Place: Philadelphia (Pa.) / Form: Photographs. - Philadelphia Area Archives Search Results

Extent:: 84.0 linear feet
Abstract:: The Fairmount Park Art Association (FPAA) was the United States' first private, nonprofit organization that worked to integrate public art and urban planning. Founded in 1872, the FPAA initially focused on enhancing Philadelphia's Fairmount Park by purchasing and commissioning sculpture, but by 1906 it had embraced a broader goal: "to promote and foster the beautiful in the City of Philadelphia, in its architecture, improvements and general plan." The FPAA supported city planning projects that incorporated outdoor sculpture and advocated the establishment of Philadelphia's Art Jury, which later became the Philadelphia Art Commission. In 2012, the Fairmount Park Art Association changed its name to the Association for Public Art. The Fairmount Park Art Association records span from 1872, when the association was formed, until 1972. The collection includes the association’s constitution, meeting minutes, correspondence, committee files, reports, financial records, contracts, membership...(see more)

Held at: Historical Society of Pennsylvania [Contact Us]

Extent:: 17.3 linear feet (; 56 boxes)
Abstract:: Boies Penrose II (1902-1976) was a Philadelphia collector, writer and lecturer, and president of the Historical Society of Pennsylvania. He established the Boies Penrose fund for the collecting of photographs of old Philadelphia. The Boies Penrose pictorial collection is one of the Historical Society of Pennsylvania's best collections on Philadelphia's architectural history. The photographs depict a wide variety of subjects. Of particular interest are the photographs of Old City buildings that were demolished to build the Ben Franklin Bridge as well as the area demolished to build the Convention Center. There are also a number of photographs of the Centennial International Exhibition in 1876.

Held at: Historical Society of Pennsylvania [Contact Us]

Extent:: 193.2 linear feet (; 316 volumes, 438 boxes)
Abstract:: John Wanamaker (1838-1922) was a well-known merchant, entrepreneur, and lifelong resident of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He was active in the city's religious, political, and philanthropic areas, founded several Presbyterian churches and Sunday schools, and served as postmaster general under President Benjamin Harrison from 1889 to 1893. He opened his first Philadelphia clothing store, Oak Hall, with partner Nathan Brown in 1861, and founded John Wanamaker and Co. in 1869. In 1876, he opened "A New Kind of Store" known as the Grand Depot at Thirteenth and Market Streets. This store later became the flagship store, with satellite stores eventually established in central and southeastern Pennsylvania, as well as New Jersey, Delaware, and New York City. Wanamaker was at the forefront in many areas of retailing including merchandising, employee relations and advertising. His sons Thomas B. Wanamaker and L. Rodman Wanamaker were also active in the business. Thomas ran John Wanamaker and...(see more)

Held at: Historical Society of Pennsylvania [Contact Us]

Extent:: 455.0 linear feet
Abstract:: The Mutual Assurance Company for Insuring Houses from Loss by Fire was organized in Philadelphia in 1784, in order to make fire insurance available to those citizens who wished to have trees in front of their houses. A group of sixty-one men met on July 8, 1784 at the City (or London) Coffee House and agreed to create a new mutual fire insurance company. A deed of settlement was adopted and a green tree was selected as a symbol to appear on the company's policies and fire marks. The company archives of The Mutual Assurance Company, familiarly known as the Green Tree, consist of financial accounts and receipts, correspondence, histories, cancelled insurance surveys and policies, and miscellaneous material. The records date from the formation of the company in 1784 to 1995.

Held at: Historical Society of Pennsylvania [Contact Us]

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