The Edwin Forrest House - Philadelphia, PA
N 39° 58.464 W 075° 09.544
18S E 486417 N 4424927
The Edwin Forrest House was built in 1854-55 for William Gaul, a wealthy brewer. The house was owned by the Shakespearan actor Forrest until his death in the house in 1872. A blue plaque on the northern most edge along Broad St. marks this site.
Waymark Code: WM7MGA
Location: Pennsylvania, United States
Date Posted: 11/09/2009
Views: 7
This blue plaque may be found on the right side of the house. It is up off the bottom edge of the home sufficiently to prevent locals from stealing or destroying it. It reads "This House was the Residence of Edwin Forrest the Greatest Tragedian of His Time".
This site has a storied history, Today it is the home of Freedom Theater. Originally it was the Forrest House and then became the home of the Philadelphia School of Design for Women which was later renamed Moore College of Art & Design in 1989 (they had already moved out of the mansion by then in the 60s). Forrest, for whom the house is named after was a famous tragedian of his time. The historic marker on the side attests to this.
The Italianate house actually has two NRHP listings, being first recognized as the Edwin Forrest House and then 21 years later being listed again as the Philadelphia School of Design for Women. The address of this original NRHP site is 1326 N. Broad Street while the later NRHP listing has an address of 1346 N. Broad Street. Both are connected to the same piece of real estate. Today the Forrest homes is called Freedom Theater and has been since 1968. This NRHP waymark is solely for the house and not the rear west addition which make up the theater. A historical marker in front of the right side or 1346 Broad Street, marks the historic spot but not the original house. The greenish blue marker acts as a marker for this NRHP. The Philadelphia School of Design occupied the mansion until 1960. From 1960 to 1968 it was a community center.