A Visit to the Iron Works at Pencoyd Landing
Wednesday, May 28 from 6 to 8 pm
Presented by the East Falls Historical Society
Register at eastfallshistory@gmail.com. Then pay in cash at the door ($10 for members of the EFHS; $15 for non-members.)
The event will be in the Pencoyd Room of the Residence Inn by Mariott, 615 Righters Ferry Road, Bala Cynwyd [Google Map]
The steel from the Niagara Falls Bridge, the Chicago “L” and the main building of the Philadelphia Centennial was produced at the Pencoyd Iron Works in Bala Cynwyd. Established in 1852 as a specialty iron and steel foundry, at its peak the firm employed thousands of workers.
Doors will open at 5:30, allowing time to view many historical photographs on display. A day-by-day time lapse video of the construction of the hotel will be shown. Stephen Gibson, the Chief Architect of the Penn Real Estate Group, will present slides on the history of the Pencoyd Iron Works. The program will end with a tour of the hotel and the former office of the Iron Works.
Pencoyd Iron Works has been developed by the Penn Real Estate Group. The site is home to the Residence Inn by Marriott and two restaurants – The Landing Kitchen and Lark. The original (1880s?) office building for the Iron Works, which may have been designed by Frank Furness, was damaged in a catastrophic fire in 1997, but is now home to the Penn Real Estate Group (Photo).
Getting there: Although you can get to the Ironworks from Bala Cynwyd, “the only truly spectacular arrival is from the Philadelphia side” (wrote the Inquirer’s Inga Saffron) by the pedestrian bridge from the parking lot at 3720 Main St. in Manayunk, near the Wine & Spirits store and movie theater [Google Map]. The steel truss bridge once connected the Pencoyd main plant with some secondary buildings on the Philadelphia side.