Traces of Eighteenth-Century Waterfront Found in Philadelphia

PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA—The Philadelphia Inquirer reports that traces of Philadelphia’s eighteenth-century waterfront were spotted in three test trenches placed to the north of the Benjamin Franklin Bridge ahead of a construction project. Archaeologist Douglas Mooney of the engineering firm AECOM said the large hand-hewn timbers are thought to have been part of a wharf owned by the James West family, who first built a small shipyard in the area in the late seventeenth century. Their operation appeared on a map drawn up in 1762, Mooney explained, which aligns with the location of the newly unearthed timbers. The excavators also uncovered a stone foundation that may have been part of a building located on the wharf. “That’s the earliest building found on the site. We do know that buildings were built right on the wharves here,” he added. To read more about the city's industrial past, go to "Letter from Philadelphia: Empire of Glass."