History

The Curious Case Of Body Snatching At Lebanon Cemetery

Like many of the city’s historic resting places, Lebanon Cemetery in South Philadelphia eventually gave way to urban expansion. Though, shortly before the African-American burial ground was developed for what is now Point Breeze and Girard Estates, a firestorm of sensational headlines erupted in the late 1800’s after a grave robber was apprehended while allegedly stealing corpses for Jefferson Medical College. Contributor Erin McLeary has the lurid details

History

Searching For The Lost South Philadelphia Improvements Under The 25th Street Elevated

On the west side of South Philly, the 25th Street Elevated rail viaduct clearly defines it the boundaries of the Grays Ferry and Point Breeze neighborhoods. Over a dozen trains, including oil trains like the one that derailed over the Schuylkill River recently, rumble its weathering 86-year-old bones every day. Chris Dougherty goes back a century to find the Elevated’s origins in the heyday of the rail industry—and civic reform