Girard Fountain Park - Philadelphia, PA
N 39° 57.144 W 075° 08.776
18S E 487506 N 4422484
Postage stamp sized park has a HUGE reputation both for its fountains and 9 foot bust of Benjamin Franklin.
Waymark Code: WMD306
Location: Pennsylvania, United States
Date Posted: 11/11/2011
Views: 10
Originally conceived in 1971, this municipal park has undergone several incarnations leading up to its new identity today after falling into disrepair by the mid 90s. The park is maintained by the Philadelphia Fire Department and not coincidentally (probably) is sites next to Engine 8 fire house. I discovered this park because of a geocache and was really surprised by this jewel.
Although it is small and narrow, it extends far back. There was a 3 or 4 story building once located here (here = 325 Arch Street) but it was demolished and this public space was created. There is a beautiful fountain off to the left and another water way/trough off to the right with smaller spouts. Horseshoes were to the rear. The jewel is the 9-foot Benjamin Franklin statue/bust created by James Peniston called Keys to Community and was dedicated on October 5, 2007. The sculpture sits high atop a brick wall which is the boundary for the front of the park overlooking the street. This bronze statue replaces another statue called Penny Franklin (1971). That one became a total wreck, was removed and put in storage and this one replaced it.
A dedication plaque in on the west wall (left side) and reads:
1976
Funds for this park were
granted by the board of
city trusts from a fund
created by
Stephen Girard for the
improvement of the
Delaware front of the city.
....and now a word from out sponsor
Girard Fountain Park is a 0.15-acre pocket park in the Old City neighborhood of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, at 325 Arch Street. It is open to the public during daylight hours and is maintained by the Philadelphia Fire Department. The park was created in the mid-1960s after the demolition of four 3- and 4-story commercial buildings that had stood on the northeast corner of 4th and Arch Streets. A firehouse was built on the corner lots, while the lot formerly occupied by 325 Arch was cleared. The park was improved following the 1976 grant of money from a city-held fund established by banker Stephen Girard (1750–1831) to improve areas near the Delaware River.
The park itself had fallen into disrepair by the mid-1990s, and its gate was generally kept locked by the Fire Department. But a restoration effort, begun around 2005 and led by Old City residents Janet Kalter and Joe Schiavo, brought the park back into public use. In the wake of the sculpture's dedication, Fire Department officials consented to restoration work on the fountain. The work began in June 2008 and the fountain was restored to operation in August. The Fire Department formally returned the fountain to service in a Nov. 1 ceremony. SOURCE