Photo Walk

With an aligned vision and joint commitment to celebrating and amplifying Black creativity in Northwest Philadelphia, Historic Germantown is collaborating with Ubuntu Fine Art and Immortal Vision Studio for their 1st annual Historic Germantown Photowalk on August 21, 2022 at 11am. Taking place during Immortal Weekend, the photo walk serves as a way to give back to Philadelphia’s Black creative class, while also continuing the city’s rich legacy of Black arts and culture.

Historic Germantown is a network of 18 extraordinary historic houses, destinations, and museums in Northwest Philadelphia that have joined together to protect, preserve and share greenspaces within the German Township, one of Philadelphia’s prized historical assets. Our work at Historic Germantown amplifies stories, exhibits and programs around History,  Nature and Culture and we are elated to open the grounds of five of our historical sites and greenspaces along the photowalk path.

Grumblethorpe

Concord Schoolhouse and Burial Ground

Wyck House

• The Wyck House was homebase for nine generations of one family. Understanding the  importance of documenting self, the family saved family heirlooms, photos, and most importantly, journals so future generations would know from whom and where they come. The Haines family were largely entrepreneurs, but the sciences were also important throughout multiple generations. Cousins Reuben and Ann Haines meticulously tracked the weather in Germantown during the late 1700s and early 1800s. Ann’s climate journal was preserved by the family and is now used to help meterologists understand our current climate. There is also a collection of correspondence between family members documenting the yellow fever crisis that hit Philadelphia in 1793. These papers give us insight into the epidemic of that time and show parallels of how we, like the Haines’ still continued to live, love, and commune during health crises.

Johnson House

• Residents of Germantown have fought against the institution of slavery since 1688 when members of the Mennonite Meeting House (another historic site to visit) gathered to issue a petition calling for the end of this inhumane practice. What began as a family home and working farm in 1768 morphed into an infamous stop on the Underground Railroad. The Johnson family took on the mantle of abolition and worked with free Black residents like William Still and Harriet Tubman.

Black Writers Museum

• Germantown is home to some of the greatest and most well-known Black artists in the world. Three of Philadelphia’s six Poet Laureates — Sonia Sanchez, Yolanda Wisher, and Trapeta Mason live right here in our neighborhood. Literacy and the written word have a storied history with Black people in this country and our cultural output through that medium is housed within the Black Writers Museum founded by poet Supreme Dow.

Founded in 2021 by Steven CW Taylor, Ubuntu Fine Art is the first Black-owned, single artist fine art photography gallery in the US. Rooted in the South African term “ubuntu”, meaning universal connection through sharing, the gallery seeks to bring people together and invite the community to travel the world through photography. A native of Germantown, Taylor has deep pride in his neighborhood and through his gallery and the upcoming photowalk, asserts that it is indeed the photography capital of the US. Ubuntu Fine Art has been a true inspiration and peek into the future of Germantown. By launching this photowalk, bringing together photographers, creatives, and content creators from across the city, it further stamps the impact of Black artists on this historic neighborhood.

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Historic Germantown is a partnership of 18 extraordinary historic houses, destinations, and museums in Northwest Philadelphia that have joined together to protect, preserve, and share some of Philadelphia’s prized historical assets.