Philadelphia Architecture: A Guide to the City

by John Andrew Gallery

"The architectural heritage of over 300 years is visible on every street in every section of the city: Philadelphia is quite literally a museum of American architecture. Its 'collection' includes…virtually every important style found throughout the United States."—From the Introduction

Philadelphia Architecture provides descriptions and photographs of over 400 of the city's important buildings. With seven walking tours, historical timelines, and short biographies of Philadelphia architects (including Frank Furness and Louis Kahn), the book will appeal to visitors, residents, and architecture enthusiasts.

The core of the guide is a catalog of 250 buildings representing a broad range of building types and architectural styles. The building entries are divided into three chronological sections: 1682–1820; 1821–1900; 1900–1983. Each entry gives the name, date, location, and architect as well as information about the client, events related to the building, its use and major architectural features. The descriptions show how the buildings fit into the social and economic history of the city as well as how they relate to the evolution of architectural styles.

Each chronological section is introduced by an essay which describes the physical, social, and economic growth of the city, thereby placing the buildings in a broader context. These essays are illustrated by maps and decorative arts representative of the period. There is an illustrated glossary of architectural terms and biographies of the most important Philadelphia architects.

The guide also contains nine walking and driving tours with four-color maps of areas with significant concentrations of important buildings, and cross-referenced to the building entries. Places of interest in the city and region such as the Italian Market, Longwood Gardens, and The Philadelphia Zoo are highlighted. A reference section (places to get information about architecture, tours and the like) and an index conclude this handy, informative book.

Philadelphia Architecture is copublished with The Foundation for Architecture, a non-profit organization affiliated with the Philadelphia Chapter of the American Institute for Architects.

John Andrew Gallery has been a member of Philadelphia's community development and historic preservation community for close to fifty years. From 2002 to 2013, he was Executive Director of the Preservation Alliance for Greater Philadelphia, where he advocated for the city's historic built environment. He is the author of The Planning of Center City Philadelphia: From William Penn to the Present and editor of Sacred Sites of Center City, both available from Paul Dry Books.

Genres: Architecture

228 pages, Paperback

First published December 30, 1994

Reviews

[Emily · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm not sure I should really count this as "read," as I've hardly done a linear read, but I've spent a good bit of time with it and am impressed. This covers everything from Elfreth's Alley to the new Temple library which isn't even built yet. As an architectural guide, it doesn't go through every little charming house, just because they're 19th c.; it highlights variety instead. A good third of the listings are devoted to structures built in my lifetime. Each building gets a little info panel and blurb which answers basic questions like "what is this? what was it? why is it like that?" I'm looking forward to trying some of the walking tours when the temperature gets below 95, maybe in October or so...

[Sheena · Rating 4 out of 5]

Philadelphia is a terribly under-rated city. This little book provides a great snapshot of some of the most interesting architectural jewels found throughout the area. It is by no means the most extensive collection of buildings nor the most comprehensive. It does, however, provide a terrific overview and interesting tidbits of some of the city's great edifices. I like the way the book is organized chronologically and even gives a brief bio of some of the most influential Philadelphia architects. I hope in the next edition they will include more neighborhoods to their tours. How can you not have a walking tour that includes Rittenhouse?

[Jobiska (Cindy)]

Mine's a different edition, but still useful if you are a resident and curious about some of the older buildings. Alas, it predates all of the current (taller than Billy Penn) skyscrapers, my son's main love!

[Eli]

I own an earlier edition of this book published by the Foundation for Architecture in 1984.