Mount Airy Train Station, which has been listed on the National Register of Historic Places since 1977, has now been added to the Philadelphia Register of Historic Places, writes Kimberly Haas for the Hidden City.
The nomination of the station came as a complete surprise to the Historical Commission, with members expressing shock that it was not already on the local register.
Renowned Philadelphia architect Frank Furness designed the building in 1875 in the Queen Anne Stick Style for the Philadelphia & Reading Railroad. The station is also associated with Franklin Gowen, then-president of the railroad, who had it built near his home.
The commuter station played a vital role in the development of the Mount Airy neighborhood.
The building, which is owned by SEPTA, has been leased to developer Ken Weinstein as part of a wider plan to repurpose shuttered train stations along the Chestnut Hill East and West Regional Rail lines.
Three additional properties have been added to the Philadelphia Register in the latest round: the Carl Metz House in East Oak Lane, the Andrew Nebinger Jr. House in Southwark, and Blue Bell Mission in the Blue Bell Hill section of West Mount Airy.
Read more about Mount Airy Train Station and the other entries in the Philadelphia Register of Historic Places in the Hidden City.
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