Walking the Eraserhood: Broad and Callowhill Streets

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“Walking the Eraserhood” represents an ongoing street-level exploration of the Callowhill district and surrounding environs, a sort of virtual walking tour of the neighborhood.

The architecture on this corner masks the trench known as the Reading Viaduct City Branch, the remains of a former freight rail line that delivered goods to the neighborhood until the early nineties. To the northwest stands the majestic white tower of the 1889 James Elverson Building, the former home of the Philadelphia Inquirer and Daily News, also known at the time as Philadelphia Newspapers Incorporated (PNI). Originally trains traveling directly under this building delivered boxcars filled with rolls of newsprint for producing newspapers. This practice continued into the early nineties, when PNI moved their printing plant to a newer facility in Conshohocken. (Currently Elverson is owned by developer Tower Investments. Potential uses include a casino, a hotel, or apartments, depending on approvals.) Rails originally continued under Broad Street Bridge, here, and into the basement of the William Steele & Sons designed Terminal Commerce Building on the northeast corner. Terminal Commerce used to house the headquarters of the Reading Railroad. It was so large and busy that, to this day, it occupies its own 5-digit Zip Code. Currently it houses Sunguard, a computer server co-location service.

Copyright © 2010-2013, Bob Bruhin. All rights reserved.

Walking the Eraserhood: Broad and Wood Streets

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“Walking the Eraserhood” represents an ongoing street-level exploration of the Callowhill district and surrounding environs, a sort of virtual walking tour of the neighborhood.

On the northeast corner of this intersection is the former site of the Colonial Revival style Willys-Overland Company building, demolished in 2012, after only two years dedicated as part of CIHD, to make way for a center for the Pennsylvania Ballet. Attached to this lot, just to the north of the Willys-Overland site, stands the 1911 US. Tire Company Building, slated to be occupied by Pennsylvania Ballet as part of the same complex. The southeast corner still contains the Albert Kahn designed Packard Motor Company Building, currently filled with luxury apartments.

Copyright © 2010-2013, Bob Bruhin. All rights reserved.

Walking the Eraserhood: 13th and Wood Streets

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“Walking the Eraserhood” represents an ongoing street-level exploration of the Callowhill district and surrounding environs, a sort of virtual walking tour of the neighborhood. This is the first installment in the series.

This is the corner colorfully referred to as “The Heart of the Eraserhood.” On the southeast corner of this intersection is the site where David Lynch first lived when he studied at Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts (PAFA). Lynch reports he lived, “right kitty-corner from the morgue,” which still stands on the northwest corner of the intersection, now serving an annex to the main building of Roman Catholic High School, around the block at Broad and Vine streets. On the northeast corner of this intersection stands the historic Heid building, a pivotal site in the formation of the Callowhill Industrial Historic District (CIHD).