A city’s faded ads are history in plain sight. They are tangible ways totell the histories of changing neighborhoods and industries, and LawrenceO’Toole’s Fading Ads of Philadelphiapresents a new way to view theseforgotten urban stories. Join O’Toole as he explores physical remnants of thecity’s history—the fading sign for a cooperage seen only from the elevatedtrain tracks is all that remains of a family business and the Gretz smokestackin Kensington hints at the impact of Prohibition on the city’s breweries. From Center City to the River Wards, and fromSouth Philadelphia to West Philadelphia, O’Toole recreates this lost urban landscape. Through this stunningly illustrated book,urbanites will again view these too often overlooked ads—and their stories—withfresh eyes.