Eroded by gentrification, Swarthmore’s historically Black neighborhood is working to preserve a 100-year history

An urban archaeological excavation is searching for artifacts from the West Philly neighborhood destroyed 50 years ago.

Attendees at the Guerin Recreation Center discussed the obvious and not-so-obvious signs that gentrification is about to impact a neighborhood.

“Bad” Bennie Briscoe, a sanitation worker turned champion boxer, is one of the North Philly icons memorialized through the interactive installations.