Pennsylvania

A recent mention by Natalia “The Saw Lady” Paruz about a Disston saw sparked a memory for me, of a Disston Street in Philadelphia, which I remembered from my intense…

There are a number of high, unadorned brick towers in Philadelphia, Baltimore, and other eastern cities. Known as shot towers, they were used in manufacturing ammunition in the early to…

I was somewhat surprised that even Elfreth’s Alley has a dead end blind lane issuing north from it near Front, a pedestrian-only lane called Bladen’s Court and it comes complete with a blue and white enamel sign and historic-appearing electric lamp.

Francisville is a small neighborhood north of downtown Philadelphia. Like Manhattan’s Greenwich Village, the neighborhood doesn’t conform to Philly’s overall street grid due to its status as a small town…

I have often lamented the lack of named back alleys in New York City. Pittsburgh, PA fills the bill with hundreds of them, almost all called “ways.” This is Osterburg…

The neon is falling off this amazing neon sign on Broad and Ellsworth Streets in south Philly. This sign would have been removed decades ago in New York City. Photo:…

Though New York City continually strives to rid itself of old signage and other relics of the past, a new trend has arisen of actually maintaining relics and reusing them…