CALLING ALL RESTAURATEURS // We're Accepting Restaurant Proposals for 3rd Ward Philadelphia

Do you know someone who might want to open a restaurant in Philly? If so, send them our way this week.

3rd Ward's new location in the City of Brotherly Love's Northern Liberties/Old Kensington neighborhood, which is scheduled to open this summer, will feature a restaurant, and that fine establishment could be yours. Just imagine: your very own restaurant, with over 2,000 square feet of interior space, 1,000 more for potential outdoor seating, and shared event space. And you'll also have the rare opportunity to open, grow and thrive alongside 3rd Ward's vibrant creative community. Members work up quite an appetite while pursuing their many amazing endeavors, and its usually hard to pry them away from their projects and passions, so there'll surely be plenty of appetites to satiate.

We need letters of intent for all proposals by this Friday, January 6, and final proposals are due on February 3. We're excited to hear about your dream restaurant. Let's build this together.

And, for some additional inspiration, hit the jump to check out behind-the-scenes images of 3rd Ward Philadelphia as it begins to take shape.

The second floor after being sandblasted.

Evaluating the third floor ceiling medallion, a masterpiece and icon-in-the-making, for restoration

Newly excavated elevator pit for brand-new building elevator.

Wall demolition and putting up steel for the shop.

Welding steel beams on top of the shop to create new structural support for green roof.

Welding more steel beams for the shop.

-- John Ruscher

INSIDE PHILLY // The History Of One Of The World's Most Iconic Hats

John B. Stetson Company's Philadelphia Factory

Last month we kicked off our Inside Philly series, which takes a look at the creative traditions of the city that'll soon be 3rd Ward's second home. We explored the long manufacturing tradition of the Northern Liberties/Old Kensington neighborhood, which earned it the nickname "Workshop of the World." Now we return there to look at a specific operation that sprang up in that neighborhood.

Back in the 19th century pretty much everyone wore a hat, and one of the most famous hats of all time was born in 1865 just a few blocks north of 3rd Ward's future location. The history's actually pretty fascinating, so hit the jump now to hear the tale.

The "Boss of the Plains" hat.The story actually begins in New Jersey, where John Batterson Stetson was born in 1830 and grew up working with his father, a local hatter. When he was diagnosed with tuberculosis, however, Stetson was advised to move to a climate that might improve his health. At 24 he headed west and ended up panning for gold in Colorado. While he was there he began experimenting with a hat made out of beaver pelts. He incorporated a tall crown that allowed room for a buffer of air to keep his head warm (and was also handy for hauling water) and a wide brim for extra protection from the elements. As the tale goes, he decided to start manufacturing his hat after a mule driver bought it right off his head for a five-dollar gold piece.

Buffalo Bill Cody.Stetson headed back east to Philadelphia, using the little money that he had to rent a room and set to work as the sole employee of the John B. Stetson Company. He named his first hat "Boss of the Plains" and marketed it to the western settlers that he had encountered. Bearing the "Stetson" stamp in 14-karat gold leaf on the inside hatband, these hats were an immediate hit. By 1886 Stetson was the largest hat manufacturer in the world, and when he died in 1906, his factory was producing around 2 million hats a year.

Those who donned Stetsons included Buffalo Bill Cody, Calamity Jane, Will Rogers and Annie Oakley, and it's even said that George Custer wore a Stetson during the Battle of Little Big Horn. Ever since, the "Bostt of the Plains" has become an iconic symbol of the American West and the cowboy. Stetson also produced many other models, though, from top hats and bowlers to derbys and straw hats.

Stetson's Philadelphia factory kept running strong until after World War II, when regular hat-wearing began to decline. In 1971 the factory closed down and began licensing its hats with other manufacturers, and in 1980 the Stetson clock tower, the last remnant of the once booming operation, burned down.

-- John Ruscher

INSIDE PHILLY // A Look At The Rich History Of 3rd Ward's Future Philadelphia Hood

Part of 3rd Ward's future Philly home (left building) in 1896.Next summer 3rd Ward will be celebrating the opening of our new location in the City of Brotherly Love. While our banner might be a novel sight on the streets of Philadelphia, machines, manufacturing, invention and innovation have long been a critical parts the city's 300+ year history. With our new Inside Philly series we'll be highlighting different aspects of the city's history and culture as we eagerly look forward to soon becoming part of it.

3rd Ward's Philadelphia location will set up shop in 27,000 square feet of space in two renovated warehouse buildings and a converted church in the city's Northern Liberties/Old Kensington neighborhood, was once dubbed the "Workshop of the World." 

Learn how it got that name after the jump.

The neighborhood earned that title in the nineteenth century, when it became as one of the city's main centers for industry and manufacturing. Early on in the century it was home to everything from wagon and machine works  to glass factories and potteries, but as time progressed  it emerged as a particularly important hub for the textile industry. Small companies often started by offering "outwork," with the owners providing the materials and workers producing goods in their own homes using hand looms. As these operations grew and the Industrial Revolution picked up steam, factories were established.

Carpet mills dominated Kensington's textile industry for most of the century, but other trades made their mark as well. There were numerous leather-working factories and tanneries in the area, and as the 1900s arrived, knit goods also occupied a significant percentage of local manufacturing, producing everything from socks, sweaters and scarves to World War II goods such as mosquito netting and tarpaulins.

The neighborhood's textile industry has declined since the mid-twentieth century, but recently it has seen a new influx of artisans and artists, with projects such as the Philadelphia Art Hotel, the Coral Street Arts House and the Frankford Avenue Arts Corridor. We're excited to become part of such a vibrant creative community.

For more on the history of industry in Philadelphia, head to workshopoftheworld.com. And check back soon for more installments of our Inside Philly series.

-- John Ruscher