Philadelphia Apartment Rental Leasing Office: 215.351.1535

Imagine Philadelphia in the early 20th century, when the Industrial Revolution was in full gear and the manufacturing plants surrounding the city's river wards were humming with activity. Originally the center of shipping and commerce Philadelphia's old city district was gaining new importance as a major force in urban industrialism, mass producing products to serve the needs of a growing nation.

During the early 1900's on North Third Street in old city, a stretch was known as "Confectioner's Row" because several producers who worked with cocoa and malts and other confectionary products set up shop there. One of the most distinguished names on the street was the Wilbur Chocolate Company, a world-renowned confectioner since the 1850's. The Wilbur complex included five disparate industrial buildings connected by a series of tunnels and walkways. Each of the imposing structures was considered an architectural marvel, noted for its solid brick and timber construction and such unique details as Doric columns and dentiled cornices.

The Wilbur Company churned out its wonderful chocolates at this site for several decades before moving out of Philadelphia. Other neighboring manufacturers followed suit as the old buildings outlived their usefulness, and soon Old City became a collection of rundown commercial relics. In 1983 Historic Landmarks for Living bought and restored the old Wilbur complex, and our construction management team transformed it into a luxury highrise of 135 distinctive apartment residences. It was the beginning of a sweet new chapter in the life of a Philadelphia landmark.

Philadelphia Apartment Rental Leasing Office: 215.351.1535