Fishtown | |
---|---|
Coordinates: 39°57′54″N75°08′06″W / 39.965°N 75.135°W | |
Country | United States |
State | Pennsylvania |
County | Philadelphia County |
City | Philadelphia |
Area code(s) | 215, 267 and 445 |
Fishtown is a neighborhood in the River Wards section [1] of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. [2] Located northeast of Center City Philadelphia, its borders are somewhat disputed today due to many factors, but are roughly defined by the triangle created by the Delaware River, Front Street, and York Street. [3] Some newer residents expand the area to Lehigh Avenue to the northeast, while some older residents shrink the area to Norris Street. [4] [5] It is served by the Market–Frankford Line rapid transit subway/elevated line of the SEPTA system, and the historic Route 15 Girard Avenue trolley line. Fishtown has long been a largely working class Irish Catholic and Irish American neighborhood, though in recent years it has seen a large influx of young urban professionals and gentrification. [6]
The name Fishtown derives from one of the original occupations of its residents. Early settlers were fishermen, and over time they controlled the fishing rights to both sides of the Delaware River, from Cape May to the falls at Trenton. The apocryphal local legend traces the name of Fishtown to Charles Dickens, who purportedly visited the neighborhood in March 1842, but records show this to be false, as it was named Fishtown prior to his visit, at least as early as 1808, as evidenced in a newspaper article in The Tickler, an early 19th century Philadelphia newspaper.
This section needs additional citations for verification .(March 2016) |
This article appears to be slanted towards recent events.(November 2019) |
The area was originally inhabited by members of the Turtle Clan of the Lenape Indian tribe (whom the Europeans named the Delaware Indian Tribe). The first European settlers were a group of six Swedish farming families, later replaced by British landed gentry, then British shipbuilders and German fishermen. Fishtown was originally a small section of the town of Old Kensington, close to the Delaware River and just a few blocks long, roughly from Palmer Street north to Gunnar's Run, from the Delaware River to Moyer Street. The original town of Kensington was only 191.5 acres of land and originally called the Fairman Estate. Today's Penn Treaty Park sits where the Fairman Mansion once stood (actually Fairman Mansion sat in the middle of Beach Street, curb to curb, right north of Columbia Avenue).
Kensington was founded by Captain Anthony Palmer, an Englishman by way of Barbados. Using proceeds from the sale of the Hope Farm estate (present day Port Richmond), which included three slaves named Abraham, Hannibal, and Phillis, [7] Palmer purchased the Fairman Estate in 1729 and laid out his town and sold parcels to the local fishermen and shipbuilders. Anthony Palmer eventually became active in the provincial council and became acting Governor of Pennsylvania in 1747–1748. Palmer died in 1749 and was buried in Christ Church Cemetery in Philadelphia. (The Kensington Burial Grounds in Fishtown, also known as Palmer Cemetery, was founded around 1732 and is still an active burial ground, situated on land deeded to the community by the Palmer Family after Anthony Palmer's death. It is believed that the cemetery was in use from about the time Palmer started to lay out the town of Kensington, but the actual date of the first burial is unknown.)
Within a few generations there was another influx of German immigrants, then still later in the late 19th century Polish and Irish Catholic immigrants. The community had two Roman Catholic Churches, St. Laurentius, built by Polish immigrants, and the Holy Name of Jesus, built predominantly by Irish immigrants. Holy Name continues to serve as the parish church. St. Laurentius was sold to private developers and was to be turned into apartments, but became embroiled in legal disputes for years. Meanwhile, the structure deteriorated, leading to its eventual demolition beginning in 2022. [8]
The neighborhood had been working class for centuries; while poverty grew after jobs left during the deindustrialization era, which afflicted many "rust belt" cities, Fishtown's workers continued to maintain a stable working-class community. Fishtown was highly segregated in the mid-20th century: between 1950 and 1970, only 0.1-0.2% of the population was not white. [9] Most long-time residents trace their ancestry to Irish, German, and Polish Catholic immigrants. In an analysis of 2013 data, Fishtown was the third most segregated white neighborhood in Philadelphia (after Girard Estates and Bridesburg), with 96% white residents. [10] By 2024, the percentage of white residents had decreased further to 86%. [11]
Since 2005 Fishtown has experienced moderate gentrification characterized by significant rises in housing prices and the opening of upscale art, entertainment, and dining establishments. An influx of artists and professionals has joined the ranks of police officers, fire fighters, nurses, carpenters, electricians, stonemasons, plumbers, sheet-metal workers, and teamsters. As of 2023, the neighborhood was one of the highest income in Philadelphia. [12]
The neighborhood was chosen by the state of Pennsylvania to be the site of the Rivers Casino Philadelphia gaming complex on Delaware Avenue near Frankford Avenue. This choice deeply divided the neighborhood, causing conflict between those who believe it will bring jobs and economic development and those who believe it will lead to increased crime, addiction, and other social problems which negatively impact quality of life. A Community Benefits Agreement was reached between SugarHouse Casino (now Rivers Casino) and the membership of Fishtown Action and the New Kensington CDC, which will provide money for community projects that would not otherwise be available to the residents.
The George Chandler School, Green Tree Tavern, and Penn Treaty Junior High School are listed on the National Register of Historic Places. [13]
Listed in the Philadelphia Register of Historic Places, the following buildings are protected by the City of Philadelphia and the Philadelphia Historical Commission:
The School District of Philadelphia operates public schools. Alexander Adaire School is the elementary school of the community. [24] Penn Treaty School (formerly Penn Treaty Middle School), grades 6–12, is in Fishtown. [25] Residents were previously zoned to Kensington High School. [26]
St. Laurentius School is located in Fishtown. [27]
In the book Coming Apart: The State of White America, 1960–2010 (2012), Charles Murray names an imagined entity of white working class decay for Fishtown, inspired by Fishtown, Philadelphia. [28]
The comic book Fishtown (2007–8), by Kevin Colden, portrays a murder that occurred in Fishtown, based on the 2003 Murder of Jason Sweeney.[ citation needed ]
The neighborhood was partially filmed in and is a focal point in several episodes of the 2020 AMC television series Dispatches from Elsewhere , created by and starring Jason Segel.
Season 5 of Netflix's reboot series Queer Eye was shot in Philadelphia. Fishtown was the primary recording location for episode 1 "Preaching Out Loud". [29]
Germantown is an area in Northwest Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Founded by Palatine, Quaker, and Mennonite families in 1683 as an independent borough, it was absorbed into Philadelphia in 1854. The area, which is about six miles northwest from the city center, now consists of two neighborhoods: 'Germantown' and 'East Germantown'.
Northern Liberties is a neighborhood in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. It is north of Center City along the Delaware River. Prior to its incorporation into Philadelphia in 1854, it was among the top 10 largest cities in the U.S. in every census from 1790 to 1840, and 11th in 1850. It was a major manufacturing area that attracted many European immigrants in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. In the early 21st century, it has attracted many young professionals and new commercial and residential development.
Northeast Philadelphia, nicknamed Northeast Philly, the Northeast and the Great Northeast, is a section of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. According to the 2000 census, Northeast Philadelphia has a population of between 300,000 and 450,000, depending on how the area is defined. The Northeast is known as being home to a large and diverse working class population, including Polish, German, Jewish, Russian, African American, Brazilian, Puerto Rican, Dominican, Guatemalan, Ukrainian, Indian, Chinese, Irish, and Vietnamese neighborhoods.
Frankford is a neighborhood in the Northeast section of Philadelphia situated about six miles (10 km) northeast of Center City. Although its borders are vaguely defined, the neighborhood is bounded roughly by the original course of Frankford Creek on the south to Castor Avenue on the northwest and southwest, to Cheltenham Avenue on the north, and to Aramingo Avenue and I-95 on the east. Adjacent neighborhoods are Bridesburg, Juniata, Northwood, Summerdale, and Wissinoming.
Holmesburg began as a Village within Lower Dublin Township, Pennsylvania. It is now a neighborhood in the Northeast section of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Holmesburg was named in Honor of Surveyor General of Pennsylvania Thomas Holme, who was a cartographer.
Kensington is a neighborhood in Philadelphia that belongs to Lower Northeast. As with all neighborhoods in the city, the lack of any official designation means the boundaries of the area vary between sources over time and are disputed among locals. Kensington, as most long-term residents view it, refers generally to the area consisting of Kensington, East Kensington, West Kensington, and Harrowgate. The adjacent Fairhill and Norris Square neighborhoods are more separate but may be included in Kensington; Fishtown and South (Olde) Kensington were historically included. The most conservative boundaries of the neighborhood, shown in the map below, are Front Street and 5th Street to the west, the Amtrak train tracks to the North, Trenton Avenue, the Trenton Avenue train tracks, and Frankford Avenue to the east, and Cecil B. Moore Avenue to the south.
Port Richmond is a neighborhood in the River Wards section of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. It is notable for its extremely large Polish immigrant and Polish American community, and it has been known as the Little Poland of Philadelphia. The neighborhood is also home to a large Irish American community and sizable German, Lithuanian, Italian, and Puerto Rican communities, along with a historic Jewish community, as represented in the various churches and organizations. In more recent years, a sizable Albanian community has moved in. The Richmond Zip Code is 19134. A small portion of the neighborhood, north of Castor Avenue, falls into the 19137 ZIP code.
Torresdale, also formerly known as Torrisdale, is a neighborhood in the Far Northeast section of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Torresdale is located along the Delaware River between Holmesburg and Bensalem Township in neighboring Bucks County.
Kensington District, or The Kensington District of the Northern Liberties, was one of the twenty-nine municipalities that formed Philadelphia County, Pennsylvania, United States prior to the enactment of the Act of Consolidation, 1854, when it became incorporated into the newly expanded City of Philadelphia. Lehigh Avenue roughly bounded the district to the north; Germantown Avenue and 6th Street to the west; Cohocksink Creek to the south; and an L-shaped line formed by Frankford Avenue, Norris Street, and York Street to its northeast. The Delaware River was the eastern boundary. Today the area would include the Philadelphia neighborhoods of Olde Kensington, West Kensington and Fishtown, as well as portions of the neighborhoods of Ludlow, Hartranft, Fairhill, Northern Liberties and the current Kensington. The District of Kensington was a self-governing district between the years 1820 and 1854.
Bridesburg is the northernmost neighborhood in the River Wards section of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. A mostly working-class neighborhood, Bridgesburg is an historically German and Irish community, with a significant community of Polish immigrants who arrived mostly in the early- to mid-twentieth century. The community is home to two Catholic churches: All Saints Church, designed by Edwin Forrest Durang and built in 1889; and Saint John Cantius Church, built in 1898 in Polish cathedral style.
Frankford Creek is a minor tributary of the Delaware River in southeast Pennsylvania. It derived its name from today's Frankford, Philadelphia neighborhood.
Tacony is a historic neighborhood in Northeast Philadelphia, United States, approximately 8 miles (13 km) from downtown Philadelphia. It is bounded by the east side of Frankford Avenue on the northwest, the south side of Cottman Avenue on the northeast, the north side of Robbins Street on the southwest, and the Delaware River and Interstate 95 on the southeast.
Olde Kensington, also known as South Kensington, is a neighborhood located in North Philadelphia section of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. South Kensington is north of Northern Liberties, south of Norris Square, east of Ludlow, and west of Fishtown. The boundaries of the neighborhood are Berks St. (north), Girard Ave (south), Front St (east) and 6th St. (west).
Penn Treaty Park is a small park on the western bank of the Delaware River, in the Fishtown neighborhood of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It is located on Beach Street, near its intersection with Delaware Avenue.
Jewelers' Row, located in the Center City section of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States, is composed of more than 300 retailers, wholesalers, and craftsmen located on Sansom Street between Seventh and Eighth Streets, and on Eighth Street between Chestnut and Walnut Streets.
The River Wards is a section of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States located along the Delaware River to the northeast of Center City Philadelphia. 'River Wards' is the commonly used name for an area including several neighborhoods, such as Fishtown, Kensington, Port Richmond and Olde Richmond. The River Wards are located at the border of North Philadelphia and Northeast Philadelphia, and may be considered part of one or the other, or as a separate entity. The area is sometimes also known as 'Kensington-Richmond'.
Palmer Cemetery, originally known as the Kensington Burial Grounds, was established around 1732 in the Fishtown section of Philadelphia.
Girard Avenue is a major commercial and residential street in Philadelphia. For most of its length it runs east–west, but at Frankford Avenue it makes a 135-degree turn north. Parts of the road are signed as U.S. Route 13 and U.S. Route 30.
Olde Richmond is a neighborhood in the River Wards section of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It is notable for its historically large Polish immigrant, Polish American community, and Irish American community. The U.S. ZIP Code for Olde Richmond is 19125 and its post office is located at 1602 Frankford Avenue.
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