Pennsylvania Railroad Freight Building

The Pennsylvania Railroad Freight Building is an historic, American freight station, warehouse and showroom building that is located in the University City neighborhood of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Pennsylvania Railroad Freight Building
Pennsylvania Railroad Freight Building, May 2010
Pennsylvania Railroad Freight Building is located in Philadelphia
Pennsylvania Railroad Freight Building
Pennsylvania Railroad Freight Building is located in Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania Railroad Freight Building
Pennsylvania Railroad Freight Building is located in the United States
Pennsylvania Railroad Freight Building
Location3118-3198 Chestnut Street
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Coordinates39°57′13″N 75°11′14″W / 39.95361°N 75.18722°W / 39.95361; -75.18722
Area2 acres (0.81 ha)
Built1929
ArchitectUnited Engineers & Constructors
Architectural styleArt Deco
NRHP reference No.99001291[1]
Added to NRHPOctober 28, 1999

It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1999.[1]

History and architectural features

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Built by the Pennsylvania Railroad in 1929, this historic structure is a six-story, flat-roofed building that was designed in the Art Deco style. Each floor contains approximately 88,000 square feet. The first floor is clad in limestone and the upper stories are of buff-colored brick.[2]

From 1956 to 1993, this building was the GE Re-entry Systems facility, where "thousands of engineers and technicians who solved the problem of vehicles successfully reentering the Earth's atmosphere"[3] for NASA. Among the achievements of the men and women working at the facility was "the recovery of the first man-made object from orbit," a unique milestone for humanity.[4]

Generations of University of Pennsylvania and Drexel University students who worked there know it as "The GE Building." It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1999.[1]

For this work, The American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) designated it as an Historic Aerospace Site in 2007.[5]

The building has been converted to residential use and is now known as the Left Bank.

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References

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  1. ^ a b c "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
  2. ^ "National Historic Landmarks & National Register of Historic Places in Pennsylvania" (Searchable database). CRGIS: Cultural Resources Geographic Information System. Note: This includes Cynthia Rose Hamilton (July 1999). "National Register of Historic Places Inventory Nomination Form: Pennsylvania Railroad Freight Building" (PDF). Retrieved 2012-07-18.
  3. ^ "GE Re-entry Systems in Philadelphia Designated Historic Aerospace Site". www.spaceref.com. Retrieved 2022-05-26.
  4. ^ "GE Re-entry Systems | Invention & Technology Magazine". www.inventionandtech.com. Retrieved 2022-05-26.
  5. ^ "GE Re-entry Systems in Philadelphia Designated Historic Aerospace Site". www.spaceref.com. Retrieved 2022-05-26.
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