Thanks to Ke-An Chiang GFA’25, the Greenfield Intercultural Center now outranks College Hall as the oldest building owned by Penn. The three-story, white stucco building with green trim at 3708–12 Chestnut Street is a recent addition to the Philadelphia Register of Historic Places, after being nominated by Chiang while she was a student in the Weitzman School of Design. Her nomination was sponsored by Amy Lambert GFA’16, board president of the University City Historical Society.
Built circa 1845 by Samuel R. Reed, the Reed-Hubley Residence is one of the last survivors of a small suburban development on Chestnut Street in what was then Blockley Township. As Chiang wrote in her nomination, “It represents an early residence in the Greek Revival style with Italianate features,” set back from the street, with a front garden, iron fencing, and a pathway leading up to the entrance. Constructed at a time when suburban development was taking off—thanks to bridges and streetcars that could take people away from crowded cities—the villa provided a “relaxed and comfortable living arrangement” for high-status families.
From 1861 until 1911, the building was owned by the family of Francis S. Hubley, who was involved in coal mining in Schuylkill County, then by a lawyer who lived there until just prior to the Great Depression, when the neighborhood was shifting from single-family homes to multi-family dwellings.
The 1960s brought more changes to the block, implemented by the Redevelopment Authority of the City of Philadelphia. Surrounding buildings were demolished, and the property “inadvertently reasserted its role as one of the few remaining sites from the later Blockley Township era and the suburban expansion into West Philadelphia,” Chiang wrote in the nomination.
In 1982, the University acquired the building and renovated it to serve as the headquarters for the Greenfield Intercultural Center. Rear and side porches were removed, the garage (built between 1918 and 1927) was transformed into a one-bedroom residence, and the main building was converted into meeting rooms and offices for the members of the United Minorities Council. Last year GIC celebrated its 40th anniversary in the space [“Gazetteer,” May|Jun 2024].
“I live on Chestnut Street, so I saw that building a lot,” Chiang said in a story on the Weitzman School’s website. “But I never thought I could dig into the history so much and find an argument for the building. I did have fun putting all these together.” —NP