{"nrhp_refnum":"90000415","name":"Kensington Branch of the Philadelphia YWCA","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"174 W. Allegheny Ave.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Philadelphia","county":"Philadelphia","state":"PA","lat":39.998619991000055,"lon":-75.13258107599995,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1990-03-09","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Architecture","Social History"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A three-story brick and terra cotta Colonial Revival headquarters of the Kensington Branch of the Philadelphia YWCA, located at the Hancock and Allegheny Avenue site in Kensington, Philadelphia. The building was constructed in two phases, the Hoffman Memorial wing in 1911 and the main block and swimming pool wing completed in 1915-1916.","why_significant":"The nomination argues the building is significant for its role in extending the YWCA's social reform, education and recreation programs to the working women of the Kensington mill district. It also cites its design by the Philadelphia firm Hewitt, Granger and Paist and its good state of preservation.","narrative":"Built of brick with terra cotta trim on Allegheny Avenue in Kensington, the YWCA branch was erected in two stages: the Hoffman Memorial wing in 1911 and the main block with a swimming pool wing completed in January 1916. The architectural firm of Hewitt, Granger and Paist designed both phases. Its ground floor held a dining hall, restaurant and athletic facilities, while upper floors contained classrooms and dormitory rooms for boarders. The two-story lobby has fluted plaster-clad steel piers, a large fireplace and a grand stair. The branch was founded in 1891 to train young women in dressmaking and millinery for the local textile trade, and it served meals and provided day nursery services to working mothers. The building is listed for its association with this social reform work in an industrial neighborhood and for its architecture by an important Philadelphia firm. It was used as a YWCA until 1970.","period_of_significance":"1911-1939","architect_builder":"Hewitt, Granger and Paist (architects)","architectural_style":"Colonial Revival","criteria":["A","C"],"status_note":"The nominated building was used as a YWCA until 1970; the document describes it as surviving essentially intact.","vacant_flag":null,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-haiku-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.1-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 17:11:36.298735-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_PA/90000415.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/90000415/92df4f3ecb-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/90000415/92df4f3ecb-1600.webp","licence":"Public domain","author":"Smallbones","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Kensington_YWCA_Philly.JPG\" rel=\"noopener\">Smallbones</a>, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Kensington_YWCA_Philly.JPG"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/71997546","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kensington_Branch_of_the_Philadelphia_YWCA","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q6391433"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/pennsylvania/philadelphia/kensington-branch-of-the-philadelphia-ywca-90000415/"}