Philadelphia Naval Asylum

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Naval Asylum

The 20.7 acre campus located on Grays Ferry Avenue south of Christian Street, now known as Naval Square, served the US Navy for 150 years. The Asylum was situated on the Pemberton family’s country estate, known as “The Plantation," in the early 1800s. 

The US Naval Hospital operated out of the Plantation from 1827 to 1833, while the state-of-the-art hospital complex was built. In addition to its primary use as a retirement home for sailors, the complex housed the Naval academy from 1839 to 1845, before the school moved to Annapolis.

The institution was renamed the Naval Home in 1889. It stayed in continuous use through 1976 and was named a National Historic Landmark in 1971.

Image sources: archives.pacscl.org/shows/navalhome/, www.philadelphiabuildings.org