The selection of streets includes Market, Walnut, Locust, Spruce, and Pine as well as the numbered streets. Both collections are rich in captioned photographs, contemporary newspaper articles, and the compilers' remarks. Together these collections offer a panoramic view of many of the city's main arteries and some of its lesser known areas. In addition, the Society has four volumes of Thompson Westcott scrapbooks of clippings relating to Philadelphia architecture. The real estate section of local newspapers is an excellent source for information on prices, transfers of ownership, and architectural styles and projects.
Researchers often find the most documentation on a structure around the time of construction.
The Real Estate Record and Builder's Guide, published from 1886 to 1940, offers information on all aspects of the building trades, including lists of the names of builders and architects.