Category: history

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Frankford War Memorial Turns 100

The War Memorial at Wakeling and Large Streets honors those who served in World War I.   It was dedicated on November 11, 1922 during the same week as the opening of the new Frankford El.  November 11th was at that time called Armistice Day in honor of the ending of hostilities of WWI.  It was later renamed Veterans Day.

The memorial lists the names of the 2,382 men and women who were from Frankford and served in the military during the war.  There were 28 fatalities in the list.  We have spent quite a bit of time working on documenting the history of the memorial and how it came to be there.  So that there names might not be forgotten, we created an index of the names from the images of the brass panels.  You can see it here.  Maybe you will find someone you recognize.

Below is a video of some of the history of the memorial that we produced with the help of Debbie Klak and the Historical Society of Frankford.

There will be a ceremony to mark it’s 100th birthday on November 10th.  See the  flyer below for more details.

 

Link to video here

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Supreme Court of Pennsylvania at the HSF

The regularly scheduled program of the Historical Society of Frankford for October 11, 2022 will feature a review of the history of the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania, the Court’s contemporary work, and the role of state supreme courts generally in our federalist system, This program commemorates the tricentennial of the Supreme Court that occurred on May 22, 2022. The speakers are attorney Chip Becker of Kline & Specter, P.C. and Debbie Gross, Executive Director of Pennsylvanians for Modern Courts.

The meeting is open to the public at the Society building at 1507 Orthodox Street at 7:30 PM. In addition it will be live streamed on their Facebook page and available on YouTube live.

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Carpenters Company of Philadelphia at the HSF

The program of the Historical Society of Frankford for September 13, 2022, will be presented by Alex Palma, Assistant Curator at the Carpenters Company of Philadelphia. The topic is “The History of the Carpenters Company and the Built Environment in Philadelphia.” The Carpenters Company, founded in 1770, is itself one of the most historic sites in the City. It’s members shaped the local built environment, including in Frankford, and also helped to shape the development of skilled trades locally.

The meeting is open to the public at the Society building at 1507 Orthodox Street at 7:30 PM. In addition it will be live streamed on their Facebook page and available on YouTube live.

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In Memory of Those Who Died on D Day

I am certain there are other Frankford men who died on D Day but these 2 come to mind.  Both attended Frankford High School.

Ralph Daniel Fischer, Jr.
Ralph was born on February 25, 1921 in Philadelphia.  When he registered for the draft in 1942, he was living with his family at 1701 Kohl Street and working at Max Willi Pfau in Langhorne.    He enlisted in the Army on September 14, 1942.  Corporal Fischer was one of the HQ Company, 3rd Battalion, 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 101st Airborne Division who parachuted into France on June 6, 1944.  He was killed in action at 22 years old.   His body was brought home in 1949 and was interred in Ivy Hill Cemetery.

George Lee Meadows, Jr.
George was born in Macon, George on August 14, 1920.  By 1930, his family was living at 4243 Rhawn Street in Philadelphia.  He enlisted in the Army on March 1, 1940 and rose to the rank of Tech Sergeant when he shipped out to Europe on January 18, 1944.  He was in Company A, 12th Infantry Regiment, 4th Infantry Division when he was killed in action on Utah Beach on June 6, 1944.  He was 23 years old.  His body was brought home and interred in Arlington Nation Cemetery.

Rest in peace.

 

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Frankford Hero to Frankford Saint

We have written a book about Frankford Heroes but at the Northeast Philadelphia History Fair a few weeks ago, Dan Cashin told us about a remarkable hero, Leonard LaRue.

At the Spring General Assembly of the U.S. Catholic Conference of Bishops (USCCB) in Washington in June of 2021, the Conference overwhelmingly approved the cause for sainthood of “Servant of God” Benedictine Brother Marinus LaRue.

But who was Brother Marinus?  He was born Leonard Panet La Rue on January 14, 1914, in Philadelphia on one of the coldest days of the year.   He was the youngest child in a family with 5 children.  His parents were Paul Philippe Eugene La Rue, a Canadian Immigrant who worked at the Frankford Arsenal as a machinist and Isabelle Catherine O’Brien LaRue. Paul and Isabelle were married at St. Joachim Roman Catholic Church in the Frankford neighborhood of Philadelphia on April 29, 1904.  The family lived at 5028 James Street.

Leonard’s brothers were Maurice and Paul and there were twin sisters Irma and Isabelle. A brother Hubert died at birth in 1912 and is buried in St. Joachim Cemetery.

Leonard was baptized at St. Joachim on Sunday, February 8th with Thomas Hickey and Frances O’Connor as his Godparents.  We do not know for sure where he attended Elementary School but the family lived across the street from the Henry Longfellow School (now Closed) so it is most likely he attended Longfellow until moving on the Harding junior High School for 7th through 9th grade. He then entered Frankford High School and graduated in January of 1932.

He entered the Pennsylvania Nautical School in Philadelphia  in May of 1932 and graduated in 1934 as a Third Officer and began his life as a mariner.  That path took him to Korea in December of 1950 where as Master of the merchant cargo ship Meredith Victory, he took on board over 14,000 Koreans to be evacuated to safety.

He said that experience changed his life and in 1954 he left the sea to join the Benedictine congregation of St. Ottilien at St. Paul’s Abbey in Newton, New Jersey.

The path to sainthood in the Catholic church can be long but there is no doubt that this man was a real Frankford Hero and maybe a saint.

Follow this link to learn more.