{"nrhp_refnum":"86003300","name":"Martin Orthopedic School","other_names":["Martin,W. &amp","E.,School"],"category":"building","location":{"address":"800 N. Twenty-second St.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Philadelphia","county":"Philadelphia","state":"PA","lat":39.970003535000046,"lon":-75.17409693599996,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1986-12-04","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Education","Architecture"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A one-story public school building in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, built in 1936-37 as the first school in the city's system designed specifically to teach physically handicapped students.","why_significant":"The nomination argues the school marks the move toward specialized schools and that it was among the few orthopedic schools in the country when built. Its special rooms, ramps and courtyard were designed for physically handicapped students. It is also presented as the most outstanding Classical Revival design by Irwin T. Catharine.","narrative":"Built in 1936-37 in Philadelphia with federal grant assistance, this one-story school was the first in the city's public system designed for teaching physically handicapped pupils and was among the first such schools in the nation. Its single story suited students with physical limitations. The U-shaped plan has double-loaded corridors and ramps in place of stairs, arranged around an inner court with a macadam play area and flower gardens. Special rooms include an exercise room and a tank room with an 8-by-20-foot pool for aquatic therapy, and the assembly room has space for wheelchairs. The building uses a Georgian Revival design with a portico and crowning cupola, a more restrained domestic scale after Art Deco. Irwin T. Catharine designed it. In 1943 the school also began serving deaf, hard of hearing and partially sighted pupils.","period_of_significance":null,"architect_builder":"Irwin T. Catharine (architect)","architectural_style":"Georgian Revival","criteria":["A","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 17:11:33.352929-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_PA/86003300.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/86003300/3d10723a3a-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/86003300/3d10723a3a-1600.webp","licence":"Public domain","author":"Smallbones","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Ortho_School_Philly.JPG\" rel=\"noopener\">Smallbones</a>, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Ortho_School_Philly.JPG"},"district":{"nrhp_refnum":"83002279","name":"Spring Garden District (Boundary Increase)","url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/districts/pennsylvania/spring-garden-district-boundary-increase-83002279/"},"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/71993723","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Martin_Orthopedic_School","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q6776320"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/pennsylvania/philadelphia/martin-orthopedic-school-86003300/"}