Source: Kellie Patrick Gates
Date: March 18, 2008
Byline: Plan Philly: Planning Philadelphia's Future

Consulting parties say dig more

SugarHouse under glass

Only half of the consulting parties advising the Army Corps of Engineers in the on-going historic review of the SugarHouse Casino site got their comments in on time, but those who did all agree that more archaeological digging should be done before the project continues.

The physical archaeology work done on the site by A.D. Marble, SugarHouse's consultant, has not been broad enough in scope, they say, and the prior historic research that helped guide the shovels was also greatly lacking.

At stake, say the local history buffs, archaeologists, and neighborhood activists, is an opportunity to learn much more about local and national history, and the people who lived here before there was a Philadelphia or United States.

"The stories that may lie hidden beneath the ground on this seemingly unassuming plot of ground can reveal much about locally and nationally significant themes," wrote Douglas Mooney, president of the Philadelphia Archaeological Forum. "The unique and rich history of this site tells us a great deal about pre-contact habitation in the Philadelphia area, early contact and interaction between Native Americans and early European settlers, colonial settlement of the area, the development and rise of Philadelphia as a major shipbuilding center and port, and the emergence of the city as a urban metropolis that came to be known as

the "Workshop of the World"."

The consulting parties are part of a historic review that is federally required because SugarHouse needs a federal permit — issued by the Army Corps of Engineers — to build into the Delaware River. In addition to their comments, the Corps will also consider guidance offered by the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission and the general public. Click here to learn about the on-going public comment period.

SugarHouse spokeswoman Leigh Whitaker said Tuesday that no further work will be done at the site until casino executives receive guidance from the Corps and the Historical and Museum Commission.

She would not comment on the consulting parties' submissions. "We will respond to the comments of the consulting parties through appropriate channels," she said. "We are preparing our comments in response, and they will be submitted (to the Corps) shortly."

Historians Torben Jenk, Ken Milano and Rich Remer — researching and responding together as the Kensington History Project — previously brought attention to British Fort I, a Revolutionary War fort and barracks located on the site. Their voluminous submission largely leaves information about the fort to their previous emails to the Army Corps, and highlights new findings they say point to the possibility of other intriguing finds from the site. These include Batchelor's Hall — submissions, and instead offers maps and documents pointing to the possibility that the place where SugarHouse wants to build was once home to a learned society called Batchelors Hall, a social club which in 1729 boasted Philadelphia's first garden of medicinal herbs, and of which botanist John Bartram was a member. It is also possible that some of John Fitch's early steamboats were last docked at or near the site, and remains could still be found, they say. And evidence could be found of Philadelphia's role in the whaling industry.

"Yes, Philadelphia had a Spermaceti Whale Oil Works built atop an eighteenth-century shipyard, built atop a British Revolutionary War Fort, built atop Native Indian implements.

"All the enterprises have significant archaeological potential and are worth researching. The Spermaceti Works represents an unknown chapter of Philadelphia's contribution to the great whaling history of America. Why wasn't it looked for?" the submission reads.

Maya van Rossum, the Delaware Riverkeeper, wrote that more digging could uncover the historical edge of the river, and that findings there would hold not only historical, but environmental significance. "In order to understand and plan for an environmentally sound future, we really need to understand the ecological history of a site," said Riverkeeper Network Deputy Director Tracy Carluccio, who assisted with the report.

Knowing where not only where the river's edge was, but where the historic boundaries of the riverside ecosystem and floodplain stood, can determine which lands should be restored to their natural state, Carluccio said. This is not only important for the animals and plants that live in, on or near the river, she but for people, too, she said, as this riparian environment acts as a sponge that can soak up extra water and prevent floods and as a filter that helps with water quality.

Some local historians and history buffs have questioned the quality of Marble's work for months — especially after an early archeological report made no mention of the Fort's former location on the site.

In their consulting party remarks, Marble, Jenk, Milano and Remer dedicate pages to debunking Marble's work, listing scores of historical references that they say should have been consulted, questioning the accuracy of some that were, and even critiquing the credentials of Marble's employees.

Wrote Debbie King, vice-president of the Northern Liberties Neighbors Association: "We believe that the extraordinary discovery of pre-contact artifacts so close to the surface would seem to indicate that there may be a treasure trove of such pre-historic materials waiting to be unearthed throughout the site, and not, as the applicant asserts, just in the small area in the SW corner, where coincidentally, the applicant does not intend to construct its buildings." Further along in her comments, she says "...the Army Corps could exercise its discretion to void the delegation of these activities to the applicant and its consultant, and that either a governmental agency conduct this work or that a truly independent private consultant could be engaged. This would go a long way to restoring the public's confidence in the process."

SugarHouse has stood behind the ability and performance of A.D. Marble.

But the casino and some of those asking for more digging have long been skeptical of each other's motives.

Some of the consulting parties are also members of organizations that have publicly stated they oppose SugarHouse's proposed location — this includes the NLNA.

Others — including Jenk and Mooney — say they don't care if SugarHouse goes up on the site, so long as all the history is dug up first.

Meanwhile, some of the consulting parties believe SugarHouse has been cutting corners on archeology so that history doesn't get in the way of the casino. But Whitaker says SugarHouse will, in fact, do whatever the Corps says it needs to do in order to preserve the history of the site.

Technically, the deadline for consulting parties to submitting comments was March 7, but Army Corps biologist James Boyer, who is running the process, accepted comments through March 11, when he began some time off. The consulting parties who had not filed comments as of then were advised to file copies directly with SugarHouse, if they had any. These include representatives of the Philadelphia Preservation Alliance, the Philadelphia Historical Commission and two Native American Tribes, the Delaware Nation and the Mohican Nation.

None of those who haven't filed responded to an inquiry about whether they intended to file at some point. The Delaware and Mohican representatives were added to the list of consulting parties significantly later than the others.

Army Corps spokesman Khaalid Walls said the penalty for missing the deadline was simply that SugarHouse, the Corps and the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission would have less time to review comments.