Boathouse Row

Infobox_nrhp | name =Boat House Row
nrhp_type = nhl


caption = A daytime photo of Boathouse Row.
location= Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
locmapin = Pennsylvania
area =
built =1860
architect= Furness & Evans, et al.
architecture= Late 19th- and 20th-century Revivals; Late Victorian; Gothic
added = February 27, 1987
governing_body = Local
refnum=87000821cite web|url=http://www.nr.nps.gov/|title=National Register Information System|date=2007-01-23|work=National Register of Historic Places|publisher=National Park Service]

Boathouse Row is a historic site located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on the east bank of the Schuylkill River. It consists of a row of boathouses housing racing shells. Each of the ten boathouses has its own history, and all have addresses on Kelly Drive (named after famous Philadelphia oarsman John B. Kelly, Jr.). The boathouses are part of a group known as the Schuylkill Navy, which encompasses several other boathouses along the river.

History and importance

Boathouse Row hosts several major rowing regattas, including the Dad Vail Regatta, Stotesbury Cup Regatta, the Navy Day Regatta, the Independence Day Regatta, and the Head of the Schuylkill.

The boathouses are seen as centers of the rowing community around the United States. Rowers from the boathouses compete at every level, including local clubs, high schools, colleges, summer racing programs, and international-level athletics.

In 1979, lights designed by architectural lighting designer Raymond Grenald were installed to outline each of the boathouses, giving them a nightly Christmas-like gingerbread house appearance and reflecting in the Schuylkill River. [cite news |last=Saffron |first=Inga |title=Lights Out |work=The Philadelphia Inquirer |date=2005-01-07 |pages=1, 13] He proposed the lights after hearing talk of destroying the decaying Victorian boathouses. Lights on the buildings at night would serve to make them more noticed and appreciated. In 2005, after two refurbishings, the houses were outfitted with computerized LEDs that can light up in various colors, depending on the event or season.

Boathouse Row is a National Historic Landmark and was entered onto the National Register of Historic Places in 1987.

Each Philadelphia Big 5 member (Saint Joseph's, Villanova, Penn, La Salle, and Temple) rows from a boathouse along the Schuylkill.

Photo gallery

ee also

Turtle Rock Lighthouse

References

External links

* [http://www.boathouserow.org The Schuylkill Navy's website] , with links to each of the Boathouse Row websites
* [http://www.livingplaces.com/PA/Philadelphia_County/Philadelphia_City/Boathouse_Row.html Info on Boathouse Row and Schuylkill Navy]