Boathouse Row is one of the very best things to do in Philadelphia

Table Of Content

• The lights on Fairmount Park’s Boathouse Row are one of the most iconic sights in Philadelphia
• “National Historic Landmark”
• Philadelphia Girls' Rowing Club empowering women for nearly 90 years
• Philadelphia's iconic Boathouse Row lights glowing once again after $2.1M upgrade
• The frame boathouses
• Inside Boathouse Row: The exclusive houses where some of the region’s greatest athletes train

Fairmount Park sprang up around Lemon Hill as well, and in 1855, the houses became part of a public park, and the Schuylkill Navy, an amateur version of professional rowing, was founded in these houses in 1858. However, by 1859, the City of Philadelphia ended up condemning the group of houses. With the design of its Klaksvík Row Club, the architects at Henning Larsen celebrate the significance of rowing, which is deeply embedded in Faroese culture.

The lights on Fairmount Park’s Boathouse Row are one of the most iconic sights in Philadelphia

The Undine Barge Club is considered a founder of the Schuylkill Navy, which was formed in 1858. The club has many successful alumni, including Olympic Silver Medalist Tim Young and many members of the U.S. The buildings store the long, slender boats used by rowing crews, and have wide garage-door-like bays that open onto ramps that slope down to the water’s edge. Many have steep roofs or Tudor or Victorian-influenced architecture, which are accentuated by the lights.

“National Historic Landmark”

Club members are expected to volunteer a few dozen hours a year to make sure the houses are kept up with, and some of the dues members of the clubs pay (about $400 to $500 a year per person) are used for maintenance of the houses. At night, lights outline one of the city’s loveliest views, aptly named Boathouse Row. The partnership between the Schuylkill River rowing competition and the online casino aims to highlight these shared values while also promoting healthy competition and good sportsmanship. With this sponsorship comes a unique opportunity for both organizations to reach new audiences and showcase their commitment to excellence in all areas of life.

Philadelphia Girls' Rowing Club empowering women for nearly 90 years

The bright lights of Philadelphia’s famous Boathouse Row — long one of the city’s signature nighttime sights — are going dark, at least for now. Beginning in March 2023, the iconic Boathouse Row went dark so the lighting system could receive a major glow-up. Fairmount Park Conservancy has partnered with Philadelphia Parks & Recreation to replace and upgrade the existing light system at a cost of $2.1 million.

A private donor supplied most of the funding for the lighting project, while the City of Philadelphia, which is responsible for maintaining and operating the lights, is contributing $600,000. Strings of lights were first installed along Boathouse Row in 1979 ahead of Pope John Paul II’s visit to Philadelphia. Since then, time, weather and wildlife have taken their toll, leading to regular outages.

Dating back to the mid-19th century, Boathouse Row is a National Historic Landmark, housing rowing clubs like the University Barge Club and Malta Boat Club. The boathouses, including the renowned Vesper Boat Club, underline Philadelphia's status as a rowing hub in American sports history. Boathouse Row in Philadelphia sits on the east bank of the Schuylkill River, showcasing the city's rowing history and diverse architectural styles. Comprising 15 boathouses, this landmark, located north of the Philadelphia Museum of Art, is known for its evening lights that illuminate the structures.

Culture Trip Spring Sale

The boathouses, built in the second half of the nineteenth-century, line the eastern bank of the Schuylkill River just north of the Fairmount Waterworks. Lit at night with thousands of glowing bulbs, they form a welcoming beacon to travelers entering Philadelphia along the Schuylkill River on Interstate 76. Whether it's politics, science, or entertainment, rowers understand the importance of staying informed and how it can help them both on and off the water. Firstly, being aware of global events and issues allows rowers to develop a broader perspective on the world.

See photos of new Boathouse Row light show - The Philadelphia Inquirer

See photos of new Boathouse Row light show.

Posted: Thu, 07 Mar 2024 08:00:00 GMT [source]

Boathouse Row is a historic site which is located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on the east bank of the Schuylkill River just north of the Fairmount Water Works and the Philadelphia Museum of Art. It consists of a row of fifteen boathouses housing social and rowing clubs and their racing shells. Each of the boathouses has its own history, and all have addresses on both Boathouse Row and Kelly Drive, named after Philadelphia oarsman John B. Kelly Jr.. Henning Larsen‘s urban plan for Klaksvík, the Faroe Islands‘ second-largest town, places a new landmark at its center, the Klaksvík Row Club.

Inside Boathouse Row: The exclusive houses where some of the region’s greatest athletes train

Horvat, now the Commodore of the Schuylkill Navy of Philadelphia, has been a member of Vesper since 1973, before he went on to become a national champion. Local universities including Drexel, Penn, and La Salle row out of houses on Boathouse Row. Temple and Saint Joseph's row out of other boathouses along the Schuylkill that are not part of the Row.

Each club is a member of the Schuylkill Navy of Philadelphia, the oldest amateur athletic governing body in America. Further down the River, you’ll find the East Park Canoe Club and the Philadelphia Canoe Club. Throughout the year, some of the clubs located along Boathouse Row hold programs for rowers of every skill level. In 1821, the construction of the Fairmount Waterworks’ dam created favorable conditions for rowing on the Schuylkill and set an aesthetic that helped determine the style of the earliest boathouses. The Schuylkill Navy, founded in 1858, served as a membership organization for the city’s amateur rowing clubs and oversaw activity on the river.

Boathouse Row lights set to return Thursday night - CBS News

Boathouse Row lights set to return Thursday night.

Posted: Thu, 07 Mar 2024 08:00:00 GMT [source]

Lightings will be able to change from one color to another or be programmed in a way that appears to make them sparkle or “dance” along the boathouses. Lights will be able to fade from one to the next, also creating ombre effects and highlighting eclectic architectural features of the historic structures with different colors. If you are interested in learning more about requesting a special lighting, please see our FAQs below. The houses transitioned over to LED lighting in 2005 and were refurbished in 2024. The lights can be personalized and programmed by the staff of Fairmount Park Conservancy, with 16 million potential color combinations. Lightings can change from one color to another or be programmed in a way that appears to make them sparkle or “dance” along the boathouses.

These days, half of the rowers who are club members and who use the river for rowing are women. The largest age group of rowers is high schoolers, with nearly 3,500 competing out of clubs on Boathouse Row. The Schuylkill Navy puts on four major regattas a year that fall between May and July, beginning with the Stotesbury Cup Regatta that draws more than 6,000 high school-aged participants from 17 states. Each rowing club that owns a house is established as nonprofit corporate organizations and governed by the Schuylkill Navy of Philadelphia, the oldest amateur rowing company in America. No one permanently lives in the houses, but over the years, some young rowers have taken up residence for temporary periods and have served as caretakers of the structures. Local boating clubs take great pride in their historic 19th-century boathouses, which line the Schuylkill River just west of the Philadelphia Museum of Art.

In the long term, the time spent on repairs will protect both the lighting system and the historic houses. A recent addition, Lloyd Hall, built in 1999, is the only public structure among the boathouses. After demolition of the former public boathouse, Plaisted Hall, the new construction created controversy because its many amenities did not include room for storing or launching rowing shells. The first small boathouse built by the Undine Barge Club was little more than a shack, but the original structure was renovated in the 1880s by the prominent architectural firm of Furness & Evans.