Frankford Arsenal

Frankford Arsenal sits on a tract in northeast Philadelphia that the federal government acquired in 1816, after Congress authorized a network of munitions depots in 1815. Its early buildings include stone and brick storehouses, officers' quarters and a commandant's residence dating from 1812 to 1823, several of them with stucco finishes and cast iron verandas. The West Storehouse, built in 1817, is recorded as the site where President Madison officiated at the laying of the cornerstone. Embedded in its west wall are cannon barrels, two of which were surrendered by Burgoyne at Saratoga in 1777. The arsenal developed into a center for explosives testing in the late nineteenth century and later for optical and fire control research, including work on anti-aircraft devices. Its early reinforced concrete buildings, first used in 1901, are cited as a notable group of construction types from that period of innovation.