Ever wonder who lived in your house or on your block 100 years ago? That is what motivated Judith Benedict, a retired urban planner, to pour through countless Census records, newspapers, and Philadelphia Historical Commission files. She tracked down every resident of her block on historic Portico Row, which is on the south side of the 900 block of Spruce Street.

“I did it all online during Covid,” said Benedict, whose efforts resulted in a written social history of everyone who ever lived on Portico Row since it was built in the early 1830s. Benedict documented them all, from wealthy 19th century merchants to 20th century demi-monde. Now, she wants to introduce them to you.

Benedict and two other Portico Row resident history buffs, Bob Tunick and Peg Fitzpatrick, are hosting a terrace party on Sunday, September 29, from 3-5 p.m. to celebrate the block’s 193-year survival and revival. “There will be music and refreshments, plus an opportunity to learn about the people who lived on the block,” said Benedict.

That history began in 1831 when Philadelphia merchant John Savage commissioned architect Thomas Ustick Walter to design 16 Greek Revival-style homes, each with distinctive Pennsylvania blue marble porticos and wrought iron fences. Each of the eight mirror-image pairs shares a common entrance, or portico, supported by Ionic columns. Portico Row is the last surviving example of its type of housing in Philadelphia.

For an architect who had worked in the studio of William Strickland at the age of 15, Walter would become known for his Neoclassical style. Portico Row was one of the architect’s more modest achievements. The previous year, he had designed the nearby Spruce Street Baptist Church (now Society Hill Synagogue) and the following year he drew up the plans for Moyamensing Prison, an immense Gothic structure with battlements at Reed Street and Passyunk Avenue. The prison was demolished in 1968 and is now an Acme supermarket. Not long after, Walter designed Girard College’s Founder’s Hall, considered one of the finest examples of American Neoclassical architecture in the United States. However, his legacy achievement was his work on the United States Capital, and he also takes credit for co-designing Philadelphia City Hall 40 years after his work on Portico Row.

“This strip of homes has gone through good and bad periods over the years,” said Tunick, who has lived on Portico Row since 1988. The block’s early residents included Sarah Josepha Hale, editor of the first successful women’s magazine, Godey’s Lady Book, and gained immortality when she wrote “Mary Had a Little Lamb.” Another neighbor was Isaac Hull, commander of the USS Constitution in the War of 1812. The Philadelphia High School for Young Ladies also called the block home.

By the early 20th century, much of Philadelphia’s elite had moved west of Broad Street, opening Portico Row to immigrants and working class tenants. Owners of single family houses took in tenants, dividing their spacious rooms to accommodate more people. These were employees in the nearby grand department stores on Market Street, as well as craftsmen, lawyers, and medical students. There were exceptions. “One early owner kept a house in his family for almost 100 years, from 1840 to 1938,” said Benedict. Another home, owned by Pennsylvania Hospital at 10th and Spruce Streets, was filled with nurses.

The Great Depression eventually transformed Portico Row’s elegant townhouses into cramped rentals, chopping up apartments into boarding units. Tenants included musicians, machine operators, sailors, and women who worked in Locust Street nightclubs. In 1958, Portico Row was placed on the Philadelphia Register of Historic Places and it was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1977. If not for those historic designations, Portico Row may have gone the way of the bulldozer. Fortunately, in the 1970s, the City stepped in with an eye on the newly created Society Hill Historic District, along with former Mayor Richardson Dilworth’s renovation of Washington Square.

All of the attention came just in time. One of the historically designated houses had been decimated by a fire that destroyed its roof. “By then, eight of the 16 houses were owned by the Philadelphia Redevelopment Authority (PRA),” said Benedict. “The City changed the zoning from commercial to residential and owners had to convert rooming houses into apartments of no more than eight units each.” The owner could also sell the property to the PRA. According to Benedict, some sold their properties to the City and others sold to individuals who said they would abide by the City’s guidelines. However, several houses sat vacant for up to seven years.

“According to the Census, in 1960 there were 327 residents,” said Benedict. “A mere 10 years later, in 1970, there were only 42 people living on the block. The 2020 Census lists 170.”

Today, seven of Portico Rows buildings are rental apartments, seven are condominiums, and two are single-family homes. Many of the original architectural details have survived, including the 14-foot ceilings, fireplaces, and original moldings over the doors. “Some of the fireplaces are black marble with Ionic columns,” said Tunick.

“I believe it is the only full-block strip of matching 19th century homes in the city,” said Tunick, who did his share of photographic research. “I visited The Athenaeum of Philadelphia , The Library Company, the Free Library, the Philadelphia City Archives, the Philadelphia Historical Commission, and the Pennsylvania Historical Society and came up with some beautiful old images of our block, which I had printed and framed. They now form a little gallery in the first floor hallways of two buildings.”

“This is our first effort at a block party,” said Tunick. “There will be posters attached to each wrought iron fence with historical details of the particular buildings, including the stories of the people who lived there. We are looking forward to an exciting day discussing our block’s history.”

Speaking of the September 29th celebration of Portico Row, Fitzpatrick added, “This get-together is not just about history. It is about community and getting to know your neighbors, not just on our block but also from other areas of the city.”

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The Portico Row Terrace Party will take place on the 900 block of Spruce Street on Sunday, September 29 from 3-5 p.m. Email Peg Fitzpatrick at p.fitzpatrick@pmginc.net for more information or to volunteer. 

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