11.02.16

“This place is a treasure. I can’t believe that this place is still here,” said David Barnes, H+U+D Colloquium member, while walking around the perimeter a massive old brick mansion in a recent Newsworks interview. “There’s nothing like it anywhere in the country or in the world. People should be flocking here from all over just to see the site and learn about its history. And nobody knows it’s here!”

Barnes, Associate Professor, History and Sociology of Science, documented the history- “stories of commerce and politics, suffering and death, medicine and caregiving, immigration and hope” of Philadelphia’s Lazaretto. His extensive research and writing contributed to preservation efforts on behalf of the site. H+U+D colloquium members (pictured here), led by Barnes, toured the Lazaretto in spring 2014.

Tinicum Township, where the Lazaretto is located, is set to begin preservation efforts after arriving an agreement with the Philadelphia airport that will bring dedicated revenue to the project.  If all goes as planned, the Lazaretto will be open to visitors in January of 2018.