The architecture of

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

is a mix of historic and modern styles that reflect the city's history. The first European settlements appeared within the present day borders of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in the 17th century with most structures being built from logs. By the 18th century, brick structures had become common.

Georgian Georgian may refer to: Common meanings * Anything related to, or originating from Georgia (country) ** Georgians, an indigenous Caucasian ethnic group ** Georgian language, a Kartvelian language spoken by Georgians **Georgian scripts, three scrip ...

and later

Federal style Federal-style architecture is the name for the classicizing architecture built in the newly founded United States between 1780 and 1830, and particularly from 1785 to 1815, which was heavily based on the works of Andrea Palladio with several inn ...

buildings dominated much of the

cityscape In the visual arts, a cityscape (urban landscape) is an artistic representation, such as a painting, drawing, print or photograph, of the physical aspects of a city or urban area. It is the urban equivalent of a landscape. ''Townscape'' is ...

. In the first half of the 19th century,

Greek revival The Greek Revival was an architectural movement which began in the middle of the 18th century but which particularly flourished in the late 18th and early 19th centuries, predominantly in northern Europe and the United States and Canada, but ...

appeared and flourished with architects such as William Strickland,

John Haviland John Haviland (15 December 1792 – 28 March 1852) was an English-born American architect who was a major figure in American Neo-Classical architecture, and one of the most notable architects working from Philadelphia in the 19th century. Biog ...

, and

Thomas U. Walter Thomas Ustick Walter (September 4, 1804 – October 30, 1887) was an American architect of German descent, the dean of American architecture between the 1820 death of Benjamin Latrobe and the emergence of H.H. Richardson in the 1870s. He was ...

. In the second half of the 19th century,

Victorian architecture Victorian architecture is a series of architectural revival styles in the mid-to-late 19th century. ''Victorian'' refers to the reign of Queen Victoria (1837–1901), called the Victorian era, during which period the styles known as Victorian we ...

became popular with the city's most notable Victorian architect being

Frank Furness Frank Heyling Furness (November 12, 1839 - June 27, 1912) was an American architect of the Victorian era. He designed more than 600 buildings, most in the Philadelphia area, and is remembered for his diverse, muscular, often unordinarily scaled b ...

. Steel and concrete

skyscraper A skyscraper is a tall continuously habitable building having multiple floors. Modern sources currently define skyscrapers as being at least or in height, though there is no universally accepted definition. Skyscrapers are very tall high-ris ...

s appeared in the first decades of the 20th century and glass and granite skyscrapers towards the end of the century. Construction continued into the 21st century with the city tallest building, the

Comcast Center Comcast Center, also known as the Comcast Tower, is a skyscraper in Center City, Philadelphia. The 58-story, tower is the second-tallest building in Philadelphia and in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania (after the Comcast Technology Center), a ...

. Philadelphia made significant contributions in the

architecture of the United States The architecture of the United States demonstrates a broad variety of architectural styles and built forms over the country's history of over two centuries of independence and former Spanish and British rule. Architecture in the United States h ...

. The

row house In architecture and city planning, a terrace or terraced house (British English, UK) or townhouse (American English, US) is a form of medium-density housing that originated in Europe in the 16th century, whereby a row of attached dwellings party ...

was introduced to the United States via Philadelphia in the 17th century, the United States' first International style skyscraper was built in Philadelphia, and one of the most important examples of

Postmodern architecture Postmodern architecture is a style or movement which emerged in the 1960s as a reaction against the austerity, formality, and lack of variety of modern architecture, particularly in the international style advocated by Philip Johnson and Henry- ...

Robert Venturi Robert Charles Venturi Jr. (June 25, 1925 – September 18, 2018) was an American architect, founding principal of the firm Venturi, Scott Brown and Associates, and one of the major architectural figures of the twentieth century. Together with h ...

Guild House A guildhall, also known as a "guild hall" or "guild house", is a historical building originally used for tax collecting by municipalities or merchants in Great Britain and the Low Countries. These buildings commonly become town halls and in som ...

, is located in the city.

Skyscrapers

Numerous steel and concrete

s were constructed in the first two decades of the 20th century. In the 1920s construction continued with skyscrapers such as the Aldine Trust Building, the

Lewis Tower Aria (formerly known as the Lewis Tower Building) is a 33-story Art Deco skyscraper in Center City Philadelphia designed by the firm Edmund Gilchrist. History and architectural features An exceptionally slender building, is historic structure wa ...

, the Drake Hotel, the

Ben Franklin House The Franklin Residences is a historic apartment building located at 834 Chestnut Street in Center City, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It opened on January 14, 1925, as the Benjamin Franklin Hotel and was named after United States Founding Father ...

and the Rittenhouse Plaza. In the early 1930s

30th Street Station 3 (three) is a number, numeral and digit. It is the natural number following 2 and preceding 4, and is the smallest odd prime number and the only prime preceding a square number. It has religious or cultural significance in many societie ...

Convention Hall Convention Hall was a convention center in Kansas City, Missouri that hosted the 1900 Democratic National Convention and 1928 Republican National Convention. It was designed by Frederick E. Hill and built at the corner of 13th and Central and cos ...

, and the

Franklin Institute The Franklin Institute is a science museum and the center of science education and research in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It is named after the American scientist and statesman Benjamin Franklin. It houses the Benjamin Franklin National Memori ...

were constructed. In 1932 the United States' first International style skyscraper was built. The 631,006 sq.ft.

PSFS Building The PSFS Building, now known as the Loews Philadelphia Hotel, is a skyscraper in Center City, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. A National Historic Landmark, the building was the first International style skyscraper constructed in the United States. ...

, which was designed by George Howe and

William Lescaze William Edmond Lescaze, FAIA (March 27, 1896 – February 9, 1969), was a Swiss-born American architect, city planner and industrial designer. He is ranked among the pioneers of modernism in American architecture. Biography William Lescaze w ...

, was topped with the Philadelphia Savings Fund Society's initials in 27 ft red

neon Neon is a chemical element with the symbol Ne and atomic number 10. It is a noble gas. Neon is a colorless, odorless, inert monatomic gas under standard conditions, with about two-thirds the density of air. It was discovered (along with krypton ...

letters and is decorated with custom made interior detailing. In the late 1980s and early 1990s large glass and granite skyscrapers were built in Center City. The largest skyscraper was Liberty Place. Consisting of the 945-ft (288 m)

One Liberty Place Liberty Place is a skyscraper complex in Philadelphia. The complex is composed of a 61-story, skyscraper called One Liberty Place, a 58-story, skyscraper called Two Liberty Place, a two-story shopping mall called the Shops at Liberty Place, a ...

, the 848-ft (258 m)

Two Liberty Place Liberty Place is a skyscraper complex in Philadelphia. The complex is composed of a 61-story, skyscraper called One Liberty Place, a 58-story, skyscraper called Two Liberty Place, a two-story shopping mall called the Shops at Liberty Place, a ...

and a smaller hotel, Liberty Place was the first building taller than Philadelphia's City Hall. Before construction began, the

Philadelphia City Council The Philadelphia City Council, the legislative body of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, consists of ten members elected by district and seven members elected at-large. The council president is elected by the members from among their number. Each ...

had given permission for buildings to be taller than City Hall to encourage skyscraper development along

Market Street Market Street may refer to: *Market Street, Cambridge, England *Market Street, Fremantle, Western Australia, Australia * Market Street, George Town, Penang, Malaysia *Market Street, Manchester, England *Market Street, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia ...

. Liberty Place was designed by

Helmut Jahn Helmut Jahn (January 4, 1940 – May 8, 2021) was a German-American architect, known for projects such as the Sony Center on Potsdamer Platz in Berlin, Germany; the Messeturm in Frankfurt, Germany; the Thompson Center in Chicago; One Liberty ...

, who combined historical architecture style with post-modern style. In the case of Liberty Place, Jahn was influenced by the

art deco Art Deco, short for the French ''Arts Décoratifs'', and sometimes just called Deco, is a style of visual arts, architecture, and product design, that first appeared in France in the 1910s (just before World War I), and flourished in the Unite ...

Chrysler Building The Chrysler Building is an Art Deco skyscraper on the East Side of Manhattan in New York City, at the intersection of 42nd Street and Lexington Avenue in Midtown Manhattan. At , it is the tallest brick building in the world with a steel fra ...

. According to the

curse of Billy Penn The Curse of Billy Penn (1987–2008) was an urban legend and popular explanation for the failure of major professional sports teams based in Philadelphia to win championships since the March 1987 construction of the One Liberty Place sk ...

, which appeared sometime after Liberty Place was constructed, no Philadelphia sports team would win a championship as long as there was a building taller than the statue of

William Penn William Penn ( – ) was an English writer and religious thinker belonging to the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers), and founder of the Province of Pennsylvania, a North American colony of England. He was an early advocate of democracy a ...

on top of City Hall. For a detailed description of Philadelphia's building height "wars," see Thom Nickels' 'Philadelphia Architecture,' published in 2005. New office towers also appeared, including the

which was the tallest building between 2007 and 2017. The

Comcast Technology Center The Comcast Technology Center is a supertall skyscraper in Center City, Philadelphia. The 60-floor building, with a height of , is the tallest building in Philadelphia and the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the fourteenth-tallest building in the ...

then became the tallest skyscraper in Philadelphia and the tallest skyscraper in the United States, outside of

Manhattan Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...

and

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

. More skyscrapers, mostly condominiums, are under construction or in-planning such as Waterfront Square, and Mandeville Place.

Tallest buildings

Landmarks and monuments

Buildings soon became more elaborate and in 1724 the Carpenters' Company of the City and County of Philadelphia was formed to help instruct builders. As in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

Georgian architecture Georgian architecture is the name given in most English-speaking countries to the set of architectural styles current between 1714 and 1830. It is named after the first four British monarchs of the House of Hanover—George I, George II, Georg ...

soon became the popular design in Philadelphia. In 1730 statesman and businessman James Logan was one of the first in Philadelphia to build a country home outside the city. The mansion, which he called

Stenton Stenton ( sco, Staneton) is a parish and village in East Lothian, Scotland. It is bounded on the north by parts of the parishes of Prestonkirk and Dunbar, on the east by Spott and on the west by Whittingehame. The name is said to be of Saxon ...

, was the first

Queen Anne-style The Queen Anne style of British architecture refers to either the English Baroque architecture of the time of Queen Anne (who reigned from 1702 to 1714) or the British Queen Anne Revival form that became popular during the last quarter of the ...

building in the

Delaware Valley The Delaware Valley is a metropolitan region on the East Coast of the United States that comprises and surrounds Philadelphia, the sixth most populous city in the nation and 68th largest city in the world as of 2020. The toponym Delaware Val ...

. One of the most ambitious Palladian structures of the time was the Christ Church. Christ Church was completed in 1744 with a steeple added in 1754. Starting in the 1730s construction began on the Georgian-style Pennsylvania State House, now known as

Independence Hall Independence Hall is a historic civic building in Philadelphia, where both the United States Declaration of Independence and the United States Constitution were debated and adopted by America's Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Fa ...

. It was designed by Andrew Hamilton with construction supervised by

Edmund Woolley Edmund Woolley (16951771) was an English-born American architect and master carpenter, best known for building Independence Hall in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Biography Woolley was born in England around 1695, and emigrated to th ...

. A shift away from the Georgian style began with the construction of Library Hall in 1790. The first building designed by

William Thornton William Thornton (May 20, 1759 – March 28, 1828) was a British-American physician, inventor, painter and architect who designed the United States Capitol. He also served as the first Architect of the Capitol and first Superintendent of the Uni ...

, the

Palladian Palladian architecture is a European architectural style derived from the work of the Venetian architect Andrea Palladio (1508–1580). What is today recognised as Palladian architecture evolved from his concepts of symmetry, perspective and ...

Library Hall was inspired by the work of

Robert Adam Robert Adam (3 July 17283 March 1792) was a British neoclassical architect, interior designer and furniture designer. He was the son of William Adam (1689–1748), Scotland's foremost architect of the time, and trained under him. With his o ...

, popular in England at the time, with two-story

pilaster In classical architecture Classical architecture usually denotes architecture which is more or less consciously derived from the principles of Greek and Roman architecture of classical antiquity, or sometimes even more specifically, from the ...

s and an ornamental

balustrade A baluster is an upright support, often a vertical moulded shaft, square, or lathe-turned form found in stairways, parapets, and other architectural features. In furniture construction it is known as a spindle. Common materials used in its con ...

. The similar

also became fashionable, with one of the city's best examples being David Evans, Jr.'s Central Pavilion of the

Pennsylvania Hospital Pennsylvania Hospital is a private, non-profit, 515-bed teaching hospital located in Center City Philadelphia and is part of the University of Pennsylvania Health System. Founded on May 11, 1751, by Benjamin Franklin and Dr. Thomas Bond, Pennsylv ...

, completed in 1805. Around the same time

Classicism Classicism, in the arts, refers generally to a high regard for a classical period, classical antiquity in the Western tradition, as setting standards for taste which the classicists seek to emulate. In its purest form, classicism is an aestheti ...

became popular with the creation of the Woodlands estate in 1788 and the First Presbyterian Church in 1793. The

Greek Revival The Greek Revival was an architectural movement which began in the middle of the 18th century but which particularly flourished in the late 18th and early 19th centuries, predominantly in northern Europe and the United States and Canada, but ...

style began in the United States with

Benjamin Henry Latrobe Benjamin Henry Boneval Latrobe (May 1, 1764 – September 3, 1820) was an Anglo-American neoclassical architect who emigrated to the United States. He was one of the first formally trained, professional architects in the new United States, draw ...

Bank of Pennsylvania The Bank of Pennsylvania was established on July 17, 1780, by Philadelphia merchants to provide funds for the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War. Its investors included George Meade & Co., with a £2,000 payment. Within a year ...

in 1801. It was constructed of white marble with

Greek Ionic The Ionic order is one of the three canonic classical order, orders of classical architecture, the other two being the Doric order, Doric and the Corinthian order, Corinthian. There are two lesser orders: the Tuscan order, Tuscan (a plainer Doric ...

temple porticos on two sides, and topped with a low dome. Latrobe left Philadelphia to design the

United States Capitol The United States Capitol, often called The Capitol or the Capitol Building, is the seat of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, which is formally known as the United States Congress. It is located on Capitol Hill ...

, but others continued with the style. Robert Mills designed Octagon Unitarian Church in 1813, and a 6,000 seat auditorium called Washington Hall in 1816. He is best remembered as the designer of the

Washington Monument The Washington Monument is an obelisk shaped building within the National Mall in Washington, D.C., built to commemorate George Washington, once commander-in-chief of the Continental Army (1775–1784) in the American Revolutionary War and the ...

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

, however, all of Mills's Philadelphia buildings have been demolished. William Strickland's first major commission was the

Second Bank of the United States The Second Bank of the United States was the second federally authorized Hamiltonian national bank in the United States. Located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the bank was chartered from February 1816 to January 1836.. The Bank's formal name, ac ...

. One critic said the Second Bank "excels in elegance and equals in utility, the edifice, not only of the Bank of England, but of any banking house in the world." Among Strickland's other buildings were the Naval Asylum completed in 1824, the Arch Street Theater built in 1828, the Mechanics National Bank and the Merchant's Exchange completed in 1834.

's first major building was the Philadelphia Arcade, an ancestor of the shopping mall. Built in 1827, he based it on the

Burlington Arcade Burlington Arcade is a covered shopping arcade in London, England, United Kingdom. It is long, parallel to and east of Bond Street from Piccadilly through to Burlington Gardens. It is one of the precursors of the mid-19th-century European s ...

in London. In 1829 Haviland's

Eastern State Penitentiary The Eastern State Penitentiary (ESP) is a former American prison in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It is located at 2027 Fairmount Avenue between Corinthian Avenue and North 22nd Street in the Fairmount section of the city, and was operational from ...

was completed, and its innovative spoked-wheel design served as the model for hundreds of other prisons. Other buildings include the former

(now the

Atwater Kent Museum The Philadelphia History Museum was a public history museum located in Center City, Philadelphia from 1938 until 2018. The museum occupied architect John Haviland's landmark Greek Revival structure built in 1824–1826 for the Franklin Institute. ...

) and the

Walnut Street Theater The Walnut Street Theatre, founded in 1809 at 825 Walnut Street, on the corner of S. 9th Street in the Washington Square West neighborhood of Philadelphia, is the oldest operating theatre in the United States. The venue is operated by the Walnut ...

, along with St. George's Episcopal Church and the

Pennsylvania Institution for the Deaf and Dumb The Pennsylvania School for the Deaf is the third-oldest school of its kind in the United States. Its founder, David G. Seixas (1788–1864), was a Philadelphia crockery maker-dealer who became concerned with the plight of impoverished deaf childr ...

, now the University of the Art's Dorrance Hamilton Hall. Another significant architect was

, whose most important Philadelphia building,

Girard College Girard College is an independent college preparatory five-day boarding school located on a 43-acre campus in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The school was founded and permanently endowed from the shipping and banking fortune of Stephen Girard upon h ...

, was completed in 1847. Along with numerous churches, Walter built the now demolished

Gothic Gothic or Gothics may refer to: People and languages *Goths or Gothic people, the ethnonym of a group of East Germanic tribes **Gothic language, an extinct East Germanic language spoken by the Goths **Crimean Gothic, the Gothic language spoken b ...

-style Philadelphia County Prison and the Egyptian-style debtor's

prison A prison, also known as a jail, gaol (dated, standard English, Australian, and historically in Canada), penitentiary (American English and Canadian English), detention center (or detention centre outside the US), correction center, correc ...

Moyamensing Moyamensing is an area of Philadelphia established as a Moyamensing Township during British colonial rule on the fast land of the Neck, lying between Passyunk Square, Philadelphia, Passyunk and Wicaco. It was Act of Consolidation, 1854, incorpor ...

. He also designed and built the iron dome of the

. In the 1840s and 50s many old buildings were replaced by larger business structures. Built from red

sandstone Sandstone is a clastic sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized (0.0625 to 2 mm) silicate grains. Sandstones comprise about 20–25% of all sedimentary rocks. Most sandstone is composed of quartz or feldspar (both silicates) ...

, granite, and iron, the buildings varied in designs including Greek Revival, Gothic, and

Italianate The Italianate style was a distinct 19th-century phase in the history of Classical architecture. Like Palladianism and Neoclassicism, the Italianate style drew its inspiration from the models and architectural vocabulary of 16th-century Italian R ...

. One of the tallest buildings was the eight-story Jayne Building. Designed by William L. Johnston, the building had a

Venetian Gothic Venetian Gothic is the particular form of Italian Gothic architecture typical of Venice, originating in local building requirements, with some influence from Byzantine architecture, and some from Islamic architecture, reflecting Venice's trading ...

façade and an observation tower designed by Thomas U. Walter. The Jayne Building was completed in 1850 and demolished in 1957. The city's first entirely

cast-iron Cast iron is a class of iron–carbon alloys with a carbon content more than 2%. Its usefulness derives from its relatively low melting temperature. The alloy constituents affect its color when fractured: white cast iron has carbide impuriti ...

building was built in 1850. Built for

Penn Mutual Life Insurance Company Penn may refer to: Places England * Penn, Buckinghamshire * Penn, West Midlands United States * Penn, North Dakota Penn (also Lauren) is an unincorporated community in western Ramsey County, North Dakota, United States. It lies along U.S. Route ...

, the building was designed by G. P. Cummings. The

Centennial Exposition The Centennial International Exhibition of 1876, the first official World's Fair to be held in the United States, was held in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, from May 10 to November 10, 1876, to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the signing of the ...

, the first American

World's Fair A world's fair, also known as a universal exhibition or an expo, is a large international exhibition designed to showcase the achievements of nations. These exhibitions vary in character and are held in different parts of the world at a specif ...

, took place in Philadelphia in 1876. The exposition included the construction of over 200 buildings, most temporary, including the Main Exhibition Building, designed by Joseph M. Wilson and Henry Petit, which was the largest building in the world at the time. The Exposition's two major permanent buildings were Horticultural Hall and

Memorial Hall A memorial hall is a hall built to commemorate an individual or group; most commonly those who have died in war. Most are intended for public use and are sometimes described as ''utilitarian memorials''. History of the Memorial Hall In the aft ...

, both designed by

Herman J. Schwarzmann Herman J. Schwarzmann (1846, Munich, Kingdom of Bavaria – 1891, New York City), also known as Hermann J. Schwarzmann or H. J. Schwarzmann, was a German-born American architect who practiced in Philadelphia and later in New York City. Early ...

. Horticultural Hall (demolished 1955) was a

Moorish The term Moor, derived from the ancient Mauri, is an exonym first used by Christian Europeans to designate the Muslim inhabitants of the Maghreb, the Iberian Peninsula, Sicily and Malta during the Middle Ages. Moors are not a distinct or se ...

-style glass-and-iron structure built as a tribute to London's

Crystal Palace Crystal Palace may refer to: Places Canada * Crystal Palace Complex (Dieppe), a former amusement park now a shopping complex in Dieppe, New Brunswick * Crystal Palace Barracks, London, Ontario * Crystal Palace (Montreal), an exhibition building * ...

. The Beaux-Arts-style Memorial Hall (now home to the

Please Touch Museum The Please Touch Museum is a children's museum located in the Centennial District of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA. The museum focuses on teaching children through interactive exhibits and special events, mostly aimed at children seven years o ...

) was constructed of brick, glass, iron and granite. Philadelphia's most prominent Victorian architect was

, who designed more than 600 buildings and influenced the Chicago architect

Louis Sullivan Louis Henry Sullivan (September 3, 1856 – April 14, 1924) was an American architect, and has been called a "father of skyscrapers" and "father of modernism". He was an influential architect of the Chicago School, a mentor to Frank Lloy ...

. Furness brought a bold muscularity to his works, shunned historical imitation, and was an innovator in the use of iron and glass. Among his major buildings are the

Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts The Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts (PAFA) is a museum and private art school in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.George Hewitt), Knowlton Mansion (1882), the First Unitarian Church (1885), and the University of Pennsylvania Library (1891). Others, such as the Provident Life & Trust Company (1879), the B. & O. Railroad's 24th Street Station (1888), and the

Pennsylvania Railroad The Pennsylvania Railroad (reporting mark PRR), legal name The Pennsylvania Railroad Company also known as the "Pennsy", was an American Class I railroad that was established in 1846 and headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It was named ...

's Broad Street Station (1893), were demolished in the mid-20th century. Designed by

John McArthur, Jr. John McArthur Jr. (1823–1890) was a prominent United States, American architect based in Philadelphia. Best remembered as the architect of the landmark Philadelphia City Hall, McArthur also designed some of the city's most ambitious buildings o ...

in the

Second Empire Second Empire may refer to: * Second British Empire, used by some historians to describe the British Empire after 1783 * Second Bulgarian Empire (1185–1396) * Second French Empire (1852–1870) ** Second Empire architecture, an architectural styl ...

style, and influenced by the

Tuileries Palace The Tuileries Palace (french: Palais des Tuileries, ) was a royal and imperial palace in Paris which stood on the right bank of the River Seine, directly in front of the Louvre. It was the usual Parisian residence of most French monarchs, from ...

and the

Louvre The Louvre ( ), or the Louvre Museum ( ), is the world's most-visited museum, and an historic landmark in Paris, France. It is the home of some of the best-known works of art, including the ''Mona Lisa'' and the ''Venus de Milo''. A central l ...

Philadelphia City Hall Philadelphia City Hall is the seat of the municipal government of the City of Philadelphia. Built in the ornate Second Empire style, City Hall houses the chambers of the Philadelphia City Council and the offices of the Mayor of Philadelphia. It ...

is one of the world's largest all-masonry, load-bearing structures without a

steel frame Steel frame is a building technique with a "skeleton frame" of vertical steel columns and horizontal I-beams, constructed in a rectangular grid to support the floors, roof and walls of a building which are all attached to the frame. The developm ...

. Construction began in 1871 and wasn't completed until 1901. City Hall is a square doughnut of a building that occupies a 4-block site at the center of the downtown. In the middle of each side is an arched portal leading into the central courtyard, and its north side includes a 548 ft clock tower. Until 1987, this tower was the tallest structure in the city. In 1908,

Oscar Hammerstein I Oscar Hammerstein I (8 May 18461 August 1919) was a German-born businessman, theater impresario, and composer in New York City. His passion for opera led him to open several opera houses, and he rekindled opera's popularity in America. He was ...

(grandfather of the lyricist) built the Metropolitan Opera House (originally known as the Philadelphia Opera House) to be the home of his then new opera company, the

Philadelphia Opera Company The Philadelphia Opera Company was the name of two different American opera companies active during the twentieth century in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The first company was founded by impresario Oscar Hammerstein I in 1908. That company disbanded ...

. Seating more than 4,000 people, it was the largest building of its kind in the world when it was built. The

Metropolitan Opera The Metropolitan Opera (commonly known as the Met) is an American opera company based in New York City, resident at the Metropolitan Opera House at Lincoln Center, currently situated on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. The company is operat ...

of New York City bought the Philadelphia opera house in 1910 which was used by the company for its touring productions to Philadelphia for roughly the next decade. In the 1920s, the theatre became a venue for the

cinema Cinema may refer to: Film * Cinematography, the art of motion-picture photography * Film or movie, a series of still images that create the illusion of a moving image ** Film industry, the technological and commercial institutions of filmmaking * ...

and in the 1930s it became a ballroom. In the 1940s, a sports promoter bought the venue, covering the orchestra pit with flooring so basketball, wrestling, and boxing could take place. This venture closed after attendance waned following a decline in the quality of the opera house's neighborhood. The building was sold to Reverend Thea Jones for use as a church in 1954. The church's congregation eventually decreased and the church was unable to afford to maintain the rapidly deteriorating building. In 1994 the building was declared by the city to be dangerous and was to be demolished. Reverend Mark Hatcher and his church purchased the building in 1996 with the intention of repairing the building. In partnership with the North Philadelphia Community Development Corporation, the church plans to continue with further historic restoration in the future. In 2009 the opera house was the focal point of the Hidden City Festival, a festival dedicated to promoting lesser known historical sites in the Philadelphia area. After

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

new development projects appeared all around Philadelphia. In Center City modern office buildings were constructed including Penn Center, and the Municipal Services Building. Around

Independence National Historical Park Independence National Historical Park is a federally protected historic district in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania that preserves several sites associated with the American Revolution and the nation's founding history. Administered by the National P ...

a new U.S. Mint building, a new federal courthouse, and the Rohm and Haas Building were built. Just east of

Chinatown A Chinatown () is an ethnic enclave of Chinese people located outside Greater China, most often in an urban setting. Areas known as "Chinatown" exist throughout the world, including Europe, North America, South America, Asia, Africa and Austra ...

the circular Police Administration Building was built.

Residential architecture

The earliest houses in

were built with logs, with the new

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

settlers being taught how to build log homes by the

Swedish Swedish or ' may refer to: Anything from or related to Sweden, a country in Northern Europe. Or, specifically: * Swedish language, a North Germanic language spoken primarily in Sweden and Finland ** Swedish alphabet, the official alphabet used by ...

settlers already living in the area. Early inhabitants had also dug out caves on the Delaware riverbank which were reportedly places of "clandestine looseness". The Philadelphia settlers soon began constructing buildings with wood and brick with the first brick house being built in 1684. By 1690 four brickmakers and ten bricklayers were working in the city. In 1698 construction of the

Gloria Dei (Old Swedes') Church Gloria Dei Church, known locally as Old Swedes, is a historic church located in the Southwark neighborhood of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, at 929 South Water Street, bounded by Christian Street on the north, South Christopher Columbus Boulevard ( ...

, the oldest surviving building in Philadelphia, began. Construction of the church was completed in 1700. Philadelphia was founded by

Quakers Quakers are people who belong to a historically Protestant Christian set of denominations known formally as the Religious Society of Friends. Members of these movements ("theFriends") are generally united by a belief in each human's abil ...

and as a result many early buildings were plain and simple, the largest building being the Great Meeting House. The earliest group of row houses in Philadelphia, called Budd's Long Row, date from 1691. Although no longer in existence, these houses were located on what is now Front Street between Walnut and Dock Streets. According to accounts at the time, these houses were modeled on the floor plans of seventeenth century London houses, being two rooms deep with a rear yard. A significant, later

grouping, called Carstairs Row, was built in Philadelphia in 1800-01. William Sansom had bought a block of land between Seventh and Eighth Streets between Walnut Street and Sansom Street. Along Walnut Street Sansom built Union Row and along Sansom Street Thomas Carstairs built Carstairs Row. The rows, now part of

Jewelers' Row Jewelers' Row, located in the Center City section of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, is composed of more than 300 retailers, wholesalers, and craftsmen located on Sansom Street between Seventh and Eighth Streets, and on Eighth Street between Chestnu ...

, were block long rows of houses similar to row houses in the United Kingdom. The row houses were new to the United States as well and when built elsewhere in the country were called "Philadelphia rows". In the 1820s and 30s old buildings along the Delaware River were turned into tenements and factories, while houses a few blocks west were turned into stores. Several

story Story or stories may refer to: Common uses * Story, a narrative (an account of imaginary or real people and events) ** Short story, a piece of prose fiction that typically can be read in one sitting * Story (American English), or storey (British ...

high, brick row house continued to be built, many by

Stephen Girard Stephen Girard (May 20, 1750 – December 26, 1831; born Étienne Girard) was a naturalized American citizen, philanthropist, and banker of French origin. He singularly saved the U.S. government from financial collapse during the War of 1812 b ...

. At the same time granite fronts became popular in the city and marble mansions were constructed. By the 1930s numerous houses, many of them row homes, were in poor condition in Philadelphia. In a 1934

United States Department of Commerce The United States Department of Commerce is an executive department of the U.S. federal government concerned with creating the conditions for economic growth and opportunity. Among its tasks are gathering economic and demographic data for bu ...

survey of 433,796 houses found that eight in every thousand homes lacked water, about 3,000 homes lacked heating, and that 7,000 homes were unfit for habitation. By 1939 conditions had only improved slightly. One development was the low cost housing development named the Carl Mackley Apartments. Constructed between 1933 and 1934, the apartments were commissioned by the

American Federation of Hosiery Workers The American Federation of Hosiery Workers (AFHW) was a labor union representing workers involved in manufacturing hosiery. The union's origins lay in the United Textile Workers of America (UTWA), which in 1913 formed a craft group named the Amer ...

and designed by Oskar Stonorov. The way the apartments were laid out, with gardens, lawns, play areas, underground garages, and space for public art were new architectural designs at the time. An early

urban renewal Urban renewal (also called urban regeneration in the United Kingdom and urban redevelopment in the United States) is a program of land redevelopment often used to address urban decay in cities. Urban renewal involves the clearing out of blighte ...

project was

Society Hill Society Hill is a historic neighborhood in Center City Philadelphia, with a population of 6,215 . Settled in the early 1680s, Society Hill is one of the oldest residential neighborhoods in Philadelphia.The Center City District dates the Free Soc ...

where many old buildings were rehabilitated and

I. M. Pei Ieoh Ming Pei
– website of Pei Cobb Freed & Partners ( ; ; April 26, 1917 – May 16, 2019) was ...

's Society Hill Towers were built. Outside the revitalized neighborhoods vacant lots remained. In 1990 Philadelphia had around 40,000 vacant properties and by 2006 that number had dropped to around 20,000. While Philadelphia neighborhoods changed, architecture continued to evolve. In Chestnut Hill, architects like George Howe and

Wilson Eyre Wilson Eyre, Jr. (October 30, 1858 – October 23, 1944) was an American architect, teacher and writer who practiced in the Philadelphia area. He is known for his deliberately informal and welcoming country houses, and for being an innovator in ...

set the tone for residences in the region. Howe's

High Hollow High Hollow, also known as the George Howe House, is a historic Chestnut Hill residence in Northwest Philadelphia designed and built by American architect George Howe. Design High Hollow's design is derived in-part from Howe's thesis while stu ...

and Eyre's Anglecot demonstrate the European and Beaux Arts influence on Chestnut Hill's architecture in the early part of the 20th century. Architect

Louis Kahn Louis Isadore Kahn (born Itze-Leib Schmuilowsky; – March 17, 1974) was an Estonian-born American architect based in Philadelphia. After working in various capacities for several firms in Philadelphia, he founded his own atelier in 1935. Whi ...

, grew up, studied and worked in Philadelphia and is considered one of the most important architects of the second half of the 20th century. In Philadelphia Kahn's designs includes the University of Philadelphia's Richards Medical Center and

Esherick House The Margaret Esherick House in Philadelphia is one of the most studied of the nine built houses designed by American architect Louis Kahn. Commissioned by Chestnut Hill bookstore owner Margaret Esherick, the house was completed in 1961. In 2023, ...

in Chestnut Hill. The

, one of

's earliest works, built in 1964, is considered one of the most important examples of

post-modernism Postmodernism is an intellectual stance or Rhetorical modes, mode of discourseNuyen, A.T., 1992. The Role of Rhetorical Devices in Postmodernist Discourse. Philosophy & Rhetoric, pp.183–194. characterized by philosophical skepticism, skepticis ...

. Tax breaks created in 1997 and 2000 helped create a

condominium A condominium (or condo for short) is an ownership structure whereby a building is divided into several units that are each separately owned, surrounded by common areas that are jointly owned. The term can be applied to the building or complex ...

boom in Center City. In the first years of the 21st century, old buildings rehabilitated into condominiums and new luxury condominium towers appeared all around Center City and the surrounding neighborhoods.

References

External links

PhillySkyline.comPhiladelphia Center for ArchitectureEmporis.com page on PhiladelphiaPhiladelphia Historic PhotographsPhiladelphia Architects and Buildings
* Th
Thomas H. Shoemaker Germantown and Philadelphia Portraits and Views Collection, 1863-1922
containing over 12,000 photographs, lithographs and drawings of historic buildings and homes in the Philadelphia area (including many of which no longer exist), is available for research use at the

Historical Society of Pennsylvania The Historical Society of Pennsylvania is a long-established research facility, based in Philadelphia. It is a repository for millions of historic items ranging across rare books, scholarly monographs, family chronicles, maps, press reports and v ...

. {{DEFAULTSORT:Architecture Of Philadelphia