Month: March 2009

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Frankford’s Heroes of the Web: Wikipedia’s BillFlis

Wikipedia LogoWe at the Gazette are not alone in bringing Frankford’s affairs to the light of the internet.  Long before we started over at blogspot, Frankford has had a faithful following over at Wikipedia.  And for as long as I’ve been doing stuff on this site, I have had to look things up, whether they be Frankford’s history or politicians or places, or events.  And my first stop has always been Wikipedia.  And among all those entries there has been one consistant thread: someone with the username of BillFlis.

BillFlis has started the articles on Friend’s Hospital, the Frankford Arsenal, John Ruan House, the Frankford Creek, Frankford Friend’s School, and Greenwood Cemetery.  He has also contributed to Frankford’s own entry, Whitehall Borough, Lidia Darragh, St Joachim’s Church, St Mark’s Episcopal Church, Cedar Hill Cemetery, and now I’m getting tired of listing them all.

I don’t know anything about this guy(if he is a guy), my google searches don’t turn up much, I don’t even know if he lives in Frankford.  I get the impression he doesn’t, just because he contributes heavily to other Philadelphia neighborhoods and historical figures in general.  And his most impressive contributions seem to be about Billy Penn and his family.  But he is certainly a juggernaut over there and his breadth of knowledge and tenacity make him a valued asset to Frankord on the internet.

So we solute you dude.  We know how truly daunting it is sorting out the facts of this neighborhood.

P.S.  We couldn’t help to notice you could use a few fair use pics in those entries of yours.  And we have tons, let us know if you’d like to use our pics. I can be reached through jim@frankfordgazette.com

[link] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/User:BillFlis

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Another Week, Another Issue the Gazette is Late On

This is going to be a running joke, I can feel it.  Just a week after I whine about us being the last to find out about the conversion of the Frankford Day Nursery into another Recovery House, we already have another one in the pipeline.  Apparently there’s some halfway house action happening at the corner of Griscom and Church.  And it’s pretty apparent from the comments that follow the post that there are other residents that know more about it than we do.  We at the Gazette are not really journalists, and we cannot do this alone.

If you know of shenanigans going on in Frankford, why don’t you just mosy on over to our message board and post it, it’s right here.  It’s pretty anonymous, post gossip if you like.  And if you don’t know anything about the bad stuff, do something even better and post some good stuff.  I have never met a resident of Frankford that didn’t find something interesting, or from whom I was not able to learn more about it’s past.

I did this last week and got an awesome response.  I learned about Overington Manor and Leandros Pizza.  Go over and tell me something new this week.

[link] http://www.frankford.yuku.com/

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Grand Army of the Republic Ruan House

In the Bulletin Friday was a nice story by Tom Nickels about the Ruan House which he titled “Inside the Grand Army of the Republic Museum” img_2541editand an editor headlined “Memorial to Civil War Oddities”.  I know Tom would not have used that phrase.  But for those who do not know about this unique place in Frankford, it is a good introduction.  From this picture that I took today, the structure itself has never looked better.  You can find their web site on our Frankford Resources page or go to it directly via this link.

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Update on 1522-24 Church Street

The new recovery house on the corner of Church and Griscom has been visited by L&I who found no activity.  img_2542edit

Our Councilperson has requested a revisit for another inspection.  She will continue to monitor this case until it is resolved to the satisfaction of the community.  It was through an unfortunate office oversite that Father Steve at St. Joachims did not receive a callback on his previous contact.   It will not happen again.

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Next Week in Frankford

  • Frankford CDC to host Public Meeting
    When-Tue, March 17, 6pm – 8pm
    Where-Frankford High School Instructional Materials Center (IMC) (map)
    Description – The Frankford Community Development Corporation will host a public meeting on Tuesday, March 17, 2009. The Frankford CDC will discuss the 2009 Program of Work and ideas for collaboration with community organizations. The meeting will begin at 6:00p.m., Frankford High School Instructional Materials Center (IMC), guest may enter through the main door. The Frankford CDC has been serving the Frankford Community since 1993 providing economic development, career counseling, mortgage counseling services, as well as real estate development. The Frankford CDC also serves as the organizer of the annual Frankford Festival, celebrating its Tenth Anniversary on June 20th by hosting the Northeast Philly Idol Contest. For more information on the Frankford CDC, please attend the public meeting or contact us at our offices. Marie DeLany Frankford CDC 4900 Griscom Street Philadelphia, PA 19124 215-743-6580 (Phone) marie.g.delany@gmail.com www.frankfordcdc.com
  • Book signing
    When-Sun, March 22, 1pm – 4pm
    Where-Historical Society of Frankford, 1507 Orthodox St., Philadelphia, PA 19124 (map)
    Description-Historian Harry C. Silcox will sign copies of his new book, “Remembering Northeast Philadelphia”

We have a link now to Dr. Silcox book on our bookstore page up to the left.