Deborah Dilworth Bishop

Deborah Bishop first came to Society Hill in 1956 or ’57, when her parents bought property on S. Sixth Street opposite Washington Square. At the time, her father, Richardson Dilworth, was Mayor of Philadelphia. She lived there until 1959, when she married Ted Newbold. After a brief period on Elfreth’s Alley, Deborah and Ted bought 323 S. Third Street, where they lived until 1967, adding the two properties just to the north and putting in a garden. They moved themselves and their three children to the Rittenhouse Square area, but found that neighborhood not a good place for children. They returned to Society Hill, where they bought 256 S. Third Street.

Deborah talks about Society Hill on the cusp of redevelopment, when, she says, there was “nobody else living there.” She tells about finding a special school for her children, all of whom are dyslexic, and about St. Peter’s School which they also attended. She describes her experience serving on the board of the Powel House and her observations about the founding of the Landmarks Society. She shares her opinion of the Civic Association and tells a story about her son discovering a robbery of the First Pennsylvania Bank branch in the neighborhood.

She discusses her friendships with people listed in the Social Register and with a neighbor who was a plumber. She talks about her husband Ted Newbold’s work selling property in Society Hill for Old Philadelphia Development Corporation. Deborah Bishop is a woman of strongly held opinions about many subjects and does not hesitate to share them in this interview.

Transcript

DS:      This is an interview with Deborah Bishop. The date is April 1, 2008. This is Dorothy Stevens, and we are at 116 Delancey Street in Philadelphia.

[The tape is turned off, then on again]

DS:      Deborah, tell me when did you come to Society Hill.

DB:     Well, I was just trying to remember. I was 19, I was born in 1936, so it must have been 1955.

DS:      Wonderful. [Laughs] That was in Philadelphia.

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© 2008 Project Philadelphia 19106™. All rights reserved.

About the Interview

Interviewer
Dorothy Stevens
Transcriber
Cynthia J. Eiseman
Interview Location
116 Delancey Street
Interview Date
April 1, 2008
Interviewee
Bishop, Deborah Dilworth
Narrator Type
Redeveloper - New Construction
Redeveloper - Restoration
Oral History Sources