was born on September 11, 1854 in Baltimore, Maryland. Christopher Perry was fortunate to attend public school. His family eventually moved to Philadelphia where he continued his education by attending night school in the city. He became passionate about journalism and wrote for the Philadelphia Sunday Mercury until the company went bankrupt in 1884. His love of journalism motivated him to establish his own newspaper. Perry successfully started his own newspaper called The Philadelphia Tribune on November 27th, 1884. Perry’s first issue was written by …

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The Chestnut Hill Historical Society

William Gold of the Historical Society of Pennsylvania — Thu, 28 Mar 2013 18:31:20 +0000

A visitor to the Chestnut Hill Historical Society may be delighted to come across a 1951 Springside High School yearbook among the Society’s extensive collection. Longtime volunteer archivist and board member, Meredith Sonderskov, gave the Society her yearbook for safe keeping. With the assistance of her mother, Sonderskov has faithfully saved clippings of her classmates’ wedding, birth, divorce and death announcements over the years within the pages of the yearbook. Sonderskov’s purpose in donating the book to the Society was to preserve it for future generations within the community. The historians and volunteers at the Chestnut Hill Historical Society receive almost ninety percent of the items in their collection through donations. Meredith Sonderskov compares finding items to a treasure hunt. The Society also has a small acquisition fund for acquiring items and generous members of the Community may purchase items and donate them to the Society’s collection. The Society’s Collection Committee often finds items on auction sites such as EBay. The Collection Committee at the Society has three main requirements for accepting an item into the historical collection. First, the staff at the Society is generally looking to collect paper documents, such as deeds, letters, photographs and maps. The staff’s …

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The Philadelphia Museum of Art

William Gold of Historical Society of Pennsylvania — Mon, 18 Mar 2013 16:33:33 +0000

The founding of Philadelphia Museum of Art occurred during a time in Philadelphia’s history when the City’s driving force was the average factory worker. The average Philadelphian could come to the Art Museum in its early days and view an American’s idea of art, which included pottery, furniture, glass and tin. What they would not be able to see at this early art museum were works by European master artists. The exhibits at the Museum reflected what the average person could make with their own creativeness and their two hands. This vision of art is linked to the founding of the Museum. Before the 1876 Centennial Exposition, a planning committee was formed of representatives from the Philadelphia City Council and the Pennsylvania General Assembly. This Commission, which was led by Representative Joseph R. Hawley, proposed the establishment of a permanent art museum in the Exposition’s Memorial Hall. In February 1876, it opened as the Pennsylvania Museum and School of Industrial Art with a charter from the state of Pennsylvania. The four thousand pieces of art, which had been displayed in Memorial Hall during the Exposition, became the beginning of the Art Museum’s collection. The Pennsylvania Museum was an art museum …

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Baseball Legend Edith Houghton

Philadelphia Neighborhoods — Wed, 13 Mar 2013 18:00:50 +0000

By the early twentieth century, Philadelphia’s industrial base had transformed the northern parts of the city into a hub. The city established rail lines to transport passengers and freight quickly. Neighborhoods of row-homes and wealthy estates sprang up to house workers and captains of industry. Shopping districts and restaurants thrived as the population grew. Amid these changes in North Philadelphia, a girl named Edith Houghton (2/10/1912-2/2/2013) was practicing baseball and forming lasting bonds in her new neighborhood at 25th and Diamond Streets. Around 1917, Edith moved with her parents and nine older brothers and sisters to their brand-new house at 25th and Diamond. Directly across Diamond Street there was a large park with walking paths, benches, and a baseball diamond. When the diamond was free, the kids in the neighborhood would start a game of baseball. The first position Edith played was shortstop, but the kids took turns at all of the positions in the diamond in the park. Edith knew all the neighborhood kids. Edith’s father, William L. Houghton, distributed goods for a large grocery company. He was also a skilled baseball player who taught his youngest daughter many techniques. As young as age 6, Edith posed for photos …

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The City Tavern Restaurant

William Gold of Historical Society of Pennsylvania — Wed, 06 Mar 2013 14:58:20 +0000

Around 1700, William Penn is believed to have been responsible for introducing coffee to the colony of Pennsylvania. At the time, Pennsylvania colonists did not normally drink coffee on a regular basis due to its high price nor was it as popular as tea. Colonists, however, switched to drinking coffee after the British Government added a high tax to the purchase cost for tea in the late 1760’s. After 1773, colonists in Philadelphia would often visit the City Tavern to drink coffee. The City Tavern’s construction was funded by fifty-three members of Philadelphia’s social and financial elite. Each subscriber to the Tavern contributed twenty-five pounds. Many of these trustees knew about architecture, including Henry Hill. He was the designer of both Congress Hall and the Old City Hall. The trustees bought the land for the tavern from Samuel Powel. Powel was the last mayor of Philadelphia under British rule. Seven of the trustees supervised the Tavern’s construction, including Joseph Wetherill who supplied the lumber and Thomas Proctor who designed and built the City Tavern. When it opened in 1774, Daniel Smith was the first proprietor of the Tavern. It was Smith’s belief that the colonies should remain loyal to England. …

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St George's United Methodist Church

William Gold of the Historical Society of Pennsylvania — Wed, 20 Feb 2013 16:36:48 +0000

Preacher John Wesley and his brother Charles originated the order of Methodism at Oxford University as a religious club for students interested in increasing their spirituality. As the club grew, Wesley wanted to see this religious movement spread to the American colonies. Though Wesley never stepped through its doors, one of the main tools for the achievement of Wesley’s dream was historic St. George’s United Methodist Church of Philadelphia. The founding of St. George’s Church actually came about as the result of a fortunate series of events. In 1763, a group of German reformed Christians had originally separated from the congregation of the Old First Reform church and began to build a new church for themselves. They, however, ran out of money. These Reformists allowed a Methodist group to meet in the unfinished building. When the Reformists needed to sell the property, the Methodist group was able to purchase the church for a reasonable price. In 1769, the historic St. George’s Methodist Church officially opened in Philadelphia in this building. In November 1769, Joseph Pilmore and Richard Boardman, John Wesley’s first Methodist envoys in America, gave their first sermons at historic St. George’s in Philadelphia. Pilmore and Boardman went on …

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Francis Daniel Pastorius Homestead

William Gold of the Historical Society of Pennsylvania — Wed, 30 Jan 2013 17:10:57 +0000

On October 24, 1683, thirteen families from Krefeld, Germany, met Daniel Francis Pastorius in a cave near Germantown, Philadelphia. Pastorius, as a representative of the Frankfort Land Company, had bought land for these settlers from new friend and fellow Quaker William Penn. The Settlers met in Pastorius’ temporary cave dwelling to choose the plots of land for their new homes. They used a lottery system and, shortly after, began building houses and preparing for the winter. Within the year, many more German settlers were coming to Germantown. Daniel Francis Pastorius was born in Sommerhausen, Germany in 1651. Pastorius went to University of Altorf and eventually received his doctorate degree of law at Numerberg. Instead of practicing law, Pastorius joined the religious group of Pietists who believed in treating everyone with kindness and respect. The Pietists also strived to maintain their own good behavior. Through their agent Pastorius, the Pietists purchased from William Penn fifteen thousand acres to build a religious haven in Pennsylvania. During this time, Pastorius often thought about returning home to Germany. However, Pastorius so believed in Penn’s vision of a haven for religious freedom that he remained in Pennsylvania. Pastorius soon began to write about the freedom …

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The Pennsylvania School for the Deaf

William Gold of Historical Society of Pennsylvania — Wed, 30 Jan 2013 14:52:51 +0000

In 1820, according to legend, Bishop William White saw a young hearing-impaired child, Albert Newsam, drawing on a Philadelphia street. Bishop White was so impressed with the child’s drawing that he decided to help provide for the education of the hearing-impaired in Philadelphia. Bishop White soon met young Newsam teacher, David Seixas. Seixas had decided to provide care and instruction for hearing impaired children after observing that there was a need for a deaf school in Philadelphia. In 1819, Seixas took fifteen deaf students into his home and began educating them. Bishop White encouraged members of the American Philosophical Society to find a more permanent home for Seixas’ school. Members of the Society met on April 12, 1820 to officially establish “The Pennsylvania School for the Deaf.” The members of the Society made several plans for the new school. These plans included electing people to run the school and finding ways to pay for a school building. The Society also requested that he Pennsylvania State Legislature officially recognize the Pennsylvania School for the Deaf as a state approved school. On February 8, 1821, The Pennsylvania government officially gave the Pennsylvania School for the Deaf recognition as an educational institution. The …

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Bredenbeck's Bakery

William Gold of the Historical Society of Pennsylvania — Wed, 09 Jan 2013 15:16:54 +0000

Karen H. Boyd-Rodhe and her husband, Irvin Boyd, purchased the property on Germantown Avenue that would one day become the Bredenbeck’s Bakery in 1979. The actual bakery itself did not open until close to four years later on April 14, 1983 with as Karen states, “the Bredenbeck name, a hope and a dream.” Karen and Irvin also knew that they were taking a risk starting a new small business. The Bredenbeck Bakery, in fact, was the sole small business out of five that opened on Germantown Avenue in 1983 to remain in operation after their first eighteen months. Yet, Karen Boyd-Rodhe believes that “America is the best place to start a business.” Frederick Robert Bredenbeck must have agreed. He brought his dream of starting his own bakery to America from Germany nearly a century earlier. The first Bredenbeck’s Bakery at 511 Callowhill Street, Northern Liberties, was strictly a bread bakery as Frederick planned. His daughter Ann, however, began experimenting with baking cakes. Her father only learned of these efforts after he found a burnt batch of cakes in the trash. After the incident, she was allowed to make cakes. The tradition of delicious cakes at Bredenbeck was born. Soon, the …

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