Fitzsimons, Thomas, Junior High School
Why it's listed
Brick school building at 2601 West Cumberland Street in Philadelphia, a four-story structure with three floors of classrooms over a raised brick basement, completed in 1926-1927. Irwin T. Catharine designed it as one of five identical junior high schools of the JHS-6 type, and Cramp & Company built it. Catharine chose the Collegiate or Academic Gothic style for the group, a choice that linked the schools to the traditional architecture of colleges in the eastern United States. The facade has a central Gothic arched entrance beneath a battlemented tower with carved tracery, carved limestone at the pavilion tops, and paired and triple window openings across the wings. The building marks the Philadelphia School District's move to separate junior and senior high schools under its 6-3-3 system of grades. The form describes its integrity as excellent. It is significant for education history and for the design of Philadelphia's school buildings.
Significance in brief: The nomination argues the building is significant for its place in the history of education and of school architecture in Philadelphia. It is one of the junior high schools built under the School District's 6-3-3 scheme of grades, and it represents the second generation of purpose-built junior high schools, designed in the Collegiate or Academic Gothic style. The form states the building retains excellent integrity.
Machine-generated summary. This summary was generated by a language model from the official nomination document and has not been reviewed line by line by an editor. It may contain errors. Check the source document before relying on any detail. Source: nomination document (PDF) · National Archives catalog entry. NRHP reference 88002272, listed November 18, 1988. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-haiku-5-5, prompt v1.1-2026-10-29, confidence medium).
Key facts
| Address | 2601 W. Cumberland St., Philadelphia |
|---|---|
| County | Philadelphia |
| Listed | November 18, 1988 |
| Reference number | 88002272 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Period of significance | 1926-1927 |
| Architect / builder | Irwin T. Catharine (architect); Cramp & Company (builder) |
| Architectural style | Late Gothic Revival |
| Criteria |
|
| Areas of significance | Education, Architecture |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Currently used as a school |
| Acreage | 2.5 |
| Coordinates | 39.99379, -75.17486 (NPS GIS) |
What listing means for this property
For a publicly owned building or structure, listing mainly matters when federal funds, permits or licences are involved: projects then go through Section 106 review so effects on the property are considered. Listing also strengthens applications for preservation grants and, for leased income-producing uses, can enable the federal rehabilitation tax credit.
General information, not legal or tax advice. Rules change; confirm with your State Historic Preservation Office or a qualified adviser.
Sources and further reading
- National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places database (snapshot May 2026), reference 88002272.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q7789621
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.