Hidden City Philadelphia
@hiddencityphila
Hidden City Philadelphia fosters public dialogue by exploring the intersection of people and place, and the tension between the past and the possible future.
How We Helped Get "The Roundhouse" Into the Library of Congress. www.facebook.com/share/p/1HFh...
Restoration Role Model: The Bellevue South Broad Street's grand dame dazzles with a faithful renovation. hiddencityphila.org/2025/06/rest...
A New Exhibition Reveals the Material Culture of Our Revolutionary City Maps, muskets, punch bowls, and other rare ephemera are currently on view at the American Philosophical Society Museum. hiddencityphila.org/2025/06/a-ne...
The Revolution Will Not Be Alphabetized: Saying Goodbye to Philly's Lettered Bus Route System As SEPTA implements its "Bus Revolution," Keshler Thibert takes a look back at the origins of the city's mass transit designation network. hiddencityphila.org/2025/05/the-...
New PATCO Station Renovations Cap Franklin Square’s Revival. Will It Last This Time? Kyle Bagenstose explores 300+ years of highs and lows at Philadelphia's most under-appreciated square. hiddencityphila.org/2025/05/new-...
Today on our website: Preservation Advocates Raise Alarm on $158M in Proposed Trump Funding Cuts State Historic Preservation Offices across the country will lose crucial financial resources if a federal bill is passed to axe NPS’s Historic Preservation Fund. hiddencityphila.org/2025/05/hist...
Philadelphia's “Cardboard Genius” Takes Center Stage in a New Exhibition The brilliant architectural creations of Kambel Smith is currently on view at the Germantown Historical Society. hiddencityphila.org/2025/05/phil...
A Performance and Podcast Explore the Complexities of the MOVE Bombing "MOVE Mocks Us All," a staged reading by journalist Maida Odom, gives a firsthand account of the May 1985 tragedy on Osage Avenue. hiddencityphila.org/2025/05/a-pe... @tulogancenter.bsky.social @templeuniversity.bsky.social
South Broad Street Landmark Added to the Philadelphia Register Kimberly Haas has this report from the May 2025 meeting of the Philadelphia Historical Commission. hiddencityphila.org/2025/05/sout...
Rittenhouse-Fitler Historic District Celebrates 30th Anniversary The Center City Residents Association and historic preservation advocates will mark the occasion on Sunday with a panel discussion and walking tours. hiddencityphila.org/2025/05/ritt...
Remembering Joel Spivak, Champion of All Things "Old Philly" Today we celebrate the life and work of a Philadelphia legend. hiddencityphila.org/2025/05/reme...
Today on our website --> BREAKING: Historic Willow Steam Plant Swiftly Heading For New Life as Apartments Redevelopment is full steam ahead for the hulking behemoth at 9th and Callowhill.
A New Art Exhibition Ponders the Perpetual Cycle of Urban Transition "Contemporary Ruin future visions" is now on view at Drexel University. hiddencityphila.org/2025/04/a-ne...
Temple University Uncovers Human Remains at Construction Site Earlier this month workers discovered bodies while digging the foundation for a new campus building. The event reveals a muddy history of reckless land stewardship. hiddencityphila.org/2025/04/temp...
Philadelphia's Oldest Surviving Bar Parties Like It's 1759 At the newly restored A Man Full of Trouble Tavern, you can drink a pint, sing sea shanties, and reacquaint yourself with the canons of American history. hiddencityphila.org/2025/04/phil...
Op-Ed: Philly Must Fight the Erasure of Black History Amy Cohen outlines how we can promote and protect African American history from the fallout of recent federal government mandates. hiddencityphila.org/2025/04/op-e...
Historic Bank in Point Breeze Nominated to the National Register Kimberly Haas has this report from the April 2025 meeting of the Philadelphia Historical Commission hiddencityphila.org/2025/04/hist...
Places Lost: Winter 2025 The Preservation Alliance for Greater Philadelphia highlights demolished buildings with its quarterly list, Places Lost. hiddencityphila.org/2025/04/plac...
BREAKING: Court OKs Plan to Sell Historic Mount Vernon Cemetery to Green Burial Company After decades of neglect, a historic cemetery in Allegheny West finds a new steward. Kyle Bagenstose has the news. hiddencityphila.org/2025/04/cour...
Unlisted Philadelphia: Finney & Son Alan Jaffe and Bryan Mckinney spotlight unique and significant historic buildings in the architectural illustration series, Unlisted Philadelphia. In this installment, a mad decent mausoleum makes art for a living. hiddencityphila.org/2025/04/unli...
A Modern Masterpiece in Rittenhouse Square Makes Market Headlines Mid-century architect Frank Weise’s distinctive studio and home is currently for sale. Kimberly Haas and Michael Bixler take us inside. hiddencityphila.org/2025/04/a-mo...
Historic Church of the Assumption Heads to Sheriff’s Sale A long-abandoned landmark on Spring Garden Street to be released from years of limbo. hiddencityphila.org/2025/03/hist...
A New Book Celebrates Philadelphia’s Rich Vegetarian History Local author Vance Lehmkuhl spotlights the city’s storied past of eating its greens. hiddencityphila.org/2025/03/a-ne...
On the edge of Northern Liberties, a safe haven has supported residents with fewer means for 120 years. Today, a haphazard townhouse project is putting the mission, and neighbors, at risk with little accountability. hiddencityphila.org/2025/03/help...
New Historic Register Designations Shed Light on Little-Known Philadelphia History Kimberly Haas has this report from the March 2025 meeting of the Philadelphia Historical Commission. hiddencityphila.org/2025/03/new-... #historicpreservation #northphilly
On our website: In Northwest Philadelphia, Five Historic Train Stations Will Be Revived With Reuse Gravers, Mt. Airy, Carpenter, Tulpehocken, and Upsal have sat vacant for years. They are now slated for creative reactivation. hiddencityphila.org/2025/03/in-n...
Our hearts go out to the congregation of United Missionary Baptist Church in Brewerytown. A devastating fire ripped through the sanctuary on February 17. Just now getting a look at the aftermath. Please send these folks positive vibes as they begin figuring out next steps.
On our website: Metropolitan Hospital and a City That Would Not Let it Rest Lee O'Neill follows a winding path through the 20th century with Philadelphia's most displaced medical facilities. hiddencityphila.org/2025/03/metr...
On our website —> Behind the Facade: the AJ Holman Building and a Man of the City The life of publisher Andrew Holman was as convoluted and contradictory as the city itself. Historian Zachary Matusheski peels back the layers of this complicated Philadelphian. hiddencityphila.org/2025/03/behi...
On our website: Philadelphia’s Little-known Black Literary Societies of the 19th Century Black Americans were largely banned from the city’s cultural institutions in the 1800s, so they created their own. #blackhistorymonth #blackhistory365 #19thcentury #literarysociety #philly