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The Wanamaker Building’s Macy’s may be closing, but its iconic eagle and organ are protected

The interior of the Wanamaker Building has rare historical protections.

Eight year-old Madison Adams waits under the John Wanamaker Eagle for the start of Macy's "Christmas Pageant of Lights" in 2019. She came with her parents and siblings from Berlin, NJ.
Eight year-old Madison Adams waits under the John Wanamaker Eagle for the start of Macy's "Christmas Pageant of Lights" in 2019. She came with her parents and siblings from Berlin, NJ.Read moreTom Gralish / Staff Photographer
    by Nate File
    Published 

Don’t expect an extreme makeover for the Wanamaker Building, its massive eagle statue, or organ, once the world’s largest of its kind.

Macy’s will close its store inside the Center City Wanamaker Building in March. But its interior may be insulated from changes.

The Wanamaker Building holds rare protections from the Philadelphia Historical Commission. Most historic buildings only have protections for their facades, but the Wanamaker Grand Court, including its iconic eagle statue and organ, is one of only five interiors that are protected in Philadelphia. The others include 30th Street Station, City Council chambers at City Hall, public spaces in the Family Court building, and the main floor of Jacob Reed’s Sons’ store on Chestnut Street near Broad.

The Wanamaker Building’s status means that Historical Commission staff will get to make sure that any future changes “protect the resource,” according to commission spokesperson Bruce Bohri. The building was added to Philadelphia Register of Historic Places in 1974 and declared a National Historic Landmark in 1978.

“It’s real shame that it’s not just losing a business in Center City, but you’re also losing public access to two great historical artifacts,” said Lee Arnold, librarian emeritus with the Historical Society of Pennsylvania.

» READ MORE: Center City Macy’s, located in iconic Wanamaker Building, will close in March

Arnold said that ever since John Wanamaker opened the building for his department store in 1910, it has been a fixture of Philadelphia.

“It was such a wonderful, old time department store that served more than just your dry good needs … it was spectacular and grand,” he said.

Arnold described how Wanamaker was a place to eat food, listen to the organ play, and even see celebrities, serving as a precursor to the modern mall under one roof.

The eagle statue at the center of the atrium was so well known that people often used it as a meeting place — “meet me at the eagle” was a common phrase for Philadelphians and visitors.

“It was centrally a heart of Center City,” Arnold said.