The Benjamin
Franklin Bridge connects Philadelphia, Pa. to Camden, N.J. Built in 1926, it
was the world’s largest suspension bridge for a few years, until the Ambassador
Bridge from Detroit to Windsor took that title. Walking across it provides some
nice views of the downtown Philadelphia skyline, and of the Camden, N.J.
waterfront – the Rutgers and Camden Riversharks fields, the old brick
warehouses on the waterfront that, decades ago, were probably full of goods and
bustling with workers employed in Camden’s once-busier shipping industry. There’s
a pedestrian entrance around Race and North 5th streets in
Philadelphia, and lets you off a few blocks from the Delaware River in Camden.
Wandering around
Camden after crossing the bridge, we stumbled upon Johnson Park, in front of
what turned out to be the Cooper Library, across the street from the Cooper Street/Rutgers
North trolley stop. The classical-looking tiled pool, the centerpiece of the
park, was dried up. Between it and the library, though, another fountain was
working. A man in the center, whose sitting position, stomach and face make him
look like an unholy parody of the Buddha, spits water out into the fountain,
with two faces to his left and two to his right, with different emotional
expressions but in the same Asian-influenced style. The ones on his right were also spitting water out; the ones on his left weren't. Then, the weirdest thing in
the park is in front of this fountain – a metal sculpture of what looks like a
turtle shoving its head up a goose’s rear end. The goose is in a cawing
position, expressing his displeasure at what is going on. There are more
statues on the edges of the park – a goose; a Pan statue; some other designs
that appear to have some either medieval or classical inspiration. The place
looks like someone’s slightly twisted vision of a fairy tale. Read Edith
Hamilton’s “Mythology” and eat a pound of crab salad before going to bed, and
your dreams might look something like this place.
The library
itself is a beautiful, columned old building, with a Greco-Roman looking mural
on the front top, over the entrance. I went up the steps to go in, but being
July 5, it was closed, the doors locked, and the sign said only Rutgers
students or faculty with business being there were allowed in. That’s not me.
It was one of
the stranger parks I’ve seen. So, if you ever find yourself in Camden, check it
out. There is an ongoing effort to restore this cool little place, which you
can read about here:
