Old Phila[delphia] Library, 5th & Library Sts from Independence Sq[uare] being torn down for Drexel's new building [graphic].
Title
Old Phila[delphia] Library, 5th & Library Sts from Independence Sq[uare] being torn down for Drexel's new building
Description
Glass negative showing exterior view looking east from State House Square at the red-brick building constructed on South Fifth Street for the Library Company of Philadelphia in 1789 after designs by Dr. William Thornton. After the construction of two new buildings - the Ridgway Building in South Philadelphia and the Furness building at Juniper and Locust Streets - the Fifth Street library was sold in 1880. A signboard for The Central News Company is visible across the front facade of the building, which in this image, is being demolished to make way for the Drexel Building. Men wearing suits and bowler hats sit in the grass nearby. The Forrest Building (119-127 South Fourth Street) is visible in the distance. Central News Company operated from the building from 1883 until 1886., Title from entry in photographer's diary., Inscribed in negative: No. 13., Photographer remarks: Overtimed., Time: 2:10, Light: Faint sun., Reproduced in The Print and Photograph Department of the Library Company of Philadelphia's Center City Philadelphia in the 19th century (Portsmouth, N.H.: Arcadia Publishing, 2006), p. 10., Arcadia caption text: In 1887, the old Library Company building was demolished to make way for the Drexel Building. Ironically, this office building was demolished in the late 1950s when the American Philosophical Society (founded 1743) built its state-of-the-art library on the site, featuring a reproduction of the Library Company’s original façade as designed by William Thornton., Digitization and cataloging edits have been made possible through the generosity of David Marriott Morris, Eleanor Rhoads Morris Cox, and William Perot Morris in memory of Marriott Canby Morris and his children: Elliston Perot Morris, Marriott Canby Morris Jr., and Janet Morris and in acknowledgment of his grandchildren: William Perot Morris, Eleanor Rhoads Morris Cox, Jonathan White Morris, and David Marriott Morris., Edited.
Creator
Morris, Marriott Canby, 1863-1948, photographer
Date
April 22, 1887
Location
Library Company of Philadelphia | Print Department Marriott C. Morris [P.9895.1105]
Phila[delphia] Library [Company], Locust & Juniper Sts. [graphic].
Title
Phila[delphia] Library [Company], Locust & Juniper Sts
Description
Oblique, exterior view of the Frank Furness-designed Library Company building at the northwest corner of Juniper and Locust streets. A two pronged staircase leads to the entryway and a statue of Benjamin Franklin sits in a niche above the entrance. Opened on February 24, 1880, this building operated as the in-town branch which stocked more modern books for circulation. The Ridgway Building in South Philadelphia served as the Library Company's main branch beginning in 1878. The building was demolished in 1940., Time: 12:45, Light: Good, strong sun., Reproduced in The Print and Photograph Department of the Library Company of Philadelphia's Center City Philadelphia in the 19th century (Portsmouth, N.H.: Arcadia Publishing, 2006), p. 10., Arcadia caption text: This crisp 1884 image of the Library Company’s Juniper and Locust Street branch reveals that architect Frank Furness was inspired by the original Fifth Street building’s designs. Furness, known for his eccentric sensibilities, recalled William Thornton’s curved double steps, pediment, and arched niche. Its location near Broad Street addressed the westward development of Philadelphia; a committee had earlier determined that 86% of the Library Company’s city-residing members lived west of Tenth Street. To further accommodate this group, the new building featured “well-warmed and ventilated” reading rooms, a ladies’ sitting room, evening hours, and telephone communications to other libraries. The building was demolished in 1940., Edited., Digitization and cataloging edits have been made possible through the generosity of David Marriott Morris, Eleanor Rhoads Morris Cox, and William Perot Morris in memory of Marriott Canby Morris and his children: Elliston Perot Morris, Marriott Canby Morris Jr., and Janet Morris and in acknowledgment of his grandchildren: William Perot Morris, Eleanor Rhoads Morris Cox, Jonathan White Morris, and David Marriott Morris.
Creator
Morris, Marriott Canby, 1863-1948, photographer
Date
March 5, 1884
Location
Library Company of Philadelphia | Print Department Marriott C. Morris [P.9895.512]