Lawndale School
Also known as: Cedar Grove Christian Academy
Why it's listed
Built in 1903-1904 as a public school on Hellerman Street in Philadelphia, the two-story building is faced in stone over brick and has three bays on each of its three registers. Its arched entrance sits within a stone frontispiece with an entablature, and the entrances and stairwells are on the side elevations. Two wings added in the early 1920s extend the building, with the southeastern wing having a crenellated parapet and the southwestern wing a stepped parapet. The design is credited to James Gaw, who worked for the Philadelphia School District from 1887 to 1918 and produced several school plans in the years around 1900. The wings, designed by Irwin T. Catharine in 1924, match the original stonework but use different windows to admit more light into the classrooms. The building is significant for its architecture as a representative school of its period, and it has continued in use as a school under the name Cedar Grove Christian School.
Significance in brief: The nomination argues the building is a good example of school architecture of the 1890s and 1900s, designed in the plans of James Gaw, an assistant architect in the Philadelphia School District. The 1924 wings by Irwin T. Catharine match the original stonework. It is nominated as part of the Philadelphia Public Schools thematic group.
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 88002254, listed November 18, 1988. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-haiku-5-5, prompt v1.1-2026-10-29, confidence medium).
Key facts
| Address | 600 Hellerman St., Philadelphia |
|---|---|
| County | Philadelphia |
| Listed | November 18, 1988 |
| Reference number | 88002254 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Architect / builder | James Gaw (architect); Irwin T. Catharine (wings, 1924) |
| Architectural style | Colonial Revival |
| Criteria |
|
| Areas of significance | Architecture |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Document lists current condition as excellent and integrity as good; current use given as Cedar Grove Christian Academy. |
| Acreage | 2.2 |
| Coordinates | 40.04938, -75.09200 (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 88002254.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q6503697
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.