Fairmount in Philadelphia in Philadelphia County, Pennsylvania — The American Northeast (Mid-Atlantic)

Girard College

Civil Rights Landmark

Photographed by Carl Gordon Moore Jr., June 8, 2024

1. Girard College Marker

Facing east along S. College Avenue.

Inscription. In 1930s, lawyer Raymond Pace Alexander challenged the school's restriction (mandated by Stephen Girard's 1831 will) to poor white orphans. Attorney Cecil B. Moore later went to the federal courts; by a 1968 ruling the school was opened to all races.

Erected 1992 by Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission.

Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Civil Rights • Education • Landmarks. A significant historical year for this entry is 1831.

Location. 39° 58.375′ N, 75° 10.21′ W. Marker is in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in Philadelphia County. It is in Fairmount. It is on South College Avenue 0.1 miles west of Corinthian Avenue, on the left when traveling east. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 2101 S College Avenue, Philadelphia PA 19130, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in Southeast Pennsylvania. It is also in the American Northeast

and in the Mid-Atlantic.

Globally, it is in North America,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once

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the Haudenosaunee (Iroquois) Confederacy,

New Netherland,

and one of the original Thirteen Colonies.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: Berean Institute (about 700 feet away, measured in a direct line); Memories of the Penitentiary Hospital (approx. ¼ mile away); Tuberculosis Yard (approx. ¼ mile away); The Hole (approx. 0.3 miles away); The United States no longer has the highest rate of incarceration in the world. (approx. 0.3 miles away); The Big Graph (approx. 0.3 miles away); Incinerator (approx. 0.3 miles away); Cellblock 14 (approx. 0.3 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Philadelphia.

Another marker is no longer nearby. 2020 Rate of Incarceration (was approx. 0.3 miles away but has been replaced with another marker now near it).

Photographed by Carl Gordon Moore Jr., June 8, 2024

2. Girard College Marker

Facing north toward the Girard College Library, 2101 S. College Avenue.

Credits. This page was last revised on April 4, 2025. It was originally submitted on July 16, 2024, by Carl Gordon Moore Jr. of North East, Maryland. This page has been viewed 201 times since then and 28 times this year. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on July 16, 2024, by Carl Gordon Moore Jr. of North East, Maryland. • Bill Pfingsten was the editor who published this page.