Frankford Arsenal (Boundary Decrease)
Also known as: US Arsenal at Frankford
Why it's listed
Frankford Arsenal in northeast Philadelphia was established after Congress authorized munitions depots in 1815, with the federal government acquiring its first 20 acres in 1816. Its district includes stone and brick quarters, storehouses and barracks built from 1812 onward, among them the West Storehouse of 1817, where President Madison laid the cornerstone, and the Officers' Club building of 1835. The arsenal was used as an ammunition depot during the Mexican War and began manufacturing percussion caps and small arms ammunition shortly before the Civil War. Later, research on smokeless propellants and explosives, and later optics and fire control devices, made it a center of military technical development. The district also contains early reinforced concrete buildings, which the nomination regards as an important collection of early examples of that construction type. Two Saratoga cannon captured in 1777 are displayed in a park on the site.
Significance in brief: The nomination argues the arsenal was among the earliest federal munitions depots, with a 19th-century record of ammunition storage, manufacturing and research. The boundary decrease document contains a supplementary statement arguing that the arsenal's twentieth-century role in optics, fire control, standardization and early reinforced concrete construction also merits recognition.
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). NRHP reference 100001935, listed December 28, 2017. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-haiku-5-5, prompt v1.1-2026-10-29, confidence medium).
Key facts
| Address | Roughly bounded by Baird St., Frankfort Cr., Delaware R., Dietz & Watson plants and wall along Tacony St., Philadelphia |
|---|---|
| County | Philadelphia |
| Listed | December 28, 2017 |
| Reference number | 100001935 |
| Resource type | District |
| Period of significance | 1816-1956 |
| Areas of significance | Military, Engineering, Science, Invention |
| Level of significance | National |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Active installation; Building No. 15 is the Officers' Club and Building No. 11 houses a museum. |
| Acreage | 35.75 |
| Coordinates | 40.00778, -75.06806 (Wikidata) |
What listing means for this property
This is a historic district. Buildings within its boundary are either contributing (they add to the district's significance) or non-contributing. Owners of contributing income-producing buildings can claim the 20% federal rehabilitation tax credit; homeowners should look at state credits. National Register districts impose no design review by themselves; a local historic district ordinance, if one exists, does (the difference explained).
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 100001935.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives)
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q1357068
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.