{"nrhp_refnum":"86003281","name":"Fitler School","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"SE Seymour and Knox Sts.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Philadelphia","county":"Philadelphia","state":"PA","lat":40.02605626900004,"lon":-75.16626952799999,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1986-12-04","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Architecture"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"The Fitler School is a school building in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, built in 1897 (the OCR reads \"18979\"). It is one of the schools the Philadelphia School Board constructed in new areas of the city after 1895.","why_significant":"The nomination argues the school represents a new period of school construction prompted by the Compulsory Education Act of 1895, which required free schooling for children aged 8 to 16. It is also presented as an example of architect Joseph Anshutz's late-career work in stone, marking a shift from brick and brownstone to granite and limestone.","narrative":"Built in 1897 in Philadelphia, the Fitler School was among the first schools erected after the Philadelphia School Board resumed construction following a two-year delay caused by economic depression and the need to select new sites. The building responded to the Compulsory Education Act of 1895, which required districts to provide free schooling for children between the ages of 8 and 16. Its construction marked a departure from the brick schools the Board had previously favored, as the building used stone rather than brick. It was designed by Joseph Anshutz, a prolific architect, and is regarded as an example of his later work in stone. Each floor has a single-loaded corridor with flanking stairs and five classrooms. The school is significant for its design by Anshutz and for its role in the Board's expansion into new neighborhoods.","period_of_significance":null,"architect_builder":"Joseph Anshutz (architect)","architectural_style":null,"criteria":["C"],"status_note":null,"vacant_flag":null,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-haiku-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.1-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 17:11:33.311425-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_PA/86003281.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/86003281/1a9c132527-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/86003281/1a9c132527-1600.webp","licence":"Public domain","author":"Smallbones","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Filter_School_Philly.JPG\" rel=\"noopener\">Smallbones</a>, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Filter_School_Philly.JPG"},"district":{"nrhp_refnum":"66000678","name":"Colonial Germantown Historic District","url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/districts/pennsylvania/colonial-germantown-historic-district-66000678/"},"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/71993607","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edwin_Fitler_Academics_Plus_School","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q5455453"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/pennsylvania/philadelphia/fitler-school-86003281/"}