3311 Hamilton
Street
The
History of the Building
The
original house (shown above) was built about 1861. It was altered radically in
2017.
The
northern edge of this property was part of the northern boundary of the
Bingham-Baring estate.
3311-3313:
“three-story
cruciform plan Italianate style double, with bracketed overhang typical of
Powelton neighborhood. Recessed front patios of 3311 filled in circa 1920. 3313
has circa 1890 three-story brick tower with corbelled brick cornice added to
front and second-floor cast iron enclosed metal bay over columns added to
recessed bay”
(Inventory of
Buildings in Powelton from the application submitted to the National Register of Historic
Places, 1985)
Previous Residents
1860:
James English 28 Bookkeeper; personal property: $600
Fanny English 25
Mary H. English 4
Harry P. English 1
The 1872 directory lists them at 3714
Baring St.
1861 Directory: James English, bookkeeper,
Hamilton abv. 33rd.
1865, December: Deed
transferred from James Watt to John & Mary (wife) Lange.
1870:
John T. Lange 45 Architect;
born in Denmark; real estate: $3,500, personal: $1,500
Mary S. Lange 44
Eliza Lange 14
Mary Walters 18 Domestic
servant; she could read, but not write
Jane Smith 22 Domestic servant; born in Baden; she
could not read or write
(ED 77, 29-30)
In
1880, Mary Lange was widowed and living at 2117 Delancy Place in the home of
Elizabeth Patterson (age 82), who may have been her mother..
1880:
William W.
Gilchrist 34 Professor of music; born in Jersey City, N. J.
Susan
Gilchrist 33 Born in
Boston, Mass.
Anna R. Gilchrist
9
Charles A.
Gilchrist 6
William W.
Gilchrist 1
(ED 484, 1)
In 1870, they lived at 322 N. 32nd St.
The 1875 directory lists him at 334 (later 414)
N. 33rd St.
“William Wallace Gilchrist, b.
Jersey City, N. J.; d. Easton, Pa., Dec. 20, 1916, received his entire musical
training from Dr. Hugh A. Clarke, in Philadelphia, where his whole life was
spent, and exerted a powerful influence. Organizer and conductor for forty
years of the Mendelssohn Club, conductor of the Philadelphia Symphony
Orchestra, President of the Musical Art Club, vocal teacher at the Philadelphia
Academy from 1885, a prolific composer of works of large proportions, choral
and orchestral, much chamber music, many songs, anthems, etc. He was awarded
the prize of $1,000 by the Cincinnati Festival Association in 1882 for his
setting of the 46th Psalm; he also won two prizes offered by the Abt Singing
Society of Philadelphia, and three prizes offered by the Mendelssohn Glee Club
of New York.” He was also founder and
first President of the Manuscript Music Society of Philadelphia.
(Sumner
Salter. “Early Encouragements to American Composers.” The Musical Quarterly, Vol. 18, No. 1 (Jan., 1932), pp. 76-105)
1881 Directory: William W. Gilchrist, music teacher
1884 Directory: William W. Gilchrist teacher
The 1885 directory lists him living at the
corner of Locust Ave. and Magnolia Ave., Germantown.
1887 Directory: James A.
Thompson,
clerk
The
1890 directory lists him at 222 N. 32nd St. In 1902, he married Adelaide W. Forbes,
daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Andrew Forbes.
They were married at St. Andrew’s Protestant
Episcopal Church.
John B. Walker
1890 Directory:
John H. Crawford
John B. Walker
1896 Blue Book: Mr. and Mrs. J. H. Crawford
John B. Walker
1900:
Thomas Collins 47 Clerk;
single; father born in N.Y.; renting
Helen Bunting 45 Sister;
inn keeper; widowed with one child; father born in N.Y.
(ED 540, 15A)
1911, May: Deed transferred from Mary S. (widow) Lange to Albert
L. Byrnes.
1917: Albert L.
Byrnes listed as secretary of the Forty-Fourth Ward Building and Loan
Association in the Annual report of the Commissioner of Banking by Penna. Banking Dept. 1918 In the same
document he is listed as Secretary of Zenith Building and Loan Assoc.
1920:
William T.
Dunbar 42 Automobile builder; born in Scotland, immigrated in 1884, now
a citizen; owned with a mortgage
Beatrice M.
Dunbar 41 Born in Scotland, immigrated in 1884
William T.
Dunbar 10
Violet Dunbar
9
Margaret Dunbar
4 yrs, 4 months
Robert Dunbar 2 yrs,
1 month
Catherine Ralby 17 Servant;
parents born in Ireland
(ED 684, 9A)
The WWI draft registration card 1917-1918 lists William
T. Dunbar as living at 3620 Hamilton St. and self
employed at the Dunbar Auto Body Co. S. E. corner 37th and Filbert
St. He is listed as medium height/stout build blue eyes/brown hair. In 1910 he
was living in Merion, PA.
1927 Directory: Mrs. W. T. Dunbar
1930:
William Dunbar 47 Automobile
designer; married at age 22; born in Scotland, immigrated at 1903; owner, house
valued at $10,000
Beatrice Dunbar 49 Married
at age 26; born in Scotland, immigrated at 1906
William T. Dunbar
21 Mechanic
in cigar factory
Violet Dunbar 20 Clerk
in a department store
Marguerite Dunbar
14
Robert Dunbar 12
Donald Dunbar 7
St Clair McCann 23 Lodger;
born in Va.; Gas station attendant
Joseph Minor 25 Lodger; construction carpenter
(ED 396, 5A)
1930, July 1: Marriage of Violet P. Dunbar to Joseph W. Miner.
In 1940, she was living at 3319 Hamilton St. with her daughter in the home of
her married sister, Marguerite.
1937: Marriage of Marguerite G. Dunbar to Marshall C. Bigham.
They live at 3319 Hamilton St. in 1940.
1937: Marriage of Maybelle E. Coberly to William T. Dunbar
1940:
W. T. Dunbar, Sr. 61 “Night”
for cigar company, earned $1,040 in 1939; renting for $25 a month; born in
Scotland; 4 yrs. high school
Beatrice Dunbar 61 Born
in Scotland; 4 yrs. high school
Robert Miller
Dunbar 22 Truck
driver for a drug company, earned $600 in 1939 for 52 weeks of work2 yrs. high
school
Donald Dunbar 17 Two
yrs. high school
(ED 51-685 2A)
1943, Jan. 16: Donald W. Dunbar enlisted as a
Warrant Officer in the Air Corp. He had
three years of high school. His
occupation was listed as “Semiskilled linemen and servicemen, telegraph,
telephone, and power.” He was single.
1943, Nov. 27: Donald W. Dunbar was killed when
the ship he was a passenger on was bombed in the Mediterranean. He was a Corporal in the 322nd Fighter
Control Squadron. He was awarded the
Purple Heart. His family received $500
as death benefits.
2009: current owner:
James A. McDaniels, rented to tenant
Revised 10/11/2021