Item Info

Historic Street Address: 5th & Library Streets
Historic Street Address: Locust and Juniper Streets
Media Type: Scrapbooks
Source: Print and Picture Collection
Notes:

Item 1, top left: This clipping features a cropped image of the Philadelphia Library, more commonly referred to as "the Library Company of Philadelphia" or "the Library Company". The accompanying text reads: "A View of the Philadelphia Library, in Fifth Street, Opposite Independence Square". This clipping was taken from "The Casket", a Philadelphia magazine published in newspaper form, running from 1826 to 1840. The featured Palladian building was designed by the amateur architect, Dr. William Thornton. The building's street-facing facade features a centrally located niche in which sits a statue of a classically attired Benjamin Franklin, the Library's central founder. This building is now home to the American Philosophical Society. 7.62 x 8.89 cm.

Notes:

Item 2, top right: Clipping from an unknown source featuring an engraving of the "Library Company of Philadelphia Building at Fifth and Library Streets". The featured Palladian building was designed by the amateur architect, Dr. William Thornton. The building's street-facing facade reveals a centrally located niche in which sits a statue of a classically attired Benjamin Franklin, the Library's central founder. The engraving also includes neighboring buildings for context, and a well-dressed female walking her dog along the Fifth Street sidewalk. In 1954, the National Park Service authorized the reconstruction of Thorton's original design. The 1954 building is now home to the American Philosophical Society. 10.16 x 7.62 cm.

Notes:

Item 3, middle left: Single stereoscopic image of the South 5th Street home of the Philadelphia Library, more commonly referred to as "the Library Company of Philadelphia. In addition to the building, this photograph features several individuals milling about, to the right of the building, a man digging into the earth beneath the cobbled street, and horse-drawn carriages or wagons.

The featured Palladian building was designed by the amateur architect, Dr. William Thornton. The building's street-facing facade reveals a centrally located niche in which sits a statue of a classically attired Benjamin Franklin, the Library's central founder. This building was demolished in 1887. In 1954, the National Park Service authorized the reconstruction of Thorton's original design. The 1954 building is now home to the American Philosophical Society. 7.62  x 7.62 cm.

Notes:

Item 4, middle right: Engraving by J.J. Cooper featuring Philadelphia architect Frank Furness's Library Company of Philadelphia building, located at the intersection of Locust and Juniper Streets. A hybrid of both Victorian eclectic and Palladian design, this edifice's Locust Street facade paid homage to the institution's earlier home along South 5th Street. Opened in February of 1880, this new library featured a women's sitting room. Hired staff included the institution's first female librarian, Elizabeth McClellan, who attended to the reading needs and requests of female patrons from 1880 through 1920. 11.43 x 8.89 cm.

Notes:

Item 5, bottom left: Colored, engraved clipping from an unknown source featuring a view of the Library Company of Philadelphia as seen from the Southwest corner of 5th and Chestnut Streets, looking southeast. The caption reads: "Franklin Library in 1800". 15.24 x 10.16 cm.

Notes:

Item 6, bottom right: Engraving by C.C. Cooper featuring a library lantern, a plate, and another unidentified rectangular object positioned together atop a desk or table. 6.35 x 6.35 cm.

Creation Year: ca. 1845
Geocode Latitude: Geocode Longitude:-75.163580
Geocode Latitude:39.948341

Call Number: A917.481 P536 v.17
Creator Name: Castner, Samuel, Jr., 1843-1929 - Compiler