South Street Beat

Making History

The South Street History Museum opens its doors— and a window—into the storied past of Philadelphia’s hippest street.

By Joel Spivak

My tenure as self-appointed curator of South Street memorabilia began in 1970, when I was hired by Ruth and Rick Snyderman to build a store at 319 South St., which became The Works Gallery. The space still had its display cases and other artifacts left by the previous owners, who had departed abruptly due to the approaching Crosstown Expressway, and they all looked too interesting to throw away. I bagged them all up and wrote the address and date on the bag to review later. As I renovated other vacant stores around South Street, I found even more interesting contents and knickknacks and packed them up as well for some unknown future use.

In 1974, Eddie Beckerman decided to change his Mexican import store at 337 South St. into something else. He asked me if I wanted the space for a while, so I took all the bags of artifacts I had collected along with memorabilia created by “The Renaissance,” such as battle signs against the Crosstown Expressway and street festival posters, to create the first South Street Museum. The museum was featured in Philadelphia Magazine later that year.

Everyone who came into that museum location had a South Street story to tell. They had either shopped on the street years ago, or they had relatives who had a pushcart back in the day. After a few months, I boxed up everything so Eddie could open the Blue Angel Café.

In 1980, the South Street Business Association (precursor to the South Street Headhouse District), the oldest business association in Philadelphia, was celebrating its 110th anniversary, so I reconstructed the museum at The Painted Bride Art Center, then located on the 500 block of South Street, currently Garland of Letters. I borrowed a pushcart from the Atwater Kent Museum: It was the highlight of the exhibit.

When the Renaissance celebrated its

20th anniversary in 1990, I was given a large empty storefront at South and Leithgow streets. The exhibit was mainly about the South Street Renaissance, its accomplishments, and how it influenced the City of Philadelphia. The exhibit included the artifacts I had collected 20 years earlier. But the old documents and other items were not surviving well; they needed to go into an established museum. I invited the Historical Society of Pennsylvania to look at the collection. They loved it and agreed to add everything to their collection. This was a milestone: The Hippy History and the South Street Renaissance became official notes in Pennsylvania history.

A few years later, I started collecting items from new businesses in the area. Also, through word of mouth, people who had moved away would give me anything they had from the 70s, 80s, and beyond. Occasionally I would have a display in the windows at 703 South 4th St., and last year I had an exhibit at the Neon Museum of Philadelphia, which has a few neon signs from South Street.

Most recently, the South Street Headhouse District occupied the space at 523 S. 4th St. in the fall and winter of 2021. They offered me the opportunity to decorate the walls with posters, photographs, old signs, and T-shirts.

The South Street Headhouse District Offices have now moved to the iconic Zipperhead building, located at 407 South St., identifiable by the larger-thanlife-sized zipper and ants on the exterior. This space will become a tourist destination, visitor center, and spotlight for the history of South Street. My collection will be a cornerstone in their larger historical showcase and provide visitors the opportunity to learn about the accomplishments of the South Street Renaissance and the battle of the Crosstown Expressway. Look forward to seeing you there. ■

Left: A poster for the 2017 exhibition about the Crosstown Expressway battle; right: A handmade poster calling residents to fight the project. Vigorously opposed by a coalition of neighborhood groups, the plan was formally defeated in 1974. Opposite page: A selection of posters from back in the day.