Subjects City Life

Centre Square Engine House, location of one of two steam engines used in the city’s original water system. Engraving by Birch.

Centre Square Engine House, ca. 1807

Southeast Corner of Third and Market Streets, Philadelphia

Southeast Corner of Third and Market, Philadelphia

Benjamin Franklin was concerned for years about the health of Philadelphia, especially about the unhealthiness of the city’s wells. He left money in his will to provide a clean water supply from outside the built up part of the city. He also helped found the first fire company in Philadelphia.

Benjamin Franklin, the Fireman

Black-and-white reproduction of the title page of an old periodical

19th century life in South Philadelphia’s marshland

Black-and-white image of two young women hugging

View from front of 322 S. 44th, April 18, 1914

Black-and-white image of a covered dock slanting down to the water with a house in front of it

A Day in the Ma’sh – Still Useful

Black-and-white image showing three small houses, some small boats, weeds, and trees

A Day in the Ma’sh – Low Tide

Black-and-white drawing of two cabins with a wooden walkway in front

A Day in the Ma’sh – At CLXIV Canal Boat St.

Black-and-white drawing of the interior of a humble cabin

A Day in the Ma’sh – In The Old Cabin Home

Black-and-white image of a man in a boat with a long pole

A Day in the Ma’sh – A Pusher

Black-and-white reproduction of the title page of an old periodical

A Day in the Ma’sh – Frontispiece

Black and white photo of a man wearing a hat and standing on a bridge with his arm on a post

Wood truss drawbridge, Orthodox Street over Frankford Creek, 1899 [Detail]