Celebrating National Historic Preservation Month

May is National Historic Preservation Month. To celebrate, the Preservation Alliance asked 31 historic preservation leaders in Philadelphia to name a building that has inspired them and why. We invite you to watch this space daily and hear from leaders in the local preservation movement as they reveal the historic buildings that have inspired them.

Robert Thomas, AIA The Brentwood 4130-40 Parkside Avenue, Philadelphia

The huge, five-story, late 19 th century Brentwood opposite Fairmount Park is the centerpiece of the local and national Parkside Historic districts. It is part of the iconic Poth Development known throughout the region to people travelling down Parkside Avenue.   But these imposing Germanic buildings are important to me for my relationship with the community at large and the developers, James Brown of the Parkside Historic Preservation Corporation and Pennrose Management. Twenty years of preservation work in Parkside gave me the opportunity to help in the considerable effort to turn this great neighborhood around, not only preserving and adaptively reusing the historic buildings, many of which were ruins when we started, but at the same time providing affordable housing, and setting  the framework for other investment, making the community a great place to live.   This has been the experience of a lifetime.

Robert Thomas, AIA Partner, Campbell Thomas & Co and Chairman, Philadelphia Historical Commission

NEW VIRTUAL LECTURES Watch from the safety and comfort of your own home!

Thank you to our sponsor

Tuesday, May 12, 6:00 PM to 7:30 PM Boathouse Row: Untold Stories of a Philadelphia Icon Presented by Dotty Brown Digging into 150 years of archives for her book, Boathouse Row, Waves of Change in the Birthplace of American Rowing , Dotty Brown, a former editor at the Philadelphia Inquirer, discovered quirky and fascinating stories behind the façade of these 19 th century houses. She will reveal some of them, including: how one of Philadelphia’s best known architects came to build on Boathouse Row; its ties with two of the city’s 19 th century firehouses; why Thomas Eakins’ early work focused on rowers; and the battle women fought for a house of their own in the all-male venue. Dotty blogs about the Row and its history on her website: www.BoathouseRowTheBook.com

More Information and Tickets

Tuesday, May 19, 6:00 PM to 7:30 PM Art Deco in Philadelphia Presented by Dr. David Brownlee ,  Frances Shapiro-Weitzenhoffer Professor of 19th Century European Art,  University of Pennsylvania Philadelphia contributed an exhilarating chapter to the history of "Art Deco," the colorful, invented modern style that offered an exciting alternative to the austere functionalism in the 1920s and 30s. The quintessential style of the Jazz Age, Art Deco brought brilliant color to the decoration of the Art Museum, introduced exotic motifs (including Mayan and Spanish Colonial) to the city's new skyscrapers, and contributed zig-zagging ornament to our radio stations and "automat" restaurants. It was also one of the components of the brilliant stylistic synthesis created by George Howe and William Lescaze in the era's greatest landmark, the PSFS Building.

More Information and Tickets

Please Support The Preservation Alliance