Boat Houses and Train Stations

 Hey guys, welcome back! Today, as the title suggests, we'll be taking a look at Philly's iconic Boathouse Row, as well as the train stations along the Main Line. In between, I've got some retail and other buildings for you.

Boathouse Row, Fairmount Park, Phila

Boathouse Row is a series of fifteen boathouses along the Schuylkill River. Most of these date back to the mid-1800's and were designed by locally famous Frank Furness. This house, Number 15, was a later addition to the row, added by the Sedgley Club in 1902. It was built around an existing lighthouse on he opposite end of the building.

Next to that, Number 14 is the oldest on the row, dating back to 1860. It has been home to several rowing clubs over the years, but since 1938 has been home to the Philadelphia Girls' Rowing Club.

Number 12 (since I missed 13 for some reason) has been home to the Penn Athletic Club since it was first built in 1878. It's the least exciting of the boathouses, but still a nice piece of Victorian architecture.

Number 11, the College Boat Club, is run by the University of Pennsylvania. The original structure was built in 1874 and nearly doubled in size in the 1920's. It is the largest of the original buildings because of this. Work began this year expanding it again, demolishing the 1920's addition (on the left here) and building a taller one in its place.

The Vesper and Malta Boat Clubs sit next to that in Numbers 9 and 10. It has two numbers in one building as it is a duplex. It was constructed in 1873.

I skipped Numbers 7 and 8, which were another duplex, bringing us to Number 6, which was built as the Bachelors Boat Club in 1894. It claims to be the oldest continuously operating boathouse in the country, which I guess implies all the others in the row were vacant at one point in their lives. Drexel University now operates this one.

I skipped a few more, bringing us to Number 1. This is Lloyd Hall, built in the late 90's on the site of one of the original 1860's boathouses. The original boathouse was for public use and operated by the city. Like many government-funded things, it was not well maintained and was condemned by the city in the late 70's. There was talk of razing boathouse row in its entirety, but private operators were able to save them. Lloyd Hall replaced it after sitting vacant for several years, and in addition to serving as a new public boathouse also doubles as a recreational center.

Fairmount Park

In addition to the boathouses, I snapped a few other pictures of the park along the river. Here's the dam at the old Fairmount Water Works.

There's a nice walking area around the Water Works. Unlike modern drinking water treatment plants. this one wasn't entirely fenced off and actually very welcoming for pedestrians.

Across the river, there used to be some rail yards and a little sliver of park where the Schuylkill Expressway now stands.

The park side of the river still has some scars of its past. This part used to be lined with industry, but the city bought it all out and demolished it as part of the Ben Franklin Parkway project in the 1910's. Controversial as that project was, it did make for a beautiful entrance to the city.

Some old dock has now become a resting place for turtles. I'm amazed this is still up given how long its been since the factories along here have been demolished.

"The Chinese Wall," Logan Square, Phila

Bach before Philadelphia implemented underground railways, large viaducts like this carried trains into the city. This one was operated by the Pennsylvania Railroad and carried trains to Broad Street Station. It earned the name "Chinese Wall" due to the resemblance the stone walled viaduct had to another famous Great Wall.  After Broad Street was demolished in the 50's, most of the viaduct was leveled. Pennsylvania Boulevard, now known as JFK Blvd, was built along the alignment with excess land being redeveloped as Penn Center. Due to the change in grade of the land and to get JFK high enough to pass over the river, four blocks of the viaduct were kept. Land to the south has been redeveloped, so none of the original wall remains there, but to the north there is a sliver of still-unused rail bed. Pictured here is where it used to transition to a bridge over the river. This plot of land is now slated to become an apartment building, so this wall will not be around for much longer. However, it will remain between 20th and 23rd Streets for the foreseeable future.

Just before the bridge, there's a large stump from an old power line truss. This and the bridge abutment are really the only signs left a railway once ran through here.

The next block up, part of the viaduct was cut down to bring a staircase from JFK Blvd down to 22nd Street. A lot of dirt was taken out, but they mostly left the wall alone here. The "new" viaduct can be seen to the right. All the remaining slivers of viaduct that aren't under JFK are privately owned, but they're narrow enough I don't envision them ever getting developed.

Avis Car Rental, Logan Square
Demo crews made short work of the old Avis complex on Arch Street. It's now temporarily in use as a surface parking lot until the proposed office building here (allegedly the new headquarters for Chubb) gets off the ground.

Norman Rice House, Fitler Square

After hearing of its impending demolition, I stopped back here to snap a few more photos. 

People were working inside. I'm kicking myself for not asking if I could go in and take some photos.

There isn't much in terms of midcentury modern architecture in this part of town, so it's really a shame to see this go. 

The gray building to the left of this was demolished too. Original plans called for keeping the 2-story portion of the rice house, but I guess they figured once the property next door became available, they could combine the two and build something bigger. The gray one was built in the 1920's as a carriage house for a mansion on the other end of the block. If I recall correctly, it originally belonged to the owner of the Stetson Hat Company.

McRogers, Grays Ferry, Phila

This restaurant opened in 1988 as a Roy Rogers and was one of the locations later converted to a McDonald's. I've seen varying amounts of effort put into converting these, but this one takes the cake for the least. All they really did was slap the French fry lights on the roof and call it a day.

A plastic awning covers up the original front of the restaurant. Some might complain about the lack of effort here, but I love it. It makes it more interesting. Unfortunately, McDonald's has deemed this one to non-standard to save. Permits have been issued to demolish and rebuild this restaurant.

RadioShack/Chase, Grays Ferry

I would assume RadioShack was an original tenant to the shopping center here, opening in 1988. It closed during their 2015 bankruptcy. After sitting vacant for a little while, it was turned into a Chase Bank. This space was the end of the shopping center and had a grass patch next door, allowing a drive through to be added.

Rainbow/Cleaners/Scrub Pro, Grays Ferry

I would also assume Rainbow was one of the original tenants in this center. It closed sometime between 2011 and 2007. This space sat vacant for a little while before becoming a dry cleaner, which relocated from the other end of the center. It didn't last too long, and closed in 2016. It has since been converted to Scrub Pro Uniforms.

Golden Sports, Grays Ferry

Unlike the other stores we've looked at here, I don't believe Golden Sports was an original tenant. It has been here since 2007 at least and closed around 2015. The space, which looks like a few different storefronts combined, remains vacant.

Pathmark/Fresh Grocer, Grays Ferry

Pathmark opened with the center in 1988 and survived up until A&P's final bankruptcy in 2015. This was among the 25 stores Shoprite picked up in the liquidation, and one of three they elected to open as a Fresh Grocer. At this point there isn't much of a difference between the names, so I'm not sure how they selected these to carry the other brand. Unlike the others, they left the exterior of this one alone for the most part, but totally redid the inside.

Bottom Dollar, Grays Ferry

This was one of the shortest-lived Bottom Dollars in the chain. It opened in 2014 and closed with the chain almost exactly a year later. Aldi did not take this one. A second phase of development was supposed to add a relocated Rite Aid next door, but that never came to fruition. Rite Aid remains in their old store, which still has the red and blue stripe decor. They got the new logo this year, so it looks like relocation plans are dead now that Bottom Dollar is gone. The Bottom Dollar building hasn't fared any better, 7 years later it remains unoccupied and boarded-up. This area is beginning to see a development surge, so it wouldn't surprise me if this is ripped down for apartments at this point.

Dry Feeds Elevator Demo, Grays Ferry

This old grain elevator was built sometime in the early 1900's as a dry feed factory. The site was home to a contractor's yard more recently, but had been abandoned since the 2000's. This tower became a bit of an urbex landmark post-closure but was ultimately demolished in 2018. I was hoping they had plans in store for the site, but so far it remains vacant.

Amoco/BP/Conoco, Grays Ferry

This might look like a regular gas station, to most people it does, but what you can't tell from street level is that this actually stands atop a bridge. A rail line passes under the intersection this sits at and passes directly under it. I've (unsuccessfully) been trying to figure out where the underground tanks for this are- my best guess is off to the side. It's probably safe to assume it opened when the bridge was constructed in the 60's as an Amoco, then converted to BP. Like most Philly BP's, it converted to Conoco in 2017. The bridge is load posted by PennDOT, indicating it may be up for replacement soon. If that's the case, this station won't be around too much longer.

University Avenue Bridge, University City, Phila

Dating back to 1930, this bridge connects University City and Grays Ferry across the Schuylkill River. It is one of a couple operable drawbridges in the city, which even though there is no need to lift it anymore it still must be used once a day to ensure everything is in working order. It was designed by famed architect Paul Phillipe Cret and is a great example of art deco architecture.

If you couldn't guess from my photos, my favorite part of the bridge are these large copper lanterns.

It's not in great shape, but it's able to stand up to very heavy traffic. Hopefully they can keep it going a while longer!

VAMC CLC, University City

I don't know the full story behind this, but they started putting this addition on the Community Living Center at the VA Hospital in 2007. Work stopped, resumed briefly in 2012, stopped again, and was finally finished in 2018. My understanding is one of the contractors who was remodeling this went bankrupt and folded in 2012 (leaving a large portion of the second floor gutted out- it remains that way today, but a bid was recently awarded to finish it), so that could explain the middle part, but I'm not sure what happened to the people who started it in 2007. The CLC was built in the 80's on part of the site of Pennsylvania General Hospital, whose brick wall remains in front.

District Health Center 3, Spruce Hill, Phila

It may not look that lively, but this center is still open as one of 9 public health centers in Philly. As the program has downsized over the years, large portions of the site do remain vacant- just not the part pictures here surprisingly. Other centers have moved to smaller digs recently, which I'm assuming will happen to this before long. The current building isn't being used to its highest potential and is sitting on some prime real estate.

Here's the main entrance and some signs of life. You may also recognize this as the go-to medical center in It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia. To be honest, I'm not sure exactly what they do here but I can assure you these are not full-fledged hospitals by any means.

The rear entrance to the building is fenced off. It's more than a little decrepit but remains a fantastic example of midcentury modern architecture.

The windows next to this are all vacant too. I took a peek inside and it has unfortunately been gutted out completely.

Next to that is an oddly shaped wing which I'm assuming was an auditorium at one point based on its appearance. It's attached to an active part of the building, but I'm not sure if it's still in use.

Shops on Spruce St, Garden Court, Phila

This row of storefronts most likely dates back to the 50's. In recent years, they have all been taken over by lower-end tenants, most of which are now closed. Last week, plans were announced to demolish this for a new apartment complex, which should breathe some new life into this block.

Sunoco? Garden Court

I'm struggling to identify this one. I've never seen a canopy like this before, but the main building reminds me of an old Sunoco. It's been an independent repair shop for the last few decades and is slated for demolition for the new apartment building as well. 

Philadelphia College of Osteopathy/Emmanuel Church, Garden Court

This building was constructed in the 1920's as a relocated home for the Philadelphia College of Osteopathy, which had moved from Center City. They operated here until 1957, when they relocated to City Line where they remain today. There is not much information on what happened to this building during the years in between, but the Korean Emmanuel Church has made this their home for the past few decades. Their website (which I had to translate from Korean) says they were established in 1968, but I'm guessing it took them a few years to build the following to be able to afford a building like this.

ACME/Food Rite, Garden Court, Phila

ACME opened this store in 1938 and lasted presumably until the 60's here. It later became Food Rite, which closed in the early 2000's. It sat vacant for several years but was converted to a couple of restaurants in 2011. I so wish I got to see inside before the conversion, Food Rite sounds like the kind of place that would have kept all the 30's ACME relics until the very end. In addition to the ACME, there's a row of streetfront-facing shops next to it built in the same style around a parking lot. I believe that would make this the oldest modern shopping center within the city limits.

Penn Fruit, Garden Court

Penn Fruit opened this location in 1950 and most likely closed it with the chain in the late 70's. Since then, it has been split up between a few smaller tenants. RadioShack was one of them, but despite their sign remaining they are long gone. Interestingly, the barrel roof here runs perpendicular to the front of the store, which I guess is the end result of them trying to cram a prototype into an oddly shaped lot. 

Garden Court Plaza Garage, Garden Court

After 96 years, you'd expect them to be able to finish a project, right? Well, if this is any indication, maybe not. But they're getting there. Garden Court Plaza is an apartment complex that was planned to be three towers built over top of a 1-story pedestal. The pedestal and first tower were finished and opened in 1926. Then, before the other two could be built, the Great Depression happened. This neighborhood never got back the momentum it had going before then, until now. UPenn's student housing demand is surging and there is a huge need for more units in the area. Plans to build the final two towers were revealed in 2020 and permits issued last year. Work has yet to begin, but their finger is on the trigger.

Here's the area of the first tower. This one was supposed to be the largest, so it's going to look a little different than the new ones. Tastes (and zoning) have changed over the last century, so the new designs are going to be a little different too.

Houses, Garden Court

Despite being surrounded by urban blight on three sides and UPenn on the other, this part of town has some very high-class suburban looking homes. These look like they belong out on the Main Line or in Chestnut Hill, not West Philly.

Good Shepherd Community Church, Garden Court

This was originally built in the 1940's as a Mennonite Church... since apparently you can live an Amish lifestyle in the city? And that recently? In later years, it became independent Good Shepherd Community Church, which closed in the past couple years. Plans were on the table to demolish this for an apartment building, but neighbors fought back until a compromise was reached. The main sanctuary of the church would be saved and adapted, while the administrative parts would come down. The new apartments are rising on the site of them as well as the open yard to the side of it.

Apartments, Spruce Hill

I've got no information on this place other than that it's by far the coolest apartment complex in the neighborhood. That's a high bar too, this was a very rich area in the early 1900's so many of these buildings spared no expense. Now it's mainly Penn students and professors, but it's Ivy League so you know the money's still here.

St. Andrew's Chapel, Spruce Hill

This chapel was built in 1919 as part of the Philadelphia Divinity School, an Episcopal seminary. The school consolidated with another in Massachusetts in 1974, and closed this campus. UPenn bought it in 1977, leasing the buildings out to the Philly School District. They are mostly now home to the Penn Alexander Elementary School. The remainder is Penn classrooms and a daycare for professors and students- oh, and a massive chapel they have no use for. A few times a year this would be used for special events, but those seem to have stopped around 2016. 

It's getting a little run-down, and there is evidence of break-ins in the doors, but I would not call this place abandoned. Several notable urbex pages would like you to think otherwise though. I have seen pictures of this place on many of them, but can assure you the only way in is asking someone from Penn to let you in.

Devon Kmart Update! 

Construction is well underway converting the old Kmart to a Target. Both interior and exterior demolition have started!

The old JM Fields facade has been picked away to a skeleton, but some of the arches are still intact... for now.

The gutted-out facade confirms Kmart's 2nd floor breakrooms did go out over the sidewalk in front. That shouldn't surprise me, but it does. It also surprises me more than it should how closely the frame design matches the architectural finish on the facade.

Malvern Station, Malvern, PA

We're going to finish off today's post by looking at the PRR/SEPTA & Amtrak stations along the Main Line. Officially, this Amtrak line runs all the way to Pittsburgh, and SEPTA to Thorndale (and soon Coatesville), but the region known as the "Main Line" ends at Malvern. This station was built in 1900 and remained more or less unchanged until a massive project in 2010, rebuilding the eastbound platform and adding a tunnel to connect it to the westbound one. The station building itself was left alone.

Paoli Station, Paoli, PA

I've shown you a little on this one before. It was first built in 1893, then rebuilt in its current form in 1953. The 1953 building is on its way out though, as work has begun on a three-phase rebuilding project. The first phase, which you can see to the right, added a higher central platform and stair towers connecting it to either side. It finished up in 2019. The next phase, which is supposed to begin later this year, will reroute Valley Road around the station property. Finally, once that is complete, the existing station will be razed for a new one, which will also include a large parking garage to replace the currently undersized lot.

Daylesford, Paoli, PA

I missed the shot of the station itself here, but there's not much to see. I included this shot just to complete the set. It's a glass-walled shelter on the eastbound side, and a parking lot on the other. It was built in 2000, replacing an even smaller wooden structure from the late 1800's.

Berwyn Station, Berwyn, PA

Next stop is Berwyn station, which was built in 1884. There is still seating and ticket sales in the main building, but a large portion of it has been sublet to a picture frame store.

Devon Station, Devon, PA

This station goes back to 1883. It has not been quite as well maintained as the others on the line. While a ticket office is open here, I have my doubts they use the entire building.

Strafford Station, Devon, PA

Architecturally I find this one the most interesting on the line. Rumor has it this building was part of the 1876 Centennial Exhibition in Philadelphia and moved here afterwards, but that conflicts with the better documented fact that it was built in 1873 as the Radnor PRR Station and moved here in 1883. Either way, this building has moved around some. It suffered a fire in 1999 but was carefully restored not long after.

Wayne Station, Wayne, PA

Wayne was built between 1882 and 1884, and given a pretty intense overhaul in the early 2000's. The building houses a ticket office as well as a cafe, which I think is a perfect use for it. Several others along this line have cafes too.

St Davids's Station, Wayne, PA

St. David's was originally built in 1890, though the ticket office and eastbound platform (pictured) were demolished and rebuilt in 1960. The ticket office later closed altogether, and the 1960 building (the stucco thing in back) now houses a realtors office.

Radnor Station, Radnor, PA

There's more to Radnor than this picture would indicate, the building just happened to be on the opposite side of the tracks from the others, making it hard for me to get a picture of it without crawling over people across the train car. But since all we see is this, now would be a good time to tell you this is pretty much exactly what Daylesford looks like. Fortunately, unlike Daylesford, this isn't the entire station and there's an ornate 1883-built brick structure on the other side.

Villanova Station, Villanova, PA

A lot of people forget that Villanova's not just a school, but an unincorporated town as well... that just so happens to be named for the school. This station is for the town, not just the school (Even though it happens to be entirely surrounded by the University). When I got these pictures, they were in the middle of a large and much-needed construction project to build modern platforms and a tunnel beneath the tracks to connect both sides. Interestingly, they didn't touch the existing station. Like at all. Not even a (badly needed) new coat of paint. I'm hoping there's a future phase to restore that. Like with Radnor, the station building is on the westbound side, so I didn't catch it here. Unlike Radnor, this is still the original 1890 shelter though.

Rosemont Station, Rosemont, PA

This station was originally built in 1880. The ticket office remains open in this building, but most of it is now occupied by a realtor's office. The office opened in 1983 and is responsible for some of the very tacky period renovations done to the building.

Bryn Mawr Station, Bryn Mawr, PA

It looks old enough I had assumed this was the original structure, but this station was actually rebuilt in 1963. The station building itself appears well maintained, but the platform canopy is in desperate need of a reroofing. 

Haverford Station, Haverford, PA

Haverford's unique as it's the only one with station buildings on both sides of the tracks. The more impressive one is on the westbound side, but here I have the eastbound pictured. The main building was constructed in 1870 and expanded a few times over the following decades, while this one was added in 1916. Its intent was to double as a station and a post office, though in recent years it has been home to a realtor's office but now sits vacant. It is also apparently for sale, which surprised me seeing how it's surrounded by station.

Ardmore Station, Ardmore, PA

Ardmore was first built in 1870, but as you can probably guess the original building is long gone. The structure pictured here replaced it in 1957. Also added was a small drive-thru bank branch, which in its final years operated solely as an ATM. It closed as a Citizen's Bank in 2017, though I believe it was built as a Girard Bank. While SEPTA does stop here, it is operated primarily by Amtrak, who has begun a major redevelopment. Starting in late 2019, the platforms were extended further across Anderson Ave, and temporary access stairs added to them. That phase was completed recently, and just last week the existing station was closed. Demolition is starting now, and a replacement will be open by the end of next year. A future phase will also replace the existing surface parking lot with a garage. 

Wynnewood Station, Wynnewood, PA

Wynnewood is one of the oldest operating stations in the country and is still using its original 1870 building (As a point of reference, Lewistown PA is thought to have the country's oldest continuously operating station which predates this by 21 years; Philadelphia's 1834-built Shawmont Station previously held the title until closing in 1996). If the town names in this set sound familiar to you from somewhere other than here, it could be you're thinking of settlements that popped up in Illinois, Nebraska, or Oklahoma along branches of the Pennsylvania Railroad where stops were named after those on the Main Line.

Narberth Station, Narberth PA

I don't know the full history of this one, but from my understanding, there was never a station building here, just a platform canopy. The original one was torn down in 1980, and replaced with a slightly more substantial canopy with a small glassed-in seating area. 

Merion Station, Merion Station, PA

Here, we've got a case of the neighborhood actually being named for the station. Previously, this also would have been part of Wynnewood. The current station was built in 1914 and renovated in 2007. After PRR went under, Amtrak and SEPTA shared this station, but Amtrak stopped service here in 1979, leaving it exclusively under SEPTA's control.

Overbrook Station, Overbrook, Phila, PA

I commented on the age of the Wynnewood station a few photos back. 150 years is ancient for a train station, but do you know what's even more impressive? This one's been here in its current form since 1860! It sits in the Overbrook neighborhood of Philly, right on the city line. In fact, its platforms even cross over into Montgomery County. It is the last stop on the Main Line before 30th Street Station downtown, though up until the 80's (Wikipedia has a 1980 closing date but I know people who used it until 1984 at least) there was a 52nd Street Station in between, which has since been demolished. Hope you guys enjoyed this little tour!

I don't think I've ever put up a song here that was in another language, so how about we finish with one of those?