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Authorized by an Act of Congress, planned in 1826, the former U. S. Naval Asylum was built c. 1830. It was designed by William Strickland, who also designed the first U.S. Mint, the Tennessee State Capitol, and the cupola for Independence Hall. The facility was used as a naval home and hospital and also, until 1846, as the first Naval Academy.
Closed in 1976, it was sold to Toll Brothers - a publicly-traded luxury home builder - in 1981 (settlement was in 1988) for $1,200,000. Since its purchase of the property, Toll Bros. has practiced "demolition by neglect," allowing the historic structure to decline to the point of becoming hazardous in order to receive demolition permits and clear the land for suburban-style development. The City of Philadelphia recently filed a lawsuit charging Toll under its preservation statutes and hopes to receive a court order requiring restoration of the buildings.
Biddle Hall, the centerpiece of this magnificent property which is on the National Register of Historic Places and a National Historical Landmark, caught fire in the early morning hours of February 3, 2003 and is now in serious jeopardy.
"William Bolger, a National Park Service official who has been tracking the decline of the U.S. Navy's first hospital, calls the 1827 Greek Revival building "the most important endangered work of architecture we have" in the United States." (from "Naval Home is lost only if we let it be" By Inga Saffron Philadelphia Inquirer Architecture Critic)
The Naval Home is important for more than its architecture. The property's historic significance goes back to the early formation of the United States when it was part of a parcel owned by William Penn. During the Revolution, when Philadelphia was occupied by the British, it served as home to General Pattison, commander of the Royal Artillery.
When the property was sold to the United States government in 1826, it was destined to become a key component in the military hospital system that later gave rise to the modern Veteran's Administration. In 1976 Philadelphia's Naval Home was closed and relocated to Gulfport, MS where it is still in operation. It is considered to be the oldest continuously operating retirement community in the United States.