Collection Summary 

Title
Germantown Parking Company (Philadelphia, Pa.) Records
           
Dates
1946-1981      

Collection ID
Acc. 507

Creator
Germantown Parking Company (Philadelphia, Pa.)

Quantity
1.4 linear feet (4 boxes)

Repository
Special Collections Research Center, Temple University Libraries

Language
Materials in English

Detailed Collection Information

Historical Note

The Germantown Parking Company was established by the Business Men's Association of Germantown for the purpose of acquiring and operating community parking lots in the Germantown business section. Originally a subsidiary of the Business Men's Association, the Company was eventually incorporated as a nonprofit community project with the Association as its sole stockholder.

Under the leadership of Benjamin Wilf, the Company was incorporated in 1948, becoming a wholly owned subsidiary of the Association by 1952. It was initially funded by the community businesses that comprised its membership, and was administered by a board of directors elected by Company shareholders. The directors appointed four persons to the offices of president, vice president, secretary and treasurer.

Initially, the Company secured parking lots through leasing. The first of these, located at 35 W Schoolhouse Lane, began operations in 1951. Donald J. Tobin became president of the Company in 1954, but by 1955 the nature of the Company was beginning to change. Company directors began considering options such as buying (rather than leasing) lots and shifting ownership to bondholders (rather than the Businessmen's Association). Ultimately, the Company was unable to maintain successful operation of their lots: day-to-day operations were terminated in 1957, and the Germantown Parking Company account was eventually settled in 1974. This effectively ended the initial run of the Company.

Following the demise of the original Germantown Parking Company, a second group of Association members led by Roger Scattergood restarted the organization in 1980. Using leftover contributions from a Colonial Germantown Parking Study Fund, the Company leased several lots in the Germantown area. This incarnation of the Company was short-lived, however, as a lack of success forced the Company to terminate its last parking lease in March of 1981.

The work of the Germantown Parking Company often paralleled that of the Traffic Parking Committee of the Business Men's Association of Germantown, but the two entities were in fact separate, with slightly different emphases. The Traffic Parking Committee dealt with general problems of parking and traffic, and held no regular meetings. The Germantown Parking Company, on the other hand, dealt specifically with the operation of parking lots. Some materials from both of these administrative bodies are contained within the collection.

Description of Collection

This collection contains administrative records, correspondence, financial records, project files and surveys, and other materials. In addition to Germantown Parking Company materials, this series also includes some materials pertaining to the Traffic Parking Committee of the Business Men's Association of Germantown.

Organization and Arrangement

Series 1:  Administration, 1947-1981
Series 2:  Financial, 1980-1981
Series 3:  Projects, 1946-1981
Series 4:  Miscellaneous, 1977-1979

Series 1:  Administration, 1947-1981, begins with general administrative information, consisting mostly of correspondence that is organized by date.  This chronological section is followed by material arranged alphabetically.  The bulk of this material pertains to committees of the Business Men's Association of Germantown, and falls under three headings: Parking & Traffic Control, Parking & Traffic Committee, and Traffic & Parking Committee.  Additional sub series of Administration include: Documentation (including articles of incorporation and early meeting minutes), License, Redevelopment Authority Lease, Parking Lot Manager Applications, Allentown Park & Shop Plan (a model for the Germantown Parking Company), and John Asher (documents collected by a Company director).

Series 2:  Financial, 1980-1981, includes financial information pertaining mostly to the later incarnation of the Company (1980-1981) and organized alphabetically.  The material include Accounts, Auditor's Reports, Contracts, Daily Reports (from various Company Parking Lots), Escrow Fund (concerning the Colonial Germantown Parking Study Fund), Financial Estimates, and Girard Bank.

Series 3:  Projects, 1946-1981, contains information on some of the projects undertaken by the Germantown Parking Company and the Traffic & Parking Committee of the Business Men's Association of Germantown.  Includes the following subseries: Monthly Parking, Parking Plan, Surveys (1946, 1956 and 1968), and Traffic Data.

Series 4:  Miscellaneous, 1977-1979, houses two folders of tangential materials: Dinner Dance (of the Business Association of Germantown) and Germantown Christmas Parade.

Patron Information

Research Access

Collection is open for research.

Collections Stored Off-Site

This collection may be housed off-site at the Library Depository, and require up to two business days to retrieve. Please review the finding aid and be prepared to identify specific materials to be retrieved. Contact the Special Collections Research Center in advance of your visit, so that materials may be relocated to the reading room for research.

Publication and Copyright Information

The Germantown Parking Company (Philadelphia, Pa.) Records are the physical property of the Special Collections Research Center, Temple University Libraries. Intellectual property rights, including copyright, belong to the authors or their legal heirs and assigns. Researchers are responsible for determining the identity of rights holders and obtaining their permission for publication and for other purposes where stated.

Preferred Citation

[Description and date of item], [Box/folder number], Germantown Parking Company (Philadelphia, Pa.) Records, Acc. 507, Special Collections Research Center, Temple University Libraries, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Administrative Information

Acquisition Information

Donated by Dennis Harrison, March 1982. This collection was acquired along with the Business Men's Association of Germantown Records, Acc. 507, and was processed as a separate collection.         

Processing Information

Finding aid revised according to contemporary archival standards in July 2015.

Index Terms

The following headings have been used to index the description of this collection in Temple University’s electronic catalog:

Corporate Names:
Business Men's Association of Germantown
Germantown Parking Company (Philadelphia, Pa.) Records

Subjects:
Automobile parking -- Pennsylvania -- Philadelphia
Commerce -- Pennsylvania -- Philadelphia
Neighborhood planning -- Pennsylvania -- Philadelphia

Places:
Germantown (Philadelphia, Pa.)
Philadelphia (Pa.)

Material Types:
Administrative records
Financial records