3231 Powelton Avenue
3321-31:
“red brick Victorian
double houses with wood porches; 'segmental windows at first and second floors;
pressed brick rosettes in facade between third floor windows; each house has
two gabled wood dormers, except for 3329-31, where each half has one dormer.
Probably by designed G.W. and W.D. Hewitt.”
(Inventory of Buildings in Powelton from the application submitted to the
National Register of Historic Places, 1985)
History of 3231
Powelton Avenue
1887 Directory:
James W. King, U.S.N.
Guy King
(Moses & King)
In 1880, they lived in
Boston.
1900:
James King 80 Retired, U. S. N.; born in Md.; owner,
free of a mortgage
Sarah F. F. King 60 Married 19 years, no children
Guy King 33 Son; architect; mother born in Maryland
Kate McAndrew 24 Servant; parents born in Scotland
Sarah King was
apparently James King’s second wife.
Guy King worked at
Wilson Brothers. Then he formed a partnership with Arnold Henry Moses and
engineer George F. Ferris (Moses & King, 226 Walnut, Moses left by 1895). He
designed many famous country clubs. In 1910, he was living with his wife at
1513 Walnut St.
Capt.
James W. King, U.S.N.
1904: “KING, James W.:
“Chief Engineer
United States Navy; born in Maryland, and appointed from that State, Sept. 2,
1844, as Third Assistant Engineer; served in all the first small steamers owned
by the Navy, the Fulton, original steamer, excepted; he was attached to the
Mississippi in 1846-1847, during the war with Mexico, and participated in the
capture of all the towns on the Mexican coast taken by the Navy, except one;
having passed the three succeeding examinations, and served through the three
grades of Assistant, he was, in 1852, promoted to Chief Engineer, and soon
thereafter appointed, under a law of Congress, inspector of Ocean Steamers at
the port of New York. hulls, machinery, boats and equipments
of the Collins and Law lines, carrying the United States mails; served
continually during entire Civil War; Chief Engineer King was one of, if not the
first officer of the navy, to advocate and take a decided stand in favor of
iron and steel for the hulls of United States naval vessels, in opposition to
the views of the senior constructors and many other officers, as may be seen by
reference to his various official reports, embracing facts and figures, showing
the advantage of iron and steel over wood as materials for shipbuilding.
Special attention
of the Navy Department was called to the subject in his reports as Chief of
Bureau, 1871-1872, and overwhelming proof was produced in his report on
‘European Ships of War,’ 1878; also in his work. ‘The
War Ships and Navies of the World.’ These publications, together with his
descriptions of the various new types of foreign war ships and casements on our
obsolete types of wooden vessels, had influence in showing the necessity of
building a new fleet of modern ships commensurate with the wealth, extent and dignity of the country, and of types having no
superiors in speed or power of offence and defense. Member of the Pennsylvania
Commandery of the Military Order of the Loyal Legion. Address: 3281 Powelton
Ave., Philadelphia, Pa.” (Who’s Who in Pennsyvania,
p 394)
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3233 Powelton 3229 Powelton >
Revised 6/29/2022