Southwark District | |
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Coordinates: 39°56′16″N75°08′52″W / 39.93778°N 75.14778°W | |
Country | United States |
State | Pennsylvania |
County | Philadelphia |
Time zone | UTC-5 (EST) |
• Summer (DST) | UTC-4 (EDT) |
Area code(s) | 215, 267 and 445 |
Southwark District | |
Location | Bounded by Delaware, Washington Aves., 5th, Lombard, Front, and Catharine Sts., Philadelphia, Pennsylvania |
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Area | 720 acres (290 ha) [1] |
Built | 1703 |
Architect | Multiple |
NRHP reference No. | 72001172 [2] |
Added to NRHP | May 19, 1972 |
Southwark was originally the Southwark District, a colonial-era municipality in Philadelphia County, Pennsylvania, United States. Today, it is a neighborhood in the South Philadelphia section of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Because of its location south of the early Philadelphia, the name was adopted in allusion to the borough of Southwark in the county of London, England, just south of the city of London. [3]
Year | Pop. | ±% |
---|---|---|
1790 | 5,661 | — |
1800 | 9,621 | +70.0% |
1810 | 13,707 | +42.5% |
1820 | 14,713 | +7.3% |
1830 | 20,581 | +39.9% |
1840 | 27,548 | +33.9% |
1850 | 38,799 | +40.8% |
Southwark is one of the oldest English settlements in the County of Philadelphia. It is actually the oldest district founded by settlers in Philadelphia, as a result of its inclusion in the former Swedish colony of New Sweden. Southwark was originally a tract of ground on the fast land of the Neck, lying between Passyunk and Wicaco. Due to the populations of the Swedish settlements of Wicaco and Moyamensing, Southwark grew earlier than other parts of the county apart from the city of Philadelphia. [4]
The General Assembly created the district of Southwark on May 14, 1762, to facilitate cooperation with regard to street-building. As early as 1838, the district had its own police force. [5] Southwark was the location of the shipbuilding complex of Joshua Humphreys, the shipbuilder and naval architect who built the first six ships of the United States Navy and is known as the "Father of the U.S. Navy". [6]
In 1854, when it was incorporated into the city of Philadelphia by the Act of Consolidation, the borough comprised the area bounded on the north by South Street, on the west by Passyunk Avenue from 5th and South to 10th and Reed; the boundary then ran along Reed Street, down 7th, and along Mifflin Street to the river. [1]
Only a few traces of the name "Southwark" remain in this part of Philadelphia. The Southwark Post Office is located at 925 Dickinson Street. Other namesakes include Southwark Restaurant at 4th and Bainbridge Sts. and Southwark Development Corp., a public-housing project along Washington Avenue from 3rd to 5th Sts. Although not part of the Southwark District, the word "Southwark" is painted on a wall at 23rd Street and Washington Avenue.
In 1969, this area of Philadelphia was renamed, and the Northern portion is now commonly known as Queen Village. The neighborhood of Pennsport is the primary southern half of what was Southwark. [7] The area is a diverse community, a multi-racial neighborhood of middle class, working class, and professionals.
The historic district, as defined by the National Register of Historic Places, [8] is bounded by 5th Street on the west, Lombard Street on the north, Washington Avenue on the south, and Front, Catharine, and Queen Streets and Columbus Boulevard (formerly Delaware Avenue) on the east.
Residents are within the School District of Philadelphia.
Residents are zoned to Southwark School (K-8) and South Philadelphia High School. [9] [10]
The Vare-Washington School, which occupies the former George Washington School, is in proximity to Southwark. [11] Persons zoned to Vare-Washington are also zoned to Furness High School. [12] and residents of the former Abigail Vare School zone, are also zoned to Furness High School. [13]
Kingsessing is a neighborhood in the Southwest section of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. On the west side of the Schuylkill River, it is next to the neighborhoods of Cedar Park and Elmwood Park, as well as the borough of Yeadon in Delaware County. It is roughly bounded by 53rd Street to the northeast, Baltimore Avenue to the northwest, Cobbs Creek and 60th Street to the southwest, and Woodland Avenue to the southeast.
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.
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.
Queen Village is a residential neighborhood of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States that lies along the eastern edge of the city in South Philadelphia. It shares boundaries with Society Hill to the north, Bella Vista to the west and Pennsport to the south. Street boundaries are the south side of Lombard Street to the north side of Washington Avenue, the Delaware River to 6th Street, encompassing two principal commercial corridors, South Street and Fabric Row on 4th Street.
The Act of Consolidation, more formally known as the act of February 2, 1854, is legislation of the Pennsylvania General Assembly that created the consolidated City and County of Philadelphia, expanding the city's territory to the entirety of Philadelphia County and dissolving the other municipal authorities in the county.
Bella Vista, Italian for "beautiful sight", is a neighborhood in the South Philadelphia section of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States.
Grays Ferry, also known as Gray's Ferry, is a neighborhood in South Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States, bounded (roughly) by 25th Street on the east, the Schuylkill River on the west, Vare Avenue on the south, and Grays Ferry Avenue on the north. The section of this neighborhood west of 34th Street is also known as Forgotten Bottom.
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.
Moyamensing is an area of Philadelphia established as a Moyamensing Township during British colonial rule on the fast land of the Neck, lying between Passyunk and Wicaco. It was incorporated into Philadelphia County, Pennsylvania, United States and today encompasses several neighborhoods along the Moyamensing Avenue corridor in the South Philadelphia section of Philadelphia.
Aramingo Borough was a borough that was located in Philadelphia County, Pennsylvania, United States. The borough ceased to exist and was incorporated into the City of Philadelphia following the passage of the Act of Consolidation, 1854.
Penn District was a district located in Philadelphia County, Pennsylvania, United States. The district ceased to exist and was incorporated into the City of Philadelphia following the passage of the Act of Consolidation, 1854.
Richmond District, also known as Port Richmond District, was a district that was located in Philadelphia County, Pennsylvania, United States. The district ceased to exist and was incorporated into the City of Philadelphia following the passage of the Act of Consolidation, 1854.
Pennsport is a neighborhood in the South Philadelphia section of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States.
Packer Park is a neighborhood in the South Philadelphia section of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States that originally included 1,000 homes built in two unique builder developments, of Packer Park in the 1950s and Brinton Estates during the 1990s. It is now one of four residential communities to be designated as Packer Park. The original footprint community is also one of four adjacent communities that form Philadelphia's Sports Complex Special Services District. The approximate boundaries are Packer Avenue to the north, Hartranft Street to the south including FDR Park farther south, Broad Street to the east known as the Southern Parkway, and I-76 to the far west. Packer Park has been considered home to one of the most organized community groups in the South Philadelphia region.
East Passyunk Crossing is a neighborhood in South Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Its location is considered to be from Tasker Street to Snyder Avenue and Broad Street to 6th Street.
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 name "Passyunk Square" was researched and proposed by Geoff DiMasi after considering other historical names like Wharton that had been used in the neighborhood over the years. The area has come to be known as Little Saigon for its large Vietnamese American commercial and residential presence, with one of the largest Vietnamese populations on the east coast.
West Passyunk is a neighborhood in South Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. It is bounded by Mifflin Street to the north, West Passyunk Avenue to the south, South 18th Street to east, and South 25th Street to the west. It is served by the 1st Police District, located at 24th and Wolf Streets.
Vare-Washington School, is a K-8 school in South Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. It is a part of the School District of Philadelphia. It occupies the former George Washington School building in the Dickinson Narrows neighborhood, in proximity to Southwark.
Dickinson Square West is a neighborhood in South Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States bordered by neighborhoods Queen Village to the north, Whitman to the south, Pennsport to the east and Passyunk Square and East Passyunk Crossing to the west. The neighborhood was previously referred to as "Dickinson Narrows", but was officially reestablished as "Dickinson Square West" in 2013 by the Registered Community Organization, Dickinson Square West Civic Association, located within its boundaries. In October, 2018, The Dickinson Square West Civic Association passed an amendment to expand the southern boundary from Mifflin Street to Snyder Ave