{"nrhp_refnum":"86003307","name":"Meredith, William M., School","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"Fifth and Fitzwater Sts.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Philadelphia","county":"Philadelphia","state":"PA","lat":39.93940257600008,"lon":-75.15060916299996,"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":"A former public elementary school building at the corner of Fifth and Fitzwater Streets in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, L-shaped and ten bays wide, with yellow, brown and white brick walls on a limestone base.","why_significant":"The nomination argues the building is an exceptionally intact example of the design work of Philadelphia school architect Irwin T. Catharine. Its vertical emphasis and Gothicized window treatment are described as unusual among Catharine's Art Deco school designs, making it a distinctive example of Art Deco styling among Philadelphia public schools.","narrative":"Built in 1930 on the corner of Fifth and Fitzwater Streets in Philadelphia, the William A. Meredith School is an L-shaped building ten bays wide, constructed of yellow, brown and white brick over a limestone base. Its upper-floor windows are six-over-six double-hung sash set between molded brick mullions, and the battlemented parapet is trimmed in limestone. The Fifth Street elevation has two Gothic arched entrances, buttress piers, and large brick diaper panels that give the facade a polychromatic appearance. The school was designed by Irwin T. Catharine, who began working for the Board of Education as an assistant designer after graduating from Drexel Institute in 1903 and rose to Superintendent of Buildings by 1930. Working in the Art Deco mode, Catharine used spandrels, piers and mosaic tiles to create strong verticality. The building is regarded as an exceptionally intact example of his work and a distinctive case of Art Deco styling among Philadelphia public schools.","period_of_significance":"1930-1939","architect_builder":"Irwin T. Catharine (school architect, Philadelphia Board of Education)","architectural_style":"Art Deco","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 17:11:34.289875-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_PA/86003307.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/86003307/4d2932d914-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/86003307/4d2932d914-1600.webp","licence":"Public domain","author":"Smallbones","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Meredith_School.JPG\" rel=\"noopener\">Smallbones</a>, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Meredith_School.JPG"},"district":{"nrhp_refnum":"72001172","name":"Southwark District","url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/districts/pennsylvania/southwark-district-72001172/"},"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/71993484","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_M._Meredith_School","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q8014911"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/pennsylvania/philadelphia/meredith-william-m-school-86003307/"}