4200 Block of Main Street, Philadelphia PA
© Sara Jane Elk, Workshop of
the World (Oliver Evans Press, 1990).
Part of Manayunk's unique
character can be attributed to the relationship of its
built environment to its surrounding topography. The
continued need to maneuver among the hills provided the
impetus to engineer and construct such things as
overpasses, retaining walls and stairways. Many of these
features remain hidden unless one travels by foot.
Of the many retaining walls, the curvilinear stone pile
behind the Arthur Ashe Tennis Center on Main Street,
evokes considerable interest as it combines a natural
outcropping with a sweeping rubble wall. Topped with
stone cresting, it also utilizes a stone buttress for
additional support. This particular wall was constructed
as a part of the effort to elevate the Philadelphia,
Germantown and Norristown Railroad about 1930. A sizable
and interesting work of masonry, the curve may actually
reflect the earlier use of the site. Gas storage tanks
for the Manayunk Gas Company sat near the edge of the
wall.
Update May
2007 (by
Sara Jane Elk):
No change.