Editor’s Note: A version of this story was published in the Spring 2025 issue of Extant, a publication of the Preservation Alliance for Greater Philadelphia.

Finney & Son

Location: 531 North 12th Street

Builder: Unknown

Built: c. 1865

The Finney & Son building, a 19th-century relic in Callowhill, has led many lives. Three generations of Finneys used the one-story structure as a showroom for mausoleums and cemetery monuments from 1865 to the 1960s. The yellow terra-cotta block facade, likely added in the 1920s or 1930s, resembles a burial vault adorned with multicolored garlands and wall niches.

Today, the Finney building lives on. A sculptor used the offbeat space as a studio in the 1980s. In the mid-2000s, DJ and local music producer Diplo, now a world-famous Grammy-winning superstar, transformed it into headquarters for his Mad Decent record label, hosting Christina Aguilera, Shakira, and M.I.A. The Mad Decent moniker is still embedded in the entry sidewalk.

In 2010, the building became the Philadelphia Mausoleum of Contemporary Art, home to film festivals honoring the late, great movie director David Lynch, neighborhood celebrations, art exhibitions, and music performances. The reborn Finney building has weathered closures by the Department of Licenses and Inspections for zoning and fire safety issues and possible demolition over concern for the front wall. Surely this storied, stubborn survivor deserves preservation and designation on the Philadelphia Register of Historic Places.