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Originally published in 1911.This volume from the Cornell University Library's print collections was scanned on an APT BookScan and converted to JPG 2000 format by Kirtas Technologies.All titles scanned cover to cover and pages may include marks notations and other marginalia present in the original volume. ... Read more

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King Charles II of England gave Pennsylvania to Quaker William Penn in repayment for a loan that Penn s father had made to the king. The king probably thought he was accomplishing more than just paying a debt when he made the land grant. It was a way to get rid of some Quakers, whom he considered troublesome. Quakers did flock to Pennsylvania to settle, but so did people from many other religious groups. All faiths were welcome in Penn s colony. The new city of Philadelphia prospered. Settlers fanned out to the west to build farms and towns. They shipped their products to Philadelphia and England. By the time of the American Revolution, Pennsylvania was considered the heart of the colonies. Philadelphia hosted the First and Second Continental Congresses, where the Declaration of Independence was crafted. And from the Pennsylvania State House, the Liberty Bell rang out the news of independence declared. ... Read more

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There is no better way to see America than on foot. And there is no better way to appreciate what you are looking at than with a walking tour. Whether you are preparing for a road trip or just out to look at your own town in a new way, a downloadable walking tour from walkthetown.com is ready to explore when you are.

Each walking tour describes historical and architectural landmarks and provides pictures to help out when those pesky street addresses are missing. Every tour also includes a quick primer on identifying architectural styles seen on American streets.


When William Penn founded Philadelphia in 1682 he saw a city that would one day stretch from the Delaware River to the Schuylkill River. He had surveyor Thomas Holme lay out a plan for the city to match that far-reaching vision. For the next 100 years the city still clustered only six blocks from the Delaware River.

By the early nineteenth century, development had reached Center Square (now site of City Hall) and continued westward to the Schuylkill and beyond into West Philadelphia. Things were happening so rapidly that the Consolidation of 1854 recognized this fact by enlarging the city boundaries to match those of Philadelphia County.

The city’s banks and businesses and small manufacturers marched westward as the city grew. By 1900 Center City claimed not only Philadelphia’s government and moneyed interests but its railroads and great retail emporiums. Center City today continues to be the pulsing heart of the city with America’s most formidable historical area to the east and majestic residential neighborhoods to the west.

Our walking tour will begin at one of America’s most magnificent buildings recently restored...
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Customer Reviews (1)

Huge Thumbs Up!
I love Philadelphia and visit several times a year. I came across this e-book when I was trying to find some new things to do. At the price, (less than two dollars), I wasn't really expecting much, but since I always stay in Center City, I figured I would give this a chance.

First pleasant surprise was the number of stops this book covers. Interesting information on so many different buildings and landmarks, many that I've walked by very often without giving them a thought. Really good color photos and detailed directions to each point of the tour. To top it off, there is an appendix detailing information on different architectural styles represented throughout the city.

I downloaded this to the Kindle app on my iPhone, and have no trouble reading it on the small screen. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

An Experience.
Father McNamee takes his readers on a journey in this text.I hightly recommend reading this volume for anyone interested in Philadelphia, truth, or uncertainty . . . very contrasted topics, but all are handled beautifully in this book.

A Witness to the Faithful Life
This book is a year's journal of the experiences of an inner-city Roman Catholic parish priest.MacNamee writes of profound experiences with a style of deceptive sparseness.Read it slowly.Absorb the richspirituality that the author reveals in his faithful day-to-day ministryamong the very poor.A wonderful book! ... Read more

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Journey into the history of what was once called the Jewel of the Mid Valley - Olyphant, Pennsylvania, The Queen City. This journey takes the reader through the earliest days of the township and notable events of the past. Included are some famous residents and visitors who passed through over the years, and of course the storied Anthracite Empire that built the town. Check out a wealth of photographic documentation as well as many interesting facts about Olyphant, such as:

A mine disaster occurred at the location of Olyphant s mining memorial statue in 1903 that swallowed an entire hotel into the ground below.

The first woman ever enlisted in the U.S. Navy was from Olyphant.

Patricia Crowley of Olyphant once graced a Life magazine cover in the 1950s.

Nestor Chylak of Olyphant is in the National Baseball Hall of Fame for his work in the major leagues as an umpire.

President Theodore Roosevelt came to Olyphant to try to find a solution to mining relations in 1910. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Homegrown history
I very much like this book, and believe it will be thoroughly enjoyed by people who lived in Olyphant PA or the Mid Valley.I applaud the group behind this book and the author for writing this local history.It covers the high spots of mining history in Olyphant, PA.It is not, however, a history book of the town, since it covers only a few narrow topics -- mining, the volunteer fire companies, etc.However, a true history of any small town is a Herculean task.

I would have liked to see something about railroading in general.For example, there once was a commuter train into Scranton, according to my late uncles and father.There was a notable derailment that spilled cars into the town traffic circle.One could also write about the different groups of immigrants that arrived at different times, and the sometimes unhappy relationships among the groups (which carried over into local politics).There is some good sports history in the town.There is a wealth of religious history (including the story of the church that broke away from St. Cyril's.)But such a work is a long project -- it would take years to compile and write.And, sadly, it would have best been written when the people who lived there between 1900 and 1930 were still alive.

I have seen a number of photos of the area, and I think the author selected a good group to show.I would have liked a few more pictures of everyday life.I would also like to know whether it is true that the current St. Patrick's Church got a start in its funding when a local priest exposed an illegal cockfight, and got some generous funding to keep certain identities quiet (at least that was in local lore).Finally, I wish a local history had included remembrances of some of the interesting characters from the town.But once again, we are talking about a magnum opus here.Once again, my thanks to the people behind this book.It is important to preserve local history such as this.And hats off to the people who kept old newspaper clippings and other memorabilia.

A captivating photographic documentary
When Coal Was Queen is an assembly of black-and-white photographs revealing the history of Olyphant, Pennsylvania, also known as "Jewel of the Mid Valley" and "The Queen City". The brief text paragraphs guide the reader through notable events of the city's past, including glimpses of some famous residents and visitors who have passed through during the course of the years. A captivating photographic documentary, When Coal Was Queen offers brings the life and times of a bustling city to the reader's fingertips. Highly recommended.
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The classic historical interpretation of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries in America sees this period as a political search for order by the middle class, culminating in Progressive Era reforms. In The Middle-Class City, John Hepp examines transformations in everyday middle-class life in Philadelphia between 1876 and 1926 to discover the cultural roots of this search for order. By looking at complex relationships among members of that city's middle class and three largely bourgeois commercial institutions—newspapers, department stores, and railroads—Hepp finds that the men and women of the middle class consistently reordered their world along rational lines.

According to Hepp, this period was rife with evidence of creative reorganization that served to mold middle-class life. The department store was more than just an expanded dry goods emporium; it was a middle-class haven of order in the heart of a frenetic city—an entirely new way of organizing merchandise for sale. Redesigned newspapers brought well-ordered news and entertainment to middle-class homes and also carried retail advertisements to entice consumers downtown via train and streetcar. The complex interiors of urban railroad stations reflected a rationalization of space, and rail schedules embodied the modernized specialization of standard time. In his fascinating investigation of similar patterns of behavior among commercial institutions, Hepp exposes an important intersection between the histories of the city and the middle class.

In his careful reconstruction of this now vanished culture, Hepp examines a wide variety of sources, including diaries and memoirs left by middle-class women and men of the region. Following Philadelphians as they rode trains and trolleys, read newspapers, and shopped at department stores, he uses their accounts as individualized guidebooks to middle-class life in the metropolis. And through a creative use of photographs, floor plans, maps, and material culture, The Middle-Class City helps to reconstruct the physical settings of these enterprises and recreate everyday middle-class life, shedding new light on an underanalyzed historical group and the cultural history of twentieth-century America.

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Ford City was once known as one of the fastest-growing communities in Pennsylvania. The Pittsburgh Plate Glass Company and the Ford China Company, both established by John B. Ford, made this town the destination of many United States citizens, as well as European immigrants searching for a new life of employment and prosperity. The vintage postcards in Around Ford City reflect the essence of this hardworking, proud, ethnic community. The people, along with the factories, hotels, churches, and many homes, have grown together over generations to form the spirit of Ford City. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

WORTH THE MONEY!!!!
This book is amazing.Lots of leg work was put in to get the old pics, but if you buy this it will bring back great memories.If you are from the area or want to buy a present for somebody from FC that isn't around here anymore, this is the hit gift of the season. ... Read more

Product Description
This is an EXACT reproduction of a book published before 1923. This IS NOT an OCR'd book with strange characters, introduced typographical errors, and jumbled words.This book may have occasional imperfections such as missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. that were either part of the original artifact, or were introduced by the scanning process. We believe this work is culturally important, and despite the imperfections, have elected to bring it back into print as part of our continuing commitment to the preservation of printed works worldwide. We appreciate your understanding of the imperfections in the preservation process, and hope you enjoy this valuable book. ... Read more

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Through the insightful lens of an experienced practitioner, this book describes the origin, execution, and impact of urban repopulation strategies—initiatives designed to attract residents, businesses, jobs, shoppers, and visitors to places that had undergone decades of decline and abandonment. The central question throughout the strategies explored in the book is who should benefit? Who should benefit from the allocation of scarce public capital? Who should enjoy the social benefits of urban development? And who will populate redeveloped areas? Kromer provides realistic guidance about how to move forward with strategic choices that have to be made in pursuing the best opportunities available within highly disadvantaged, resource-starved urban areas. Each of the cases presents strategies that are strongly influenced by geography, economics, politics, and individual leadership, but they address key issues that are major concerns everywhere: enlivening downtowns, stabilizing and strengthening neighborhoods, eliminating industrial-age blight, and providing quality public education options.

Customer Reviews (1)

An Insider's Perspective on Urban Revitalization
The author believes the main question that should be asked when considering urban policies is who benefits from their implementation.The most common recent urban policies have involved making downtown areas more economically viable, improving neighborhoods, eliminating bloight, and create quality education.Often economically disadvantaged people are greatly impacted in the public outcomes.Care needs to be taken, he urges, to determine who will gain and how economic conditions, geographical limitations, and how politics influences these policies.

The author served as Philadelphia's Housing Director, with a $100 million budget, under Mayor Ed Rendell.The job presented some difficulties.He began at a time when the city was near bankruptcy.Kromer helped convince the U.S. Housing and Urban Development Department not to penalize Philadelphia $14 million for past errors.He found himself under strong City Council questioning where one session lasted eight straight hours.He found the housing program's policies were "too piecemeal and too scattershot."Political considerations were a leading factor in where funds were invested.He sought new directions and had the benefit of a supportive Mayor in Ed Rendell and department heads who all worked together to product positive results.The following is a summation of his views on how to fix a broken city, Philadelphia in particular.

Most current urban development programs seek to improve or replace aging infrastructure (including streets, buildings, and removing environmental hazards), upgrade schools, housing stores, and service facilities, and to attract or expand existing businesses and create more jobs.

Philadelphia's city government had financial difficulties.It was low in cash.Many cities including Philadelphia could not afford to make large investments in revitalizing their economies.An alternative often used was to offer tax abatements to private investors who made these desired investments.This was done to address the problem of empty office buildings in the early 1990s.The incentive of a ten year real estate tax abatement helped several developers to renovate and operate these buildings.The abatement was contingent upon the project being completed and it was calculated according to the building's pre-rental value.

In the later part of the 20th century, many public urban direct investments were in conjunction with private investors with political influence, such as stadium owners, convention center investors, hotel owners, waterfront developers, and performance arts owners.These minimized funds for investing in neighborhoods or downtown improvements.

The additional tax revenues generated from increased property values that result when a development happens play a key part of tax incremental financing.The revenues are targeted for further investments.Tax incremental financing was used in Philadelphia for building a convention center, renovating a subway terminal and marketplace, constructing office buildings, parking garages, and a performance center, as well as for renovating the Philadelphia Navy Yard.This is a political popular as it does not require increasing taxes.Instead, it diverts new revenue streams.

The Keystone Opportunity Zone (KOZ) was created within Pennsylvania in 1999.This allowed public agencies with state approval to designate a block or series of blocks (which were mostly abandoned or blighted) and then offer a partial or total local and tax exemptions to a developer to develop within that area.These exemptions could last up to ten years, and sometimes longer.A problem with this program was that many businesses that located within these zones left another Philadelphia site where they had been paying taxes.Another problem was that other existing businesses complained that they felt it unfair their competitors received tax breaks.

There is often a stigma to designating an area as being officially blighted. The designation alone can create more instability as those remaining in a blighted area may then feel a need to leave, thus making the area even more abandoned.Philadelphia avoided this by declaring, for tax abatement purposes, the entire city as being blighted.This led to $110.6 million of new investment through 2004 with $29.2 million in taxes abated.Some abandoned areas were renovated.Most building renovators happened in the central business area.1,038 single family homes were built on the former Navy Base with $4.6 million in tax abatements over ten years.

Philadelphia still has a relatively lower achieving school system as well as higher wage taxes than does its surrounding counties.These factors are detrimental in attracting people to move to Philadelphia rather than their suburban counties.Philadelphia also has relatively higher labor costs, in part due to the higher wage taxes and in part due to higher unionization rates, than does its surrounding counties, which can be detrimental to attracting new businesses.Philadelphia is also slower than its' surrounding counties in processing request for building permits and zoning variances.

Kromer found the abatements were often misdirected.They were not targeted towards the poor and politically weaker neighborhoods that most needed renovating.Instead, they were used more often in downtown business areas and neighborhood were home sales prices already were relatively high.Plus, if was often the wealthier developers who obtained these abatements.

There were proposals to create homestead exemptions for long term home owners that would have addressed some equity concerns.Yet, there were never adopted.

Downtowns require a proper and successful mix of retain, offices, and residences in order to thrive.They need retain and residents to maintain economic and social vibrancies after normal business office hours.

A tax was imposed upon Center City residents and businesses to pay for increased services within Center City.This paid for 100 maintenance employees who power-washed streets monthly and vacuumed them daily.Employees were hired for additional trash removal and for graffiti removal services.

Transition zones are areas separating business districts and distant stable residential areas.The transition zones often contain a mixture of businesses and residences.Making transition zones economically stable helps stabilize business districts.Weak transition zones can lead to instability spreading to larger geographic areas.

Eastern North Philadelphia is a transition zone.It had about 1,230 vacant homes and 1,711 vacant lots.The scattered placement of these required addressing multiple problem rather than creating one large project.

Many urban transition zones lost populations and businesses in clusters.This creates hollow cores within these zones.The city government tore down abandoned structures which created vacant lots.Public investment in these areas should occur more quickly and is better targeted than waiting for private investment.This is especially important when public investment can prevent further deterioration which would make private investment even less likely.

In 1993, U.S. Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Secretary Henry Cisneros sought to work with the Philadelphia government to exert more city government control over public housing.HUD was running the public housing program at the time.HUD offered to renovate the city's troubled housing site at Southwark Plaza.The city took over code enforcement of public housing.Twenty years later, though, the housing authority remains a state agency that is not controlled or reviewed by city government.

Philadelphia made a priority of providing housing to people with jobs or in school.It decided it would not be the "housing of last resort, available to anyone."

As Federal and state funds decreased, the Philadelphia Housing Authority found itself in a weaker position to compete with private developers for desired real estate.

A public housing project in Eastern North Philadelphia met a goal of looking similar to public housing.It is criticized for not meeting smart growth goals on sprawl and for not being close to public transportation.

Mayor Rendell was devoted to downtown rehabilitation.His successor, Mayor John Street, tried to focus more on neighborhood rehabilitation.A problem is it takes more investment over several years to turn around distressed neighborhoods.

Mayor Street addressed distressed communities by removing abandoned cars.He got City Council to approve a plan for blight demolition, buying land, and repairing homes that could be used by elderly or disabled people.A proposal was made by Temple University researchers to create zones that would eliminate all blight within these zones.The idea, though, was rejected by City Council.

The Redevelopment Authority (RDA) face problems acquiring properties when housing and land prices increased.Less land could be purchased and fewer projects were undertaken.There were 1,463 Redevelopment Selection actions from 2000 to 200t with 329 in a North Philadelphia zone, 288 for the PHA, and 107 for a private developer working with an agenda supported by Council member Jamie Blackwell.

The RDA was given a diminished role under the Street Administration.The RDA is a state government agency.There were fears the RDA would become more influenced by the Republican Governor than by the goals of the Democratic Mayor. Mayor Street sought layoffs in the RDA which led to a bitter feud with RDA Chairman of the Board John Dougherty, a labor leader who had previously supported Street.

Urban improvement strategies are changing.Construction jobs needed for improvements are no longer the permanent positions they once were.Public investments are decreasing.

The author recommends the Federal government coordinate urban improvement efforts from one funding source.He advises the state government should concentrate in providing housing for people who are employed or in job training programs.City government should direct actions according to what is best locally.
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Product Description
This is an EXACT reproduction of a book published before 1923. This IS NOT an OCR'd book with strange characters, introduced typographical errors, and jumbled words.This book may have occasional imperfections such as missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. that were either part of the original artifact, or were introduced by the scanning process. We believe this work is culturally important, and despite the imperfections, have elected to bring it back into print as part of our continuing commitment to the preservation of printed works worldwide. We appreciate your understanding of the imperfections in the preservation process, and hope you enjoy this valuable book. ... Read more

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More than 2,000 properties are listed herein, and approx. 5,000 separate structures.,., 8.5x11, append., indices, paper, #M120 ... Read more

Product Description
This is an EXACT reproduction of a book published before 1923. This IS NOT an OCR'd book with strange characters, introduced typographical errors, and jumbled words.This book may have occasional imperfections such as missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. that were either part of the original artifact, or were introduced by the scanning process. We believe this work is culturally important, and despite the imperfections, have elected to bring it back into print as part of our continuing commitment to the preservation of printed works worldwide. We appreciate your understanding of the imperfections in the preservation process, and hope you enjoy this valuable book. ... Read more

Product Description
This scarce antiquarian book is a selection from Kessinger Publishing's Legacy Reprint Series. Due to its age, it may contain imperfections such as marks, notations, marginalia and flawed pages. Because we believe this work is culturally important, we have made it available as part of our commitment to protecting, preserving, and promoting the world's literature. Kessinger Publishing is the place to find hundreds of thousands of rare and hard-to-find books with something of interest for everyone! ... Read more

Product Description
This is an EXACT reproduction of a book published before 1923. This IS NOT an OCR'd book with strange characters, introduced typographical errors, and jumbled words.This book may have occasional imperfections such as missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. that were either part of the original artifact, or were introduced by the scanning process. We believe this work is culturally important, and despite the imperfections, have elected to bring it back into print as part of our continuing commitment to the preservation of printed works worldwide. We appreciate your understanding of the imperfections in the preservation process, and hope you enjoy this valuable book. ... Read more

Product Description
This is an EXACT reproduction of a book published before 1923. This IS NOT an OCR'd book with strange characters, introduced typographical errors, and jumbled words.This book may have occasional imperfections such as missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. that were either part of the original artifact, or were introduced by the scanning process. We believe this work is culturally important, and despite the imperfections, have elected to bring it back into print as part of our continuing commitment to the preservation of printed works worldwide. We appreciate your understanding of the imperfections in the preservation process, and hope you enjoy this valuable book. ... Read more

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This volume is produced from digital images created through the University of Michigan University Library's large-scale digitization efforts. The Library seeks to preserve the intellectual content of items in a manner that facilitates and promotes a variety of uses. The digital reformatting process results in an electronic version of the original text that can be both accessed online and used to create new print copies. The Library also understands and values the usefulness of print and makes reprints available to the public whenever possible. This book and hundreds of thousands of others can be found in the HathiTrust, an archive of the digitized collections of many great research libraries. For access to the University of Michigan Library's digital collections, please see http://www.lib.umich.edu and for information about the HathiTrust, please visit http://www.hathitrust.org ... Read more

Product Description
This is an EXACT reproduction of a book published before 1923. This IS NOT an OCR'd book with strange characters, introduced typographical errors, and jumbled words.This book may have occasional imperfections such as missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. that were either part of the original artifact, or were introduced by the scanning process. We believe this work is culturally important, and despite the imperfections, have elected to bring it back into print as part of our continuing commitment to the preservation of printed works worldwide. We appreciate your understanding of the imperfections in the preservation process, and hope you enjoy this valuable book. ... Read more

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The industrial city of Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, was originally settled in colonial times by Moravians from southeastern Germany. These religious utopians were noted for urban planning. In this large-format, richly illustrated volume, historian William Murtagh compares more than 20 Bethlehem landmarks with other Moravian communities for a fascinating glimpse into a part of America's past. 66 historical illustrations . ... Read more