Philadelphia, commonly referred to as Philly, is the most populous city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the second-most populous city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. It is one of the most historically significant cities in the United States and served as the nation's capital until 1800. Philadelphia is the nation's sixth-most populous city with a population of 1,603,797 as of the 2020 census. Since 1854, the city has been coextensive with Philadelphia County, the most populous county in Pennsylvania and the urban core of the Delaware Valley, the nation's seventh-largest and one of the world's largest metropolitan regions with 6.245 million residents. Philadelphia is known for its extensive contributions to American history, especially the American Revolution, and for its contemporary influence in business and industry, culture, sports, and music.
Rittenhouse Square is a neighborhood, including a public park, in Center City Philadelphia. Rittenhouse Square often specifically refers to the park, while the neighborhood as a whole is referred to simply as Rittenhouse. The park is one of the five original open-space parks planned by William Penn and his surveyor Thomas Holme during the late 17th century.
Washington Square West is a neighborhood in Center City, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The neighborhood roughly corresponds to the area between 7th and Broad Streets and between Chestnut and South Streets, bordering on the Independence Mall tourist area directly northeast, Market East to the north, Old City and Society Hill to the East, Bella Vista directly south, Hawthorne to the southwest, and mid-town Philadelphia and Rittenhouse Square to the west. In addition to being a desirable residential community, it is considered a hip, trendy neighborhood that offers a diverse array of shops, restaurants, and coffee houses. Washington Square West contains many gay-friendly establishments and hosts annual events celebrating LGBT culture in Philadelphia including OutFest. The area takes its name from Washington Square, a historic urban park in the northeastern corner of the neighborhood.
South Philadelphia, nicknamed South Philly, is the section of Philadelphia bounded by South Street to the north, the Delaware River to the east and south, and the Schuylkill River to the west. A diverse working-class community of many neighborhoods, South Philadelphia is well-known for its large Italian-American population, but it also contains large Asian American, Irish-American, African-American, and Latino populations.
Reading Terminal Market is an enclosed public market located at 12th and Arch Streets in Center City Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It opened originally in 1893 under the elevated train shed of the Reading Railroad Company after the city of Philadelphia advocated to move public markets from the streets into indoor facilities for both safety and sanitary reasons.
South Street in Philadelphia, originally named Cedar Street in William Penn's original street grid, is an east–west street forming the southern border of Center City and the northern border for South Philadelphia in Pennsylvania. The South Street Headhouse District between Front Street and Seventh Street is a neighborhood known for its bohemian, punk, and alternative atmosphere and its diverse urban mix of shops, bars, and eateries. South Street is one of Philadelphia's largest and most prominent tourist attractions.
Old City is a neighborhood in Center City, Philadelphia, near the Delaware River waterfront. It is home Independence National Historical Park, a dense section of historic landmarks including Independence Hall, the Liberty Bell, the First Bank of the United States, the Second Bank of the United States, and Carpenters' Hall. It also includes historic streets such as Elfreth's Alley, dating back to 1703. Old City is also home to several hotels, with the Independence Park Hotel on Chestnut Street the only hotel listed on the National Registry of Historic Places
Center City East is part of the downtown district known as Center City, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. The area is generally bounded by Arch Street to the north, Chestnut Street to the south, Juniper Street to the west, and 6th Street to the east. The area serves as one of the major retail centers in the city as well as the home of the Pennsylvania Convention Center.
Bella Vista, Italian for "beautiful sight", is a neighborhood in the South Philadelphia section of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
Point Breeze is a multicultural neighborhood in South Philadelphia in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. It is bounded by 25th Street to the west, Washington Avenue to the north, 18th Street to the east, and Moore Street to the south. Graduate Hospital lies to its north, and Newbold lies to its east. Point Breeze is separated from Grays Ferry to the west by a CSX railway viaduct over 25th Street.
The cuisine of Philadelphia was shaped largely by the city's mixture of ethnicities, available foodstuffs and history. Certain foods have become associated with the city.
At the 2010 census, there were 1,526,006 people, 590,071 households, and 352,272 families residing in the consolidated city-county of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The population density was 4,337.3/km2 (11,233.6/mi2). There were 661,958 housing units at an average density of 1,891.9/km2 (4,900.1/mi2).
The culture of Philadelphia goes back to 1682 when Philadelphia was founded by William Penn. Originally inhabited by the Lenape, Philadelphia was envisioned as a place where people could live without fear of persecution because of their religion. As a result, many Quakers, Mennonites, and others came to find refuge within the city. As Philadelphia grew into a major political and economic center of the United States, many different groups of religions and ethnicities flocked to the city. 19th and 20th century immigration and migration led to large concentrations of Irish, Italians, Germans, Asians, Puerto Ricans and African Americans. Philadelphia continues to be a major destination for immigrants, with large Chinese, Vietnamese, Korean, East African, Middle Eastern, Indian and Mexican immigrant populations, among others.
Passyunk Square is a neighborhood in South Philadelphia bounded by Broad Street to the west, 6th Street to the east, Tasker Street to the south and Washington Avenue to the north. Passyunk Square is bordered by the Bella Vista, Hawthorne, Central South Philadelphia, Wharton, and Point Breeze neighborhoods. The neighborhood got its Lenape name from the 1800s Passyunk Township, Pennsylvania which named Passyunk Square Park, located between 12th, 13th, Reed and Wharton Streets. The park was eventually renamed Columbus Square Park, and subsequently the neighborhood became known as Columbus Square. Sue Montella, Geoff DiMasi, and a group of neighbors revived the Passyunk Square name when forming the Passyunk Square Civic Association in 2003.
The Philadelphia Bourse was a commodities exchange founded in 1891 by George E. Bartol, a grain and commodities exporter, who modeled it after the Bourse in Hamburg, Germany. The steel-framed building – one of the first to be constructed – was built from 1893 to 1895, and was designed by G. W. & W. D. Hewitt in the Beaux-Arts style. Carlisle redstone, Pompeian buff brick and terra cotta were all used in the facade. The building was sold in 1979 to Kaiserman Company and underwent extensive renovations, bringing the internal usable surface to approximately 286,000 square feet. In 2016, MRP Realty took ownership of the building and spent $40 million renovating it. MRP Realty owns the building as part of a three-building collection named The Independence Portfolio, which also includes 325 Chestnut and 400 Market Street—both located within a block of The Bourse. The building is home to nine floors of office space which includes a Mexican Consulate. There is also a food hall on the first floor which opened on 15 November 2018.
Philadelphia is the center of economic activity in both Pennsylvania and the four-state Delaware Valley metropolitan region of the United States. Philadelphia’s close geographical and transportation connections to other large metropolitan economies along the Eastern Seaboard of the United States have been cited as offering a significant competitive advantage for business creation and entrepreneurship. Five Fortune 500 companies are headquartered in the city. As of 2021, the Philadelphia metropolitan area was estimated to produce a gross metropolitan product (GMP) of US$479 billion, an increase from the $445 billion calculated by the Bureau of Economic Analysis for 2017, representing the ninth largest U.S. metropolitan economy. Philadelphia was rated by the GaWC as a 'Beta' city in its 2016 ranking of world cities.
One of the largest Vietnamese neighborhoods in Philadelphia is located in Passyunk Square, a neighborhood in South Philadelphia.
Philadelphia has a significant Italian American population. In 2010, the Philadelphia metropolitan region had the second-largest Italian-American population in the United States with more than 142,000 residents with Italian ancestry, and about 3,100 Italian immigrants.
Center Market was a market hall in Washington, D.C. designed by architect Adolph Cluss which operated in Washington, DC from 1872 to 1931. The building was demolished in 1931 to be replaced by the National Archives Building. A market called Center Market had been in operation on the same block of land since 1802. In 1931, the name of Center Market was transferred over to the Northern Liberty Market located a few blocks north.
Celeste A. Morello is an American historian and criminologist specializing in the studies of the Mafia in the Philadelphia area. Recognized along with her prolific record as a nominator of buildings and artwork with the Philadelphia Historical Commission, to date, she has nominated the most Pennsylvania historical markers approved by the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission. Morello has been called one of "the most active preservationists in the city".
