On this block in 1931

On this block in 1931. . , The Aldine Trust Company Building at 1930 Chestnut Street was designed by Arthur Hall and completed in 1929., This 22-story building was one of many "skyscrapers" erected in the late 1920s, including the Drake Hotel, the PSFS Building, and Rittenhouse Plaza, with many completed around the onset of the Great Depression., The building boom in this era influenced Mayor Harry Mackey to create the first Planning Commission in Philadelphia in 1929., In 1931 , President: Herbert Hoover (R) , Mayor: Harry Arista Mackey (R) , Philadelphia population: 1,950,961, Events , January 10, The Philadelphia Quakers defeated Montreal, ending an NHL-record 15-game losing streak., February 18, American writer Toni Morrison was born., March 3, The "Star Spangled Banner" officially became the U.S. national anthem., March 18, The first Schick electric shavers went on sale in the U.S., May 1, The construction of the Empire State Building in New York City was completed., June 9, The Donald Duck cartoon premiered., November 13, Hattie Caraway (D-AK) was appointed as the first U.S. woman senator., December 26, George/Ira Gershwin's "Of Thee I Sing," premiered in New York City., The massive flooding of the Yangtze River in China caused more than 3 million deaths., Money matters , Beans: 10¢/pound , Cheese: 32¢/pound , Eggs: 42¢/dozen , Bread: 8¢/loaf , Milk: 15¢/quart , Rice: 8¢/pound , Apples: $3.25 for box of 100 , Bottle opener: 10¢ , Coca Cola: 5¢ / bottle , Baby Ruth candy bar: 5¢ , Electric iron: $3.95