Roosevelt, Theodore, Junior High School
Why it's listed
Built in 1922-1924 for the School District of Philadelphia, this three-story brick junior high school with a raised stone basement stands on a site of about five acres at 21st and Winter Streets. Its front is shaped in a shallow W, with a projecting central pavilion bearing the school's name in a stone course, and its Colonial Revival detailing includes stone trim, arched entrances and a stone cornice beneath the brick parapet. The building was one of eight identical schools erected from a model devised by Irwin T. Catharine, part of the district's early effort to build schools designed specifically as junior highs after World War I. Its scale was large for the period, exceeded only by the senior high schools of the previous decade. It is listed for its place in the history of education and for its contribution to school architecture in Philadelphia, and the design is regarded as an innovative response to new teaching needs. The building is in very good integrity, with a rear addition from 1969 that does not change its main design.
Significance in brief: The nomination argues the school represents the district's early program of building junior high schools in response to changing educational theory, and that its design was a new architectural response to that need. It was one of eight identical buildings erected from a model devised by Irwin T. Catharine, and it is described as very large for its era. The form cites the areas of education and school architecture in Philadelphia.
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 88002317, listed November 18, 1988. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-haiku-5-5, prompt v1.1-2026-10-29, confidence medium).
Key facts
| Address | 430 E. Washington Ln., Philadelphia |
|---|---|
| County | Philadelphia |
| Listed | November 18, 1988 |
| Reference number | 88002317 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Period of significance | 1922-1924 |
| Architect / builder | Irwin T. Catharine (architect) |
| Architectural style | Colonial Revival |
| Criteria |
|
| Areas of significance | Education, Architecture |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Good condition; in use as a school; a 1969 rear addition is noted as not compromising design integrity. |
| Acreage | 5 |
| Coordinates | 40.04821, -75.17488 (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 88002317.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q7782002
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.