The stretch of South 2nd between Fitzwater and Catharine Streets is almost entirely residential today. But nearly 200 years ago, this section of Queen Village was actually humming with industrial activity. More specifically, the enclosed court at 783 S. 2nd St. was once a thriving soap production complex. According to the Queen Village Neighbors Association (QVNA), the original structure goes as far back as 1831, when one Joseph Elkington opened a storefront for the sale of candles and soap. At the time, according to the QVNA, the property was listed as 377 South 2nd Street. Over the next two decades, Elkinton expanded his operation to include production in the adjacent buildings. By 1858, when 2nd Street’s addresses were re-numbered, Elkinton presided over the Soap Works complex, which is shown below in Hexamer & Locher’s Philadelphia Atlas.
With the onset of the Civil War, the Elkinton family business became an innovator in the use of silicate in soap, a particularly good move as the invention of the light-bulb soon caused a dramatic decline in candle sales. The transition led the company both to change its name to Philadelphia Quartz and to move its headquarters to 9th & Mifflin. As G.M. Hopkins’ Philadelphia Atlas shows, N.M. Kerr & Co. Paper Box Factory (an industry which also relied on silicates) would move into the 2nd Street space by 1875.
By the turn of the century, it appears that the complex had lapsed out of use. Over the course of the next several decades, little activity appears to have revolved around the storefront structure or the court hidden behind it. The image here below, taken from the Philadelphia Department of Records, shows a possibly vacant property in 1957.
As with much of the Queen Village neighborhood around it, the old Soap Works complex would be revitalized and converted into desirable city residences in the late 20th century. Redubbed as Candle Court in honor of its distant history, the charming interior of the complex can be glimpsed through an aesthetically pleasing wrought iron gate. Today, all former candle, soap and box-making facilities are rentals and homes.
