Boathouse Row

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Boathouse Row
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Boathouse Row on the Schuylkill River in Philadelphia
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Location Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Area12 acres (4.9 ha)
Built1860 (1860)
Architect Furness & Evans, et al.
Architectural styleLate 19th- and 20th-century Revivals; Late Victorian; Gothic
NRHP reference No. 87000821 [1]
Significant dates
Added to NRHPFebruary 27, 1987
Designated NHLFebruary 27, 1987

Boathouse Row is a historic site which is located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on the east bank of the Schuylkill River just north of the Fairmount Water Works and the Philadelphia Museum of Art. It consists of a row of fifteen boathouses housing social and rowing clubs and their racing shells. Each of the boathouses has its own history, and all have addresses on both Boathouse Row and Kelly Drive, named after Philadelphia oarsman John B. Kelly Jr..

Contents

Boathouses #2 through #14 are part of a group known as the Schuylkill Navy, which encompasses several other boathouses along the river. Boathouse #1 is Lloyd Hall and is the only public boathouse facility on the Row. [2] Boathouse #15 houses the Sedgeley Club, which operates the Turtle Rock Lighthouse. The boathouses are all at least a century old, and some were built more than 150 years ago.

History and importance

Boathouse Row hosts several major rowing regattas, including the Dad Vail Regatta, the Stotesbury Cup Regatta, the Navy Day Regatta, the Independence Day Regatta, and the Head of the Schuylkill.

The boathouses are seen as centers of the rowing community around the United States. Rowers from the boathouses compete at every level, including local clubs, high schools, colleges, summer racing programs, and international-level athletics.

Boathouses outlined with LED lights A358, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA, Boathouse Row at night, 2009.JPG
Boathouses outlined with LED lights

In 1979, lights designed by architectural lighting designer Ray Grenald were installed to outline each of the boathouses, giving them a nightly Christmas-like gingerbread house appearance and reflecting in the Schuylkill River. [3] He proposed the lights after hearing talk of destroying the decaying Victorian boathouses. Lights on the buildings at night would serve to make them more noticed and appreciated. In 2005, after two refurbishings, the houses were outfitted with computerized LEDs that can light up in various colors, depending on the event or season.

Boathouse Row is a National Historic Landmark and was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1987. [4]

Local universities including Drexel, Penn, and La Salle row out of houses on Boathouse Row. Temple and Saint Joseph's row out of other boathouses along the Schuylkill that are not part of the Row.

Early 19th-century beginnings

The history of Boathouse Row begins with the construction of the Fairmount Dam and the adjacent water works. The Dam was built in 1821 to keep brackish tidal waters from entering the city's water supply through the Fairmount Water Works, which had been completed in 1815. [5] The Lehigh Coal & Navigation Company would become heavily involved in the improvements. [6] The dam initially submerged the rapids, and later developments transformed the stretch of the Schuylkill between the dam and East Falls from a tidal river into a slack water river resembling a very long freshwater lake. [7] The placid man-made surface was ideal for ice skating in winter and rowing in summer. [5]

In 1835, the first regatta took place between the Blue Devils and the Imps Barge clubs. [7] The excitement from the race sparked the formation of several barge clubs, many of them short-lived. [7]

The frame boathouses

From left to right: double boathouse at #9-10; double house at #7-8; and #6, with one-story condemned buildings in between (c. 1873) Fairmount Dam, by Cremer, James, 1821-1893-crop-.png
From left to right: double boathouse at #9-10; double house at #7-8; and #6, with one-story condemned buildings in between (c. 1873)

A secondary effect of taming the Schuylkill was that the calm water provided a breeding ground for mosquitoes, which drove wealthy residents from their riverside mansions. [5] The abandoned estates were bought by the City of Philadelphia. [7] In 1844, the city purchased the Lemon Hill Estate. [7] The leaseholder of Lemon Hill operated a beer garden and allowed rowing and barge clubs to build frame structure boathouses on the Estate's property along the Schuylkill. [7]

In 1855, the city founded Fairmount Park by converting the Lemon Hill Estate, upon which the frame boathouses were built, into a public park. [7] At the same time, some of the established clubs wanted to regulate the sport of rowing to prevent unscrupulous practices and fixed races. [7] As a result, in 1858, the Schuylkill Navy was founded, which eventually transformed the professional sport of rowing into an amateur sport. [7] In 1859, the city condemned the boathouses along the Schuylkill. [7]

Boathouses of 1860

Although the city condemned the frame boathouses, it passed an ordinance in 1860 to permit construction of three new boathouses for Pacific Barge Club, the clubs of the Schuylkill Navy, and the Philadelphia Skating Club. [7] After 1860, without city approval, several clubs constructed one-story boathouses similar to the frame structures that the city had previously condemned and removed, but these newer boathouses were built with brick and stone. [7] In 1868, following an expansion of Fairmount Park, the city ordered the removal of all of the one-story brick and stone boathouses except for buildings belonging to the Philadelphia Skating Club (#14 Boathouse Row), Pacific Barge Club (#2-3 Boathouse Row), and Bachelors Barge Club (#6). [7]

Post–Civil War boathouses

Boathouse Row, c. 1904-1912 Boathouse Row circa 1915 LOC4a19455v.jpg
Boathouse Row, c. 1904-1912

Between 1869 and 1871, Pennsylvania Barge Club and Crescent Boat Club erected a double boathouse at #4 and #5 Boathouse Row. [8] In 1871, the Fairmount Park commission allowed the University Barge Club and the Philadelphia Barge Club to build a double boathouse at #7-8 Boathouse Row. [9] In 1873, Malta Boat Club and Vesper Boat Club built a double boathouse at #9 and #10 Boathouse Row. [10] In 1874, College Boat Club built the boathouse at #11 Boathouse Row. [11] In 1878, West Philadelphia Boat Club built #12 Boathouse Row. [12]

Five years later, in 1883, Undine Barge Club constructed #13 Boathouse Row. In 1892, with Crescent's permission, Pennsylvania Barge Club tore down and replaced their half of the double boathouse at #4 Boathouse Row. [8] In 1894, Bachelors Barge Club replaced its 1860 building at #6 Boathouse Row. [8] In 1902, the Sedgeley Club was allowed to build #15 Boathouse Row. [13] In 1904, Fairmount Rowing Association demolished the stone building built by Pacific Barge Club at #2 Boathouse Row and replaced the 1860 structure with a new brick structure, leaving #3 and #14 Boathouse Row as the only remaining boathouses dating from 1860. [14]

BoatHouseRow LGpano.jpg
A panorama of #15 to #2 Boathouse Row taken from West Philadelphia in 2010

Historic Landmark Boathouses in 1972

Miscellaneous images

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fairmount Park</span> United States historic place

Fairmount Park is the largest municipal park in Philadelphia and the historic name for a group of parks located throughout the city. Fairmount Park consists of two park sections named East Park and West Park, divided by the Schuylkill River, with the two sections together totalling 2,052 acres (830 ha). Management of Fairmount Park and the entire citywide park system is overseen by Philadelphia Parks & Recreation, a city department created in 2010 from the merger of the Fairmount Park Commission and the Department of Recreation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fairmount Water Works</span> United States historic place

The Fairmount Water Works in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, was Philadelphia's second municipal waterworks. Designed in 1812 by Frederick Graff and built between 1812 and 1872, it operated until 1909, winning praise for its design and becoming a popular tourist attraction. It now houses a restaurant and an interpretive center that explains the waterworks' purpose and local watershed history. It was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1976 for its architecture and its engineering innovations. It was the nation's first water supply to use paddle wheels to move water.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Schuylkill Navy</span> Association of amateur rowing clubs of Philadelphia

The Schuylkill Navy is an association of amateur rowing clubs of Philadelphia. Founded in 1858, it is the oldest amateur athletic governing body in the United States. The member clubs are all on the Schuylkill River where it flows through Fairmount Park in Philadelphia, mostly on the historic Boathouse Row.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Turtle Rock Light</span> Lighthouse

The Lighthouse on Turtle Rock is a lighthouse built in 1887 to aid traffic on the Schuylkill River near Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The lighthouse was constructed by Frank Thurwanger at a cost of $2,663 on an area of land just west of Boathouse Row. The lighthouse has a hexagonal lantern room with an octagonal walkway. Gas was first used to power the light, but in 1990, when the lighthouse was repainted and received a new wooden balustrade and newel posts, the beacon was electrified.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bachelors Barge Club</span>

Bachelors Barge Club is an amateur rowing club located at #6 Boathouse Row in the historic Boathouse Row of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It is the oldest continuously operating boathouse in the United States. It went through renovations as part of the "Light Boathouse Row" initiative, in which new LED lights were fitted to each of the boathouses. Bachelors Barge Club is currently home to several programs, including the Conestoga High School Crew Team, and the Drexel University Crew Team, among several others.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lemon Hill</span> Historic house in Pennsylvania, United States

Lemon Hill is a Federal-style mansion in Fairmount Park, Philadelphia, built from 1799 to 1800 by Philadelphia merchant Henry Pratt. The house is named after the citrus fruits that Pratt cultivated on the property in the early 19th century.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fairmount Rowing Association</span>

Fairmount Rowing Association is an amateur rowing club, founded in 1877. The facility, located at #2 Boathouse Row in the historic Boathouse Row of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, is on the National Register of Historic Places. Fairmount originally catered to blue-collar youths living in the Fairmount neighborhood. In 1916, after decades of being rejected, the club was finally allowed to join the Schuylkill Navy. The Club boasts being known as the "premiere club for Masters rowing in the mid-Atlantic region" and has produced several world class rowers.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">University Barge Club</span>

University Barge Club of Philadelphia is an amateur rowing club located at #7 in the historic Boathouse Row of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and designated a National Historic Landmark. The club's founding, in 1854, is considered the "dawn of organized athletics in the University of Pennsylvania." Known as "the upper-class rowing club," UBC is a founder, and the most senior member, of the oldest amateur athletic governing body in the United States, the Schuylkill Navy.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pennsylvania Barge Club</span>

Pennsylvania Barge Club is an amateur rowing club, situated along the historic Boathouse Row of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It was founded in 1861 and joined the Schuylkill Navy in 1865. The club's boathouse, at #4 Boathouse Row, is also known as the Hollenback House, named for William M. Hollenback, Jr., who served as President of USRowing from 1979 until 1985.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Crescent Boat Club</span>

Crescent Boat Club is an American amateur rowing club located at #5 Boathouse Row in the historic Boathouse Row of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It was founded in 1867 when Pickwick Barge Club and Iona Barge Club merged. Crescent Boat Club joined the Schuylkill Navy in 1868. In 1871, Crescent competed in and won the doubles event in the first regatta of the National Association of Amateur Oarsmen, an event "which undoubtedly helped the sport greatly."

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Penn Athletic Club Rowing Association</span>

Penn Athletic Club Rowing Association is an amateur rowing club located at #12 Boathouse Row in the historic Boathouse Row of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Penn AC was founded in 1871 as the West Philadelphia Boat Club. Penn AC has been a destination for elite rowers looking to make the US National Team, ever since John B. Kelly Sr. joined Penn AC after a schism with his former club, Vesper.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Malta Boat Club</span>

Malta Boat Club is an amateur rowing club located at #9 Boathouse Row in the historic Boathouse Row of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. In 1865, the Club joined the Schuylkill Navy when it relocated to the Schuylkill River from the Delaware River and purchased the facilities of the now defunct Excelsior Club. While on the Delaware, the club occupied a house on Smith’s Island where the club stored its boat called the "Minnehaha". The club was founded by members of the Minnehaha Lodge of the Sons of Malta. The Sons of Malta, originally organized in the South, did not survive the Civil War.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Undine Barge Club</span>

Undine Barge Club is an amateur rowing club located at #13 Boathouse Row in the historic Boathouse Row along the Schuylkill River in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The club was founded in 1856. Undine was not initially listed as a founder of the Schuylkill Navy, but is now considered a founder because an Undine member, Mr. B. F. Van dyke, was elected to represent the club as secretary treasurer of the Navy from its birth in 1858. In 1860, Undine purchased Keystone Barge Club's boat and equipment, as Keystone had disposed of its boathouse.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Philadelphia Girls' Rowing Club</span>

Philadelphia Girls' Rowing Club is an amateur rowing club located at #14 Boathouse Row in the historic Boathouse Row along the Schuylkill River in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It is the oldest all-female rowing club in existence. Built in 1860, the club's boathouse is the oldest structure on Boathouse Row, which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and designated a National Historic Landmark.

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References

  1. ↑ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places . National Park Service. January 23, 2007.
  2. ↑ "Lloyd Hall". Archived from the original on July 27, 2011. Retrieved May 11, 2010.
  3. ↑ Saffron, Inga (January 7, 2005). "Lights Out". The Philadelphia Inquirer . pp. 1, 13.
  4. ↑ National Register of Historic Places Inventory--Nomination Form Archived 2011-08-18 at the Wayback Machine
  5. 1 2 3 Burt, Nathaniel (1999). "The Schuylkill Navy". The Perennial Philadelphians: the anatomy of an American aristocracy. University of Pennsylvania Press. p. 200. ISBN   978-0-8122-1693-6.
  6. ↑ Archer B. Hulbert, The Paths of Inland Commerce, A Chronicle of Trail, Road, and Waterway, Vol. 21 The Chronicles of America Series. Editor: Allen Johnson (1921)
  7. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 Moak, Jefferson (November 27, 1983). "National Register of Historic Places Inventory--Nomination Form". NPS Focus, National Register of Historic Places, National Park Service, US Department of the Interior. p. 669. Retrieved May 7, 2010.
  8. 1 2 3 "National Register of Historic Places Inventory--Nomination Form". NPS Focus, National Register of Historic Places, National Park Service, US Department of the Interior. November 27, 1983. p. 661. Archived from the original on February 27, 2014. Retrieved May 7, 2010.
  9. ↑ Stillner, Anna (2005). The Philadelphia Girls' Rowing Club: An Incremental Historic Structure Report (Thesis). p. 28. Retrieved April 30, 2010.
  10. ↑ "National Register of Historic Places Inventory--Nomination Form". NPS Focus, National Register of Historic Places, National Park Service, US Department of the Interior. November 27, 1983. p. 663. Archived from the original on February 27, 2014. Retrieved May 7, 2010.
  11. ↑ "Seth S. Tannenbaum, Clifton R. Hood, & Mary D. McConaghy, College Boat Club, Penn Crew, archives.upenn.edu (April 2006)". Archived from the original on June 13, 2010. Retrieved May 26, 2010.
  12. ↑ "National Register of Historic Places Inventory--Nomination Form". NPS Focus, National Register of Historic Places, National Park Service, US Department of the Interior. November 27, 1983. pp. 664–65. Archived from the original on December 14, 2012. Retrieved May 7, 2010.
  13. ↑ Stillner, Anna (2005). The Philadelphia Girls' Rowing Club: An Incremental Historic Structure Report (Thesis). p. 106. Retrieved April 30, 2010.
  14. ↑ Silverberg, Lee (May 19, 2008). "A Very Brief History of the Fairmount Rowing Association". Fairmount Rowing Association. Archived from the original on October 4, 2013. Retrieved May 1, 2010.

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