The
History of the Building
The northern
boundary of the houses on the northern side of
3601-03, 3605-07, 3609-11, 3613-15, and 3617: These houses appear to have been built by the same builder but may have been built for three different developers. They were all built about 1877.
“two-and-one-half story Second Empire style
[single] house [attached to 3621] built with doubles 3601-03, 3605-07, 3609-11,
3613-15. Victorian wood porch, cornice and roof cresting intact.”
(Inventory of
Buildings in Powelton from the application submitted to the National Register of Historic Places,
1985)
Previous Residents
of 3617 Hamilton Street
1872 Atlas shows 3601-3619 owned by J. G. Hardie. In 1860, James
G. Hardie lived at 3200 Arch St. The 1861 Directory lists him as a merchant
with an office at
1878: the house is shown on the 1878 Scott Atlas.
1878 Directory (Fall, 1877): Francis H. (Frank) Myers, clerk
1879 Directory: Francis H. (Frank) Myers, freight agent
In 1880, he and his family lived at 3510 Hamilton St.
1878, December: Deed transferred from James H. Lyons to John C. Lucas.
The 1881 Directory lists James H.
Lyons, plumber,
1879, December: Deed transferred from John C. Lucas &
Elizabeth M., his wife, to Edward N. Pyle & Josephine, his wife.
1880:
Edward H. Pyle 44 Railroad
clerk
S. Josephine Pyle
40
Lewis R. Pyle 18
Miriam Pyle 13
Edward E. Pyle 7
Josephine
Pyle 1
John Mc Collom 76 Bookkeeper;
single
Rachael Jones 68 Servant;
single
Nancy Convery 33 Servant;
single
In 1870, they lived in Ward 5. Edward
was a lumber dealer. John McCollom was living with
them (age 66). He was in shipping. He probably Josephine’s uncle.
Edward Harlan Pyle and Sarah
Josephine Rutter were married by
Rev Wm. B. Stevens April 3, 1861 in St. Andrews Church
which was then located in Mantua.
“At the age of sixteen,
when his father died, he came to Philadelphia from West Chester and lived with
his sister Elizabeth Pyle Williams and entered the employ of his brother-in-law
Thomas Williams, lumber merchant, at 18th and Bainbridge Streets. When he
became 21, inheriting some money from his father, he opened business for
himself on S. Broad and Bainbridge Street, Philadelphia, under the firm name of
Pyle and Bryant, lumber dealers. On the site now stands the Rush Library to
whom the firm sold the ground. Later he opened a new lumber yard at 11th and
Passyunk Avenue, with a new partner, under the firm name of Perot and Pyle.
This business later closed when the neighborhood built up and the ground was
too valuable for a lumber yard. Shortly after their marriage, the couple went
to live with her father Thomas Rutter at the family home at 627 Spruce Street,
her mother having recently passed away. Later they moved to Camden for a few
years where Edward engaged in the wholesale feed business. During the
Centennial Exposition in Philadelphia in 1876 he was Secretary of Concessions.
At the termination of the fair he entered the Pennsylvania Rail Road where he
acted as Secretary and Treasurer of the Keystone Hotel Co. (subsidiary) and
Secretary and Treasurer of Branch Lines. He drew up and Inaugurated the present
self insurance plan against fire, serving continually until retirement on his
70th birthday. He died after an illness of over two years and is buried in the
family lot at West Laural Hill Cemetery.”
(from Pyle, Clarence E. The Pyle Family: Brief History, 1943.)
Pyle Family Genealogy:
“1428. Edward Harlan Pyle, b. 10. 5.
1835 [
“3675. Lewis Rutter Pyle, b.
Philadelphia 5. 30. 1862 ; m.
“3676. Miriam Good Pyle, b.
Philadelphia 8, 6. 1866; m. there 1. 25, 1894, John Henry В lye. b. there
9. 19. 1863; son of John Henry Blye and Eliza Davis of Chestnut Hill, where
they reside. Issue: John Henry, b. 2. 26. 1896.
“3677. Edward Elmslie Pyle, b. 12.
21. 1872; unmarried.
“3678. Josephine Rutter Pyle, b.
“3679. Clarence Erwin Pyle, b.
“3680. Elizabeth Williams Pyle, b.
8. 16. 1882; d. 8. 29. 1885.
(Genealogy of the Baily Family of Bromham,
Wiltshire, England. Gilbert Cope. 1912, reprinted 2010)
1881 & 1882 Directories: McCollum John
1885, Aug. 29: Death of Elizabeth W. Pyle, 3
years old
1887 Directory: Edward H. Pyle, treasurer, 233
S. 4th St.
Lewis R. Pyle, clerk
1890 Directory: Edward H. Pyle, 233 S 4th
1890 Blue Book: Mr. & Mrs. E. H. Pyle & daughter. Receiving
Day Tuesday.
1891: “Students of the First Year Not Candidates
for a Degree:... Edward Elmslie
Pyle, Sc. I., 3617 Hamilton St.”
(Catalogue of the University of Pennsylvania.
1891-92)
1893, May. 20: Death of Rachel Jones, 84 years
old, of 3617 Hamilton St.
In her will she left everything in
trust for S. Josephine Pyle and her descendants.
1898 Blue Book: Mr. & Mrs. Edward Harlan Pyle
Miss Pyle
Edward Elmslie Pyle
Clarence Erwin Pyle
1898 Blue Book: E. H. Pyle was a member of the
Powelton Club. (For a brief history of the club, see the Powelton History Blog.)
1898: Permit issued to George H. Parker to install heaters at 3617
Hamilton St. (Inquirer, Sept. 16)
1900:
Edward H. Pyle 65 Secretary and Treasurer of Railroad
Clerks; owner
S. Josephine Pyle 60 Married 40
years, 6 children, 5 surviving
Edward E. Pyle 27 Clerk for
Penna. RR
Josephine R. Pyle 21 Born in N.J.
Clarence E. Pyle 19 Clerk for
Penna. Mutual Life
Katherine Durnan 40 Servant; born
in
Ellen Young 20 Servant;
born in
1904: “
(The
Dental Cosmos, Vol. XLVI, 1904.)
1906 Blue Book: Mr. & Mrs. Edward Harlan
Pyle
Clarence Erwin Pyle,
1906: Marriage of Helen G. Potter to Clarence
E. Pyle
1910:
Edward H. Pyle 74 Owns free of mortgage
S. Josephine Pyle 70 Married 49
years, 6 children, 5 surviving
Sarah E. Norton 53 Nurse; single
Kate McGovern 45 Servant;
single; born in
1911, Dec. 16: Death of Edward Harlan Pyle. Services
at St. Andrew’s P. E. Church. Burial at West Laurel Hill Cemetery
1912 Directory: S. Josephine Pyle, widow of
Edward H.
1913, Dec. 20: Death of S. Josephine Pyle;
burial at West Laurel Hill Cemetery
1914 Directory: Clarence E. Pyle, dentist at
809 Flanders Building
1917:
“Clarence Erwin Pyle D. D. S., 1904; Xi
Psi Phi; Bonds; Collaborator with Dr. R. M. Goepp on State Board Questions and
Answers; mem. City Club. Room 420 Land Title Bldg. and 3617 Hamilton St.,
Phila., Pa.”
(General
Alumni Catalogue of the University of Pennsylvania, 1917)
1918: “Roster of the Commissioned Personnel Ordnance Department —
United States Army As Compiled by the Office of the Chief of Ordnance as of
November n, 1918... Captains:... Pyle, Clarence E.,
(The
Story of Ordnance in the World War. By Sevellon
Brown.)
1922: "Class of 1895:... Edward Elmslie Pyle, (Pa., R.R. Broad
St. Sta., Phila., Pa.)”
(General
Alumni Catalogue of the University of Pennsylvania, 1922.)
1920:
Clarence Erwin Pyle 39 Dentist, manufacturing
Helen Potter Pyle
40
William John Pyle
9
Winifred Burke 26 Servant;
born in
1923 Directory: Clarence E. Pyle, dentist
1923, April 11: Death of Helen Potter Pyle
1923, Sep. 20: Title transferred to Marcus McCarry by Clarence E.
Pyle
1923, Sept. 21: For Sale “3617 Hamilton.
11rms., 2 baths, hot water heat, oil-burning system, electric, semi-detached, 1-car
garage, ideal location for apt., vacant.” (Inquirer)
1923, Oct. 16: Title transferred to Hugh Hagan by Marcus McCarry
1924, Feb. 3: Apartment: “3617 Hamilton. 2
rms., bath, kitchenette, $40, newly renovated, desirable location.” (Inquirer)
1925, Jun. 25: Title transferred to Bridget L. Flynn by Hugh Hagan
1930:
Dudley P. Brown 70 Printer;
married at age 32; born in New York; renting for $47.50 per month
Ella Brown 64 Married at age 26; born in New York, father born in England,
mother in New York
— next household
Henry P. Cuglart
[?] 29 Iron worker; married at age 21; renting for $35 per month
Mildred Cuglart
[?] 29 Married at age 21
— next household
Mary Handy 28 Saleslady at department store; currently married, married at
age 22; renting for $25 per month
— next household
John H. Conover 35 Clerk
for steam railroad; married at age 25; renting for $40 per month
Mary Conover 35 Stenographer
for steam railroad; married at age 25
Ruth Keating 31 Lodger; hat checker at hotel; born in New Jersey, father born
in Maryland, mother in Pennsylvania
In 1910, Dudley and Ella Brown lived
in Brooklyn, New York. In 1900, they lived in Ramsey, Bergen Co., New Jersey
with two of their three sons. Dudley was a salesman in a “book office.” In 1940, Dudley was widowed and was a patient
at Belvue Hospital in New York.
1930, Jul. 14: Title transferred to Mary Cummings by will
1931, Sep. 28: Title transferred to 63rd Lansdowne Ave. Building
& Loan Assoc. by sheriff
1936, Apr. 29: Title transferred to John T. Jones by 63rd
Lansdowne Ave. Building & Loan Assoc.
1940:
John Blayer 50 Unemployed; single; born in DE; 2 years of high school;
renting for $25 per month; lived elsewhere in Philadelphia in 1935
Elizabeth Blayer 68 Mother;
widowed; born in DE; 8 years of education
_ Next Hh.
Aloysius Rebstock 37 Paper
ruler in a print shop, earned $1,200 for 47 weeks of work in 1939; 4 years of
high school; renting for $30; lived in Audubon in 1935
Isabel Rebstock 36 4
years of high school
Helen Rebstock 15
Aloysius
Rebstock, Jr. 13
_ Next Hh.
Ada Stewart 53 Secretary at a hospital, earned $1,000 in 1939; married; 8
years of school; lived elsewhere in Philadelphia in 1935
Margaret Stewart 25 Daughter;
clerk at a retail bakery, earned $600 in 1939; 4 years of high school
_ Next Hh.
Harry Willett 27 Crystal finisher for a radio manufacturer, earned $600 for 20
weeks of work in 1939; 4 years of high school; renting for $25; lived elsewhere
in Philadelphia in 1935
Frances Willett 24 Earned
$120 for 12 weeks work in 1939; born in NJ; 4 years of high school; lived in
Camden, NJ in 1935
_ Next Hh.
Sallie Dennis 63 Clerk for U. S. Q. M. Corp., earned $1,600 in 1939; widowed;
born in NC; 3 years of college; renting for $35 per month
_ Next Hh.
Margaret Gilmore 47 Clerk
for a seed firm, earned $1,050 in 1939; single; 4 years of high school; renting
for $30
Mary Rightenaur 55 Lodger;
nurse in a private home, earned $400 for 20 weeks work in 1939; widowed; 8
years of education
Lydia S. Spade 23 Lodger;
operator [for?], earned $660 for 40 weeks work in 1939; single; born in NJ; 3
years of high school
1947, Oct. 26: “James Reynolds, 3617 Hamilton st., is very interested in body and fender work and would
like on-the-job training in that line.” (Inquirer) This is from an
article about military men discharged recently.
1948, Feb. 8: “Phila. G.I. Plane Hitchhiker
Dies as C-47 Crashes on Peak”
“A Philadelphia paratrooper ‘hitchhiking’
an Army plane ride… was listed yesterday among four dead victims of a C-47
transport crash Saturday near Saluda, N.C.
“Private John E. Hayes, 25, of 3617
Hamilton st., met death while returning to a Southern
camp from a three-week furlough that was to be his last before going overseas
for a second time….
“Hayes… was a laundry clerk before
his induction into the Army in 1942. As an infantryman, he served in the
Philippines and Japan during and after the war, then was returned to the United
States for discharge.
“[H]e immediately re-enlisted
choosing the paratroops as his new branch of service.” (Inquirer)
He was the son of Mrs. Margaret
Hayes.
1949,
Nov. 26: “Mrs. Caroline H. Gilmour, who died Oct. 27 in Mountfort
Convalescent Home, 410 N. 33rd st., [left]
$25,321 to her daughter, Margaret D. Gilmour, 3617 Hamilton st.”
(Inquirer)
1950 Directory: Clarence Davis
Margaret D. Gilmour
Margaret W. Hayes
Hugh B. Wallace
1953, May. 16: Death of Joseph F. Bulger,
husband of Anna H. Bulger (nee Carey) of 3617 Hamilton St. Solemn Requiem Mass
at St. Agatha's Church. Burial at Holy Cross Cemetery.
1955, Mar. 8: Title transferred to E. G. Elliot by John T. Jones
1968 Reverse Directory: B. Berger, 2nd floor
H. D. Hill, 1st floor
S. S. Shapley, 2nd floor
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