Harrowgate School Designed by Architect who also designed Wanamaker Organ

**Phillyxpat** · 01-20-2012, 06:43 AM

I ran into several facts being a one time student at the St. Joan of Arc School in Harrowgate now slated for destruction as I have been told. Cannot find photo of school off the internet. No longer live in Philly.

The Audsley Brothers, out of Liverpool, were geniuses in their time as I can determine. They designed a lot of churches and synagogues and a few art museums and public buildings on both sides of the Atlantic in the late nineteenth century.

They were the last of a breed of self-taught architects whose crowning achievement in modern terms would be 11 Broadway NYC, the largest office building in the world circa 1896 and still standing.

11 Broadway NYC

The surviving brother George Ashdown Audsley designed the world famous Wanamaker Organ and his last architectural project in his eighties was the architectural gem of St. Joan of Arc School in Harrowgate.

George Ashdown Audsley

Wanamaker Organ

**Titus** · 01-20-2012, 10:02 AM

He also designed this church at 8th & York:

https://www.facebook.com/pages/St-Ed...638765?sk=wall

**Phillyxpat** · 01-20-2012, 10:46 AM

The David Fox Biography of George Audsley, the link at the bottom of the Wiki article tells a lot about Edward the Confessor Church at 8th and York (about page 55 of PDF document below)

Friends of the Wanamaker Organ

In an e-mail I sent to Mr. Fox some years ago, he responded and was heartbroken that Edward the Confessor had been sold off and not given any appreciation of its architectural splendor.

As it turns out in the biography, the founder of St. Joan of Arc, Fr. Edward Hawks, was a young priest at Edward the Confessor and specifically sought out Audsley in retirement to build his new school.

Some research I ran into turned up the strange tale of Edward the Confessor, the original church on the sight was built by the Episcopalians and sold to the RC archdiocese. There was a law suit between the Episcopal Bishop and the Catholic Bishop because the Catholic's kept the name Edward the confessor for the first church and the parish. The Episcopalians claimed they sold the building and not the title. Never found the follow up newspaper article. Apparently the Catholics won the case or settled out of court and kept the name.

**Titus** · 01-20-2012, 10:47 AM

Originally Posted by Phillyxpat

The David Fox Biography of George Audsley, the link at the bottom of the Wiki article tells a lot about Edward the Confessor Church at 8th and York (about page 55 of PDF document below)

Friends of the Wanamaker Organ

In an e-mail I sent to Mr. Fox some years ago, he responded and was heartbroken that Edward the Confessor had been sold off and not given any appreciation of its architectural splendor.

As it turns out in the biography, the founder of St. Joan of Arc, Fr. Edward Hawks, was a young priest at Edward the Confessor and specifically sought out Audsley in retirement to build his new school.

Some research I ran into turned up the strange tale of Edward the Confessor, the original church on the sight was built by the Episcopalians and sold to the RC archdiocese. There was a law suit between the Episcopal Bishop and the Catholic Bishop because the Catholic's kept the name Edward the confessor for the first church and the parish. The Episcopalians claimed they sold the building and not the title. Never found the follow up newspaper article. Apparently the Catholics won the case or settled out of court and kept the name.

Fr Hawks was formerly an Episcopalian priest.

**Phillyxpat** · 01-20-2012, 10:56 AM

The oral story I got from the eighth grade sister was that Monsignor Hawks was part of a few Episcopalian seminarians who crossed the road at the same time over to Overbrook seminary to join the RCC. He may well have already been an Episcopalian Priest.

**Phillyxpat** · 01-20-2012, 11:12 AM

I don't know if this is off topic, but since we have mentioned Monsignor Hawks, founder of St. Joan of Arc Harrowgate, here is some more oral history from myself.

I have met and know of some remarkable men in my life.

The man who baptized me or more accurately the man who was founder and pastor of my parish in Philly was a fanatic of sorts. He started out life as an Episcopalian, changed Christian registration to R.C. when in the seminary and went on to start a new R.C. parish. The parish was sort of in between a lot of other established parishes and the land in between those other churches began to be developed, houses built, and there was a need for a new church, school etc. in the first decades of the twentieth century in that part of Philly.

Let me call this man Father Ed. He was of the old “God is to be feared” school of beliefs. He was an Old Testament kind of guy.

He was dead by the time I reached first grade. I have heard stories about him. One from a home inspector who related the story about being an altar boy in my parish and being five minutes late for mass. Father Ed ranted into him at the end of service about how you can’t be late for God. The priest also made the boy serve everyday for a year at 6:00 a.m. mass as punishment. That priest made an impression on that guy but I don’t think that Father Ed made a friend.

Then, as it happens sometimes in life, a lady knocked on the door and said that she had been raised in our house and asked if she might get a quick nostalgic view inside. She then got into some stories about the neighborhood. The one story I remember most was about Father Ed.

There was a Russian tailor in our neighborhood. He also did dry cleaning and his store was a block away from our house. We did business with the man. In the story of the visiting lady we finally understood why some of our neighbors took their dry cleaning three blocks away and not use the local guy. The Russian was also a Jew and a good tailor I might add. My parents, for working class, were flaming liberals. Being Jewish did not matter to them. That and my father liked to haggle.

The lady went on to say that as a child, she and her friends used to taunt the man. Let me say anti-Semitism was rampant in America back then in the 1930's, at least in this neighborhood. Well Father Ed got wind of the fact that some of his parishioners and children were harassing the man and boycotting his business. Father Ed made it a point to visit the tailor and bring his dry cleaning four blocks from the rectory. In good weather, Father Ed sat on the store stoop and smoked a cigar together with the tailor as a means to make a statement of sorts to the neighborhood. Apparently Father Ed and the tailor became good friends as the result of this local anti-Semitism.

...June,2008

**Titus** · 01-20-2012, 11:25 AM

Originally Posted by Phillyxpat

The oral story I got from the eighth grade sister was that Monsignor Hawks was part of a few Episcopalian seminarians who crossed the road at the same time over to Overbrook seminary to join the RCC. He may well have already been an Episcopalian Priest.

I believe he was already a priest. He is said to have installed some icons from his former Episcopal church into St Joan of Arc. Several priest left the Episcopal Church at the same time due to a change in their policies.

**Phillyxpat** · 01-20-2012, 11:49 AM

I don't remember any Icons per say in the church though they might have been in the rectory. Or they were personal property and removed after his death, before my time. The church, which I understand is still open on a part time basis, had mosaics of the twelve apostles above the columns of the main nave. That, the mosaics, put me in mind of the art concept similar to Icons.

Another oddity in the church I can remember was that the figure of Jesus on the crucifix above the main altar was clean shaven. I can only assume that Hawks saw an unmarried Jesus as a clean shaven man.

Audsley's specialty was being part of wave of Gothic Revival movement in England and America. The school is definitely Gothic with its ramparts as part of the roofline. The church is decidedly early Roman, bascilica type architecture, in contrast to the school.

**Titus** · 01-20-2012, 12:55 PM

The mosaics of the apostles are the images I was speaking of.

**philliemom** · 01-20-2012, 05:08 PM

I still live in the parish, the school is not slated for destruction however it has been sold and is now a charter school. The convent is currently rented. It is connected with St. Vincents home. The convent now can house up to sixteen adolescent girls. The church and rectory are still open. If you want a picture of the school and convent you can visit this link....
http://marketing.collierslanard.com/...ta%20Sheet.pdf
This is from when they were both up for sale a few years ago. The school sold but the convent like I said is just rented.

**Phillyxpat** · 01-20-2012, 06:44 PM

Thanks phillymom. Better a charter school than the wrecking ball. Hear these things through the grapevine, facebook etc., no direct contact to the place anymore. I think the heating plant for the school was under the old convent, chapel. Have to wonder if the new Charter school has put its own heater in etc.

**Phillyxpat** · 01-20-2012, 07:02 PM

Page 99 of below PDF document shows original buildings on site of convent.

http://wanamakerorgan.com/08/pdf/audsley.pdf

**Titus** · 01-21-2012, 10:50 AM

Originally Posted by Phillyxpat

Page 99 of below PDF document shows original buildings on site of convent.

http://wanamakerorgan.com/08/pdf/audsley.pdf

That's a treasure trove - thanks!

**Phillyxpat** · 03-24-2012, 04:26 PM

Originally Posted by Titus

The mosaics of the apostles are the images I was speaking of.

I found this photo on the net showing the interior of St. Joan of Arc Church in Harrowgate 3546 Frankford Ave. It shows two of the dozen round medallions of mosaics of the Apostles that you mentioned, between the second and third arches on the sides. I wish I had a better close up shot.