A Historic Philadelphia Mill, Reimagined as Lofts
2026 Preservation Alliance Grand Jury Award Winner
Built in 1881 as the Sykes Brothers Yarn Mill, this building spent generations at the heart of Kensington’s textile industry — spinning carpet yarns on looms powered by the industrial engine that made Philadelphia the “Workshop of the World.” Walter Thomas Sykes, the mill’s founder, held patents for the very machinery that ran inside these walls.
Now restored through the Federal and Pennsylvania Historic Tax Credit programs, Hancock Lofts preserves what makes this building irreplaceable — exposed timber beams, load-bearing brick walls, arched factory windows — while delivering fully modern residences and artist studios. Listed on the National Register of Historic Places, this is living on the historic register.
- Exposed brick & timber beams
- Arched industrial windows
- High ceilings throughout
- Original hardwood floors
- Preserved historic facades
- National Historic Register
Walter Thomas Sykes
Founder · Sykes Brothers Inc. · Est. 1881
Born in Chester County, Pennsylvania, a textile innovator, Sykes held multiple U.S. patents for carding and spinning machinery. He built this mill at Hancock and Huntingdon Streets into one of Kensington’s leading carpet yarn manufacturers — a business his family operated for over half a century.
