At its meeting on May 8, the Philadelphia Historical Commission approved the rehabilitation of two historically designated properties and offered comments on a nomination to the National Register of Historic Places.
The Alfred Edward Burk Mansion at Broad and Jefferson Streets has sat vacant for 31 years. | Photo: Michael Bixler
Temple University received permission for alterations and new construction for the property at 1500-10 North Broad Street, which it has owned for over half a century. The Alfred Edward Burk Mansion and a rear conservatory building were built in 1909 in the Italian Renaissance style by architects Simon and Bassett, whose other credits include the Lit Brothers Store on Market Street and the Manufacturers Club at 150 S. Broad Street. A rear addition was designed in 1954 by architect Louis Manfredi. It was added to the Philadelphia Register of Historic Places in 1971. The following year it was included in the Historic American Buildings Survey. The building has been vacant since 1995 due to a fire.
The repair work includes restoring a stone balustrade along the site’s perimeter, replacing windows and doors, and rehabilitating the landscaping and walkways. Many of the alterations are to improve accessibility. The proposed new construction would be an addition at the rear.
The owners of 40 Spring Garden Street received permission from the Historical Commission to construct a three-story addition to the industrial complex’s former Ice Machine House. Pictured is the in-concept proposal that was submitted to the Historical Commission. | Rendering: Lo Design
New construction was also approved for a portion of the Philadelphia Warehousing and Cold Storage Company complex at 40 Spring Garden Street. The two-story building, known as Building D, faces North Beach Street and is clad in red brick with stone details. It was constructed between 1891 and 1900 as the Ice Machine House, later serving as a Machine Shop. The owners proposed constructing a three-story addition and other renovations to convert it to a residential mixed-use building, for which they received in-concept approval from the Historical Commission.
De Long Hook and Eye Company Factory at 21st and Clearfield Streets. | Photo: Michael Bixler
The Commission reviewed a nomination to the National Register for the De Long Hook and Eye Company Factory at 3031-49 N. 21st Street. Nominations of Philadelphia properties to the National Register are overseen by the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission and must solicit comments from the appropriate local government, which in turn must offer an opportunity for public comment. The Historical Commission speaks on behalf of the City of Philadelphia on historic preservation matters.
The De Long Hook & Eye Company was one of the largest and best-known manufacturers of sewing accessories in the United States during the first half of the 20th century. In 1889, Frank Emerson De Long patented a new type of hook and eye fastener, which became immensely popular nationwide.
De Long Hook & Eye advertisement, Ladies Home Journal, October 1923. | Image courtesy of National Park Service, United States Department of the Interior
The four-story, reinforced concrete building, designed by the William Steele & Sons Company in 1917, features large, multi-light steel factory windows. The parcel also includes a one-story brick boiler house with a gabled roof. The Steele Company also built the nearby Steel Heddle Manufacturing Company, which was added to the National Register in 2010 and the Philadelphia register in 2022. The De Long Hook & Eye Company Factory is not currently listed on the local register.
Historical Commission members commented favorably on the nomination as a prime example of early 20th century factory buildings. They noted that National Register nominations often are submitted with the intent to subsequently apply for federal tax credits. The building’s current owner, Deliverance Evangelistic Church, plans to convert it into 56 apartments designated for seniors over the age of 62 whose income is below 50 percent of the area median.
The National Marine Engineers Beneficial Association building at 4th and Willow Streets. | Photo: Michael Bixler
The Historical Commission’s Committee on Historic Designation did not meet in April, so there were no new nominations for the full Commission to consider at this meeting. The nomination for the National Marine Engineers Beneficial Association building at 428-34 N. 4th Street, which had been reviewed by the Historic Designation Committee in May 2025, was scheduled for review at this meeting, but has been continued to the Commission’s June meeting.
The nominations of the Morris Estate House at 6953 Greenhill Road and a house at 5000 McKean Avenue have been continued to the July meeting. The two long-standing nominations of Piers 38 and 40 South at 775 S. Christopher Columbus Boulevard, originally nominated in October 2021, and Jewelers Row Historic District, nominated in December 2018, have yet to be added to a Historical Commission meeting agenda.
The graffiti on the Long Hook and Eye Company Factory building is impressive from the difficult location and the complexity of the artwork.
The Graffiti on this building shows the disrespect that such creatures continue to show on other people’s properties and those that ok it are really blind to the hurt others receive by this destruction.
The nomination document for 5000 McKean was interesting reading for me because I lived nearby on Erringer Place from 1986 to 2005. At some point in the late 80’s or early 90’s I knew the then-occupants of the home, whose names I no longer recall. Later on, the house fell into extreme disrepair and I believe the rear wall partially collapsed, eventually leading to the modern reconstruction of the rear facade — which is shown in the nomination documents, but its origin/history is not discussed. I knew that Erringer Place was named after J.L. Erringer, but this is the first time I saw a photo of the Erringer mansion and learned of his occupation.