Philadelphia is the largest
cityA city is a relatively large and permanent settlement, particularly a large urban settlement. Although there is no agreement on technical definitions distinguishing a city from a town within general English language meanings, many cities have a particular administrative, legal, or historical status...
in
PennsylvaniaThe Commonwealth of Pennsylvania , often colloquially referred to as PA by natives and Northeasterners, is a state located in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States...
and the
sixth-most-populous city in the
United StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
.
In 2008, the population of the city proper was estimated to be over 1.4 million, while the
metropolitan areaA metropolitan area is a large population center consisting of a large metropolis and its adjacent zone of influence, or of more than one closely adjoining neighboring central cities and their zone of influence...
's population of 5.8 million made it the country's fifth-largest. The city is the nation's fourth-largest urban area by population and its fourth-largest consumer media market as ranked by the
Nielsen Media ResearchNielsen Media Research is an American firm that measures media audiences, including television, radio, theatre films and newspapers...
. It is the county seat of
Philadelphia CountyPhiladelphia County is a county located in the U.S. State of Pennsylvania. It is coterminous with the city of Philadelphia which also serves as its seat. In 2006, the United States Census Bureau estimated the population at 1,448,394...
(with which it is coterminous). Popular nicknames for Philadelphia include
Philly and
The City of Brotherly Love, from , , Modern Greek: , "brotherly love" from φίλος, (
philos,
loveLove is any of a number of emotions and experiences related to a sense of strong affection and attachment. The word love can refer to a variety of different feelings, states, and attitudes, ranging from generic pleasure to intense interpersonal attraction...
), and αδελφός (
adelphos, brother).
A commercial, educational, and cultural center, the city was once the second-largest in the
British EmpireThe British Empire comprised the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates, and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom, that had originated with the overseas colonies and trading posts established by England in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. At its height it was...
(after
London[]London is the capital of England and the United Kingdom. It has been a major settlement for two millennia, and the history of London goes back to its founding by the Romans, when it was named Londinium. London's core, the ancient City of London, the 'square mile', retains its medieval boundaries...
), and the social and geographical center of the original 13 American colonies.
Ben Franklin took a large role in Philadelphia's early rise to prominence. It was in this city that many of the ideas, and subsequent actions, gave birth to the
American RevolutionThe American Revolution is the political upheaval during the last half of the 18th century in which thirteen of Britain's colonies in North America at first rejected the governance of the Parliament of Great Britain, and later the British monarchy itself, to become the sovereign United States of...
and
American IndependenceThe United States Declaration of Independence is a statement adopted by the Continental Congress on July 4, 1776, which announced that the thirteen American colonies then at war with Great Britain were now independent states, and thus no longer a part of the British Empire...
, making Philadelphia a centerpiece of early American history. It was the most populous city of the young United States, and served as one of the nation's
many capitals during the Revolutionary War and after. Following the ratification of the U.S. Constitution, it was the temporary national capital from 1790 to 1800 while Washington, DC was under construction.
History
Prior to the arrival of Europeans, the Philadelphia area was the location of the
Lenape (Delaware)The "Lenape", pronounced IPA: , , or in English, means "the people." Sometimes the name is spelled Lenape or Lenapi. Also known as the Lenni Lenape, the "true people", or as the "Delaware Indians", they are organized bands of Native American peoples with shared cultural and linguistic...
IndianNative Americans in the United States is the phrase that describes indigenous peoples from North America now encompassed by the continental United States, including parts of Alaska and the island state of Hawaii. They comprise a large number of distinct tribes, states, and ethnic groups, many of...
village
ShackamaxonShackamaxon or Shakamaxon was a village inhabited by Delaware Indians, located in what are now the borders of the city of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. In 1682, William Penn reportedly signed a treaty with the leaders of the Delaware village – although this treaty cannot be conclusively...
.
Europeans arrived in the
Delaware ValleyThe Delaware Valley is a term used widely by the media to refer, perhaps misleadingly, to the metropolitan area centered on the city of Philadelphia in the United States. The term is derived from the Delaware River, which flows through the area, although the river extends more than 100 miles to the...
in the early 1600s, with the first settlements founded by the
DutchThe Netherlands is a country in Northwestern Europe, constituting the major portion of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It is a parliamentary democratic constitutional monarchy. The Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east...
,
BritishThe United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is a sovereign state located off the northwestern coast of continental Europe. It is an island country, spanning an archipelago including Great Britain, the northeastern part of Ireland, and many small islands...
and
SwedishSweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe...
. After Sweden's first expedition to
North AmericaNorth America is the northern continent of the Americas, situated in the Earth's northern hemisphere and in the western hemisphere. It is bordered on the north by the Arctic Ocean, on the east by the North Atlantic Ocean, on the southeast by the Caribbean Sea, and on the west by the North Pacific...
embarked in late 1637, the Swedes took control of land on the west side of the
Delaware RiverThe Delaware River is a major river on the Atlantic coast of the United States.The Delaware was explored by Adriaen Block as part of the New Netherlands Colony, and was named the South River to mark the southernmost reach of that colony....
from just below the
Schuylkill RiverThe Schuylkill River, most often , is a river in the U.S. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. It is a designated Pennsylvania Scenic River....
: today's Philadelphia, southeast
PennsylvaniaThe Commonwealth of Pennsylvania , often colloquially referred to as PA by natives and Northeasterners, is a state located in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States...
,
DelawareDelaware is a U.S. state located on the Atlantic Coast in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. The state takes its name from Thomas West, 3rd Baron De La Warr, a British nobleman and Virginia's first colonial governor, after whom Cape Henlopen was originally named.Delaware is located in...
, and
MarylandMaryland is a state located in the Mid Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Virginia, West Virginia and the District of Columbia to the south and west, Pennsylvania to the north, and Delaware to the east. It is comparable in size to the European country of Belgium. According to the U.S...
. In 1644,
New SwedenNew Sweden was a Swedish colony along the Delaware River on the Mid-Atlantic coast of North America from 1638 to 1655. It was centered at Fort Christina, now in Wilmington, Delaware, and included parts of the present-day American states of Delaware, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania. Along with Swedes...
supported the Susquehannocks in their military defeat of the English province of Maryland. But 11 years later, the Dutch sent an army to the
Delaware RiverThe Delaware River is a major river on the Atlantic coast of the United States.The Delaware was explored by Adriaen Block as part of the New Netherlands Colony, and was named the South River to mark the southernmost reach of that colony....
, nominally taking control of the colony, though Swedish and Finnish settlers continued to have their own militia, religion, court, and lands. The English conquered the New Netherland colony in October 1663–1664, but the situation did not really change until 1682, when the area was included in
William PennWilliam Penn was an English founder and "Absolute Proprietor" of the Province of Pennsylvania, the English North American colony and the future U.S. State of Pennsylvania. He was known as an early champion of democracy and religious freedom and famous for his good relations and his treaties with...
's charter for
PennsylvaniaThe Commonwealth of Pennsylvania , often colloquially referred to as PA by natives and Northeasterners, is a state located in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States...
.
In 1681, in partial repayment of a debt,
Charles II of EnglandCharles II was the King of England, Scotland, and Ireland.Charles II's father King Charles I was executed at Whitehall on 30 January 1649, at the climax of the English Civil War. The English Parliament did not proclaim Charles II king at this time. Instead they passed a statute making such a...
granted
William PennWilliam Penn was an English founder and "Absolute Proprietor" of the Province of Pennsylvania, the English North American colony and the future U.S. State of Pennsylvania. He was known as an early champion of democracy and religious freedom and famous for his good relations and his treaties with...
a
charterA charter is the grant of authority or rights, stating that the granter formally recognizes the prerogative of the recipient to exercise the rights specified...
for what would become the
Pennsylvania colonyThe Province of Pennsylvania, also known as Pennsylvania Colony, was a colony in British America founded by William Penn on March 4, 1681 as dictated in a royal charter granted by King Charles II of England. Pennsylvania got its name for William Penn's father and the Latin word silva, meaning...
. Despite the royal charter, Penn bought the land from the local Lenape to be on good terms with the Native Americans and ensure peace for his colony. According to
legendA legend is a narrative of human actions that are perceived both by teller and listeners to take place within human history and to possess certain qualities that give the tale verisimilitude...
Penn made a treaty of friendship with Lenape chief
TammanyTamanend or Tammany or Tammamend, the "affable", was a chief of one of the clans that made up the Lenni-Lenape nation in the Delaware Valley at the time Philadelphia was established...
under an elm tree at
ShackamaxonShackamaxon or Shakamaxon was a village inhabited by Delaware Indians, located in what are now the borders of the city of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. In 1682, William Penn reportedly signed a treaty with the leaders of the Delaware village – although this treaty cannot be conclusively...
, in what is now the city's Fishtown section. As a
QuakerThe Religious Society of Friends is a religious movement, whose members are known as Friends or Quakers. The roots of this movement are with some 17th century Christian English dissenters, but today the movement has branched out into many independent national and regional organizations, called...
, Penn had experienced religious persecution and wanted his colony to be a place where anyone could worship freely despite their religion, and this extreme tolerance which led to significantly healthier relationships with the local Native tribes than most other colonies had, also encouraged the rapid growth of Philadelphia into America's most important city. Penn named the city Philadelphia, which is
GreekGreek , an independent branch of the Indo-European family of languages, is the language of the Greeks. Native to the southern Balkans, it has the longest documented history of any Indo-European language, spanning 34 centuries of written records. In its ancient form, it is the language of classical...
for brotherly love (
philos, "love" or "friendship", and
adelphos, "brother").
Penn planned a city on the
Delaware RiverThe Delaware River is a major river on the Atlantic coast of the United States.The Delaware was explored by Adriaen Block as part of the New Netherlands Colony, and was named the South River to mark the southernmost reach of that colony....
to serve as a port and place for government. Hoping that Philadelphia would become more like an English rural town instead of a city, Penn laid out roads on a
grid planThe grid plan or gridiron plan is a type of city plan in which streets run at right angles to each other, forming a grid. In the context of the culture of Ancient Greece the grid plan is called Hippodamian plan.-Ancient grid plans:...
to keep houses and businesses spread far apart, allowing them to be surrounded by gardens and orchards. The city's inhabitants didn't follow Penn's plans and crowded by the Delaware River and subdivided and resold their lots. Before Penn left Philadelphia for the last time, he issued the Charter of 1701 establishing Philadelphia as a city. The city soon established itself as an important trading center, poor at first, but with tolerable living conditions by the 1750s.
Benjamin FranklinBenjamin Franklin was one of the Founding Fathers of the United States of America. A noted polymath, Franklin was a leading author and printer, satirist, political theorist, politician, scientist, inventor, civic activist, statesman, soldier, and diplomat...
, a leading citizen of the time, helped improve city services and founded new ones, such as the American Colonies'
first hospitalPennsylvania Hospital is a hospital in Center City, Philadelphia, currently affiliated with the University of Pennsylvania Health System...
.
Philadelphia's importance and central location in the colonies made it a natural center for
America's revolutionariesThe American Revolution is the political upheaval during the last half of the 18th century in which thirteen of Britain's colonies in North America at first rejected the governance of the Parliament of Great Britain, and later the British monarchy itself, to become the sovereign United States of...
. The city hosted the
First Continental CongressThe First Continental Congress was a convention of delegates from twelve of the thirteen British North American colonies that met on September 5, 1774, at Carpenters' Hall in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, early in the American Revolution...
before the war; the
Second Continental CongressThe Second Continental Congress was a convention of delegates from the Thirteen Colonies that met beginning on May 10, 1775, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, soon after warfare in the American Revolutionary War had begun. It succeeded the First Continental Congress, which met briefly during 1774,...
, which signed the
United States Declaration of IndependenceThe United States Declaration of Independence is a statement adopted by the Continental Congress on July 4, 1776, which announced that the thirteen American colonies then at war with Great Britain were now independent states, and thus no longer a part of the British Empire...
, during the war; and the
Constitutional ConventionThe Philadelphia Convention took place from May 25 to September 17, 1787, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, to address problems in governing the United States of America, which had been operating under the Articles of...
after the war.
Several battlesThe Philadelphia campaign was a British initiative in the American Revolutionary War. The campaign was controversial because, although British General William Howe successfully captured the revolutionary capital of Philadelphia, he proceeded slowly and did not aid the concurrent Saratoga campaign...
were fought in and near Philadelphia as well. After the war, Philadelphia served as the new United States' capital in the 1790s. In 1793, the largest
yellow fever epidemicThe Yellow Fever Epidemic of 1793 is believed to have killed several thousand people in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. The Yellow fever epidemic struck the city when it was the capital of the United States and a major seaport....
in U.S. history killed as many as
5,000 people in Philadelphia, roughly 10% of the population.
The state government left Philadelphia in 1799 and the federal government left soon after in 1800, but the city remained the young nation's largest and a financial and cultural center.
New York CityNew York is the most populous city in the United States, and the center of the New York metropolitan area, which is among the most populous urban areas in the world. A leading global city, New York exerts a powerful influence over worldwide commerce, finance, culture, fashion and entertainment...
soon surpassed Philadelphia in population, but construction of roads,
canalCanals are artificial channels for water. There are two types of canal: aqueduct canals are used for the conveyance and delivery of water, and waterway canals are navigable transportation canals used for passage of goods and people, often connected to existing lakes, rivers, or oceans.The word...
s, and railroads helped turn Philadelphia into the United States' first major industrial city. Throughout the 19th century, Philadelphia had a variety of industries and businesses, the largest being
textileA textile is a flexible material consisting of a network of natural or artificial fibres often referred to as thread or yarn. Yarn is produced by spinning raw wool fibres, linen, cotton, or other material on a spinning wheel to produce long strands...
s. Major corporations in the 19th and early 20th centuries included the
Baldwin Locomotive WorksThe Baldwin Locomotive Works was an American builder of railroad locomotives. It was located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania originally, and later in nearby Eddystone, Pennsylvania...
,
William Cramp and Sons Ship and Engine Building CompanyWilliam Cramp & Sons Shipbuilding Company of Philadelphia was founded in 1825 by William Cramp, and was the preeminent U.S. iron shipbuilder in the 19th century. The American Ship & Commerce Corporation bought the yard in 1919 but closed it in 1927 as fewer ships were ordered by the U.S. Navy after...
, and the
Pennsylvania RailroadThe Pennsylvania Railroad was an American railroad, founded in 1846. Commonly referred to as the "Pennsy", the PRR was headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania....
. Industry, along with the U.S. Centennial, was celebrated in 1876 with the
Centennial ExpositionThe Centennial International Exhibition of 1876, the first official World's Fair in the United States, was held in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence in Philadelphia. It was officially the International Exhibition of...
, the first official World's Fair in the United States.
ImmigrantsImmigration is the arrival of new individuals into a habitat or population. It is a biological concept and is important in population ecology, differentiated from emigration and migration.-As a political term:...
, mostly
GermanGermany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered to the north by the North Sea, Denmark, and the Baltic Sea; to the east by Poland and the Czech Republic; to the south by Austria and Switzerland; and to the west by France, Luxembourg, Belgium,...
and
IrishIreland is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island in the world. It lies to the north-west of continental Europe and is surrounded by hundreds of islands and islets. To the east of Ireland, separated by the Irish Sea, is the island of Great Britain...
, settled in Philadelphia and the surrounding districts. The rise in population of the surrounding districts helped lead to the
Act of Consolidation of 1854The Act of Consolidation, passed on February 2, 1854 by the General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, consolidated all remaining townships, districts, and boroughs within the County of Philadelphia, dissolving their governmental structures and bringing all municipal authority within...
which extended the city of Philadelphia to include all of
Philadelphia CountyPhiladelphia County is a county located in the U.S. State of Pennsylvania. It is coterminous with the city of Philadelphia which also serves as its seat. In 2006, the United States Census Bureau estimated the population at 1,448,394...
. In the later half of the century immigrants from
RussiaRussia , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia . It is a semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
,
Eastern EuropeEastern Europe is a region lying in the Eastern part of Europe. The term is highly context-dependent and there are "almost as many definitions of Eastern Europe as there are scholars of the region"...
and
ItalyItaly , officially the Italian Republic , is a country located on the Italian Peninsula in Southern Europe and on the two largest islands in the Mediterranean Sea, Sicily and Sardinia. Italy shares its northern, Alpine boundary with France, Switzerland, Austria and Slovenia...
and African Americans from the
southern U.S.The Southern United States—commonly referred to as the American South, Dixie, Down South, or simply the South—constitutes a large distinctive region in the southeastern and south-central United States...
settled in the city.
By the 20th century, Philadelphia had become known as "corrupt and contented," with a complacent population and entrenched
RepublicanThe Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the Grand Old Party or the GOP, despite being the younger of the two major parties. In the U.S...
political machineA political machine is a disciplined political organization in which an authoritative boss or small group commands the support of a corps of supporters , who receive rewards for their efforts...
. The first major reform came in 1917 when outrage over the election-year murder of a police officer led to the shrinking of the
Philadelphia City CouncilThe Philadelphia City Council, the legislative body of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, consists of ten members elected by district and seven members elected at-large. The council president is elected by the members from among their number...
from two houses to just one. In the 1920s, the public flouting of
ProhibitionIn the history of the United States, Prohibition, also known as The Noble Experiment, is the period from 1919 to 1933, during which the sale, manufacture, and transportation of alcohol for consumption were banned nationally as mandated in the Eighteenth Amendment to the United States...
laws,
mobThe Mafia is a Sicilian criminal society which is believed to have emerged in late 19th century Sicily, and the first such society to be referred to as a mafia . It is a loose association of criminal groups that share a common organizational structure and code of conduct...
violence, and police involvement in illegal activities led to the appointment of
Brigadier GeneralBrigadier General is the lowest ranking General Officer in some countries, usually sitting between the ranks of Colonel and Major General.The rank can be traced back to the militaries of Europe where a brigadier general, or simply a brigadier, would command a brigade in the field...
Smedley ButlerSmedley Darlington Butler , nicknamed "The Fighting Quaker" and "Old Gimlet Eye", was a Major General in the U.S. Marine Corps and, at the time of his death, the most decorated Marine in U.S...
of the
U.S. Marine CorpsThe United States Marine Corps is a branch of the United States armed forces responsible for providing force projection from the sea, using the mobility of the United States Navy to rapidly deliver combined-arms task forces. It is one of seven uniformed services of the United States...
as director of public safety, but political pressure prevented any long-term success in fighting crime and corruption.
The population peaked at more than two million residents in 1950, then began to decline. Revitalization and
gentrificationGentrification and urban gentrification denote the socio-economic, commercial, and demographic change in an urban area resulting from wealthier people buying housing property in a poor community...
of neighborhoods began in the 1960s and continues into the 21st century, with much of the development in the
Center CityCenter City is the "downtown" and Central Business District of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA. Its 2005 population of 88,000 makes it the third most populous downtown in the United States.-Boundaries:...
and
University CityUniversity City is the easternmost neighborhood of West Philadelphia, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Its boundaries, as defined by the non-profit organization and the City of Philadelphia, are: the Schuylkill River to the east; Spring Garden Street, Powelton Avenue, and Market Street to the north;...
areas of the city. After many of the old manufacturers and businesses had left Philadelphia or shut down, the city started attracting service businesses and began to more aggressively market itself as a tourist destination. Glass-and-granite skyscrapers were built in Center City. Historic areas such as
Independence National Historical ParkIndependence National Historical Park preserves several sites associated with the American Revolution in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States...
located in Old City and Society Hill were resuscitated during the reformist mayoral era of the 1950s through the 1980s and are now among the most desirable living areas of Center City. This has slowed the city's 40-year population decline after losing nearly one-quarter of its population.
Topography
Philadelphia is located at 40° 00′ north latitude and 75° 09′ west longitude. According to the
United States Census BureauThe United States Census Bureau is the government agency that is responsible for the United States Census. It also gathers other national demographic and economic data. As part of the United States Department of Commerce, the Census Bureau serves as the leading source of quality data about...
, the city has a total area of , of which is land and , or 5.29%, is water. Bodies of water include the
DelawareThe Delaware River is a major river on the Atlantic coast of the United States.The Delaware was explored by Adriaen Block as part of the New Netherlands Colony, and was named the South River to mark the southernmost reach of that colony....
and
Schuylkill RiverThe Schuylkill River, most often , is a river in the U.S. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. It is a designated Pennsylvania Scenic River....
s, and
CobbsCobbs Creek is a tributary of Darby Creek in Delaware County, Pennsylvania in the United States. It forms an approximate border between Montgomery County and Delaware County. After Cobbs Creek passes underneath Township Line Road , it forms the border between Philadelphia County and Delaware County...
,
WissahickonWissahickon Creek is a stream in southeastern Pennsylvania. Rising in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, it runs about 23 miles passing through and dividing Northwest Philadelphia before emptying into the Schuylkill River at Philadelphia...
, and
Pennypack CreekPennypack Creek is a creek that runs southwest through eastern Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, United States, lower Bucks County, and the northeast section of Philadelphia, before emptying into the Delaware River.-Name:...
s.
The lowest point is sea level, while the highest point is in
Chestnut HillChestnut Hill is an affluent neighborhood in the Northwest Philadelphia section of the United States city of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.-Boundaries:Chestnut Hill is bounded as follows:...
, at approximately above sea level (near the intersection of Germantown Avenue and Bethlehem Pike).
Philadelphia is located on the
Fall LineIn geomorphology, a fall line marks the area where an upland region and a coastal plain meet. Technically, a fall line is an unconformity. A fall line is typically prominent when crossed by a river, for there will often be rapids or waterfalls...
separating the
Atlantic Coastal PlainThe Atlantic Coastal Plain is the flat stretch of land that borders the Atlantic Ocean . It is approximately long, stretching from New York, through the southeast United States and through Mexico, ending with the Yucatán Peninsula. The coastal plains have an average elevation of less than 200...
from the
PiedmontPiedmont is a plateau region located in the eastern United States between the Atlantic Coastal Plain and the main Appalachian Mountains, stretching from New Jersey in the north to central Alabama in the south. The Piedmont province is a physiographic province of the larger Appalachian division. The...
. The rapids on the
Schuylkill RiverThe Schuylkill River, most often , is a river in the U.S. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. It is a designated Pennsylvania Scenic River....
at East Falls disappeared after the completion of the Fairmount Dam.
The city is the seat of
its own countyPhiladelphia County is a county located in the U.S. State of Pennsylvania. It is coterminous with the city of Philadelphia which also serves as its seat. In 2006, the United States Census Bureau estimated the population at 1,448,394...
. The adjacent counties are
MontgomeryMontgomery County is a county located in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania, in the United States. As of 2000, the population was 750,097. A 2005 U.S. Census estimate placed the population at 795,618, making it the third most populous county in Pennsylvania and the 69th most populous county in the...
to the north;
BucksBucks County is a county located in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. The county seat is Doylestown. This county is part of the Delaware Valley area.As of 2000, the population was 597,635. A 2004 U.S...
to the northeast;
Burlington County, New JerseyBurlington County is a county located in the U.S. state of New Jersey. The county seat is Mount Holly. The county seat had been in Burlington, but as population moved away from the Delaware River a more central location was needed. As of 2000, the population was 423,394.Burlington County dates...
to the east;
Camden County, New JerseyCamden County is a county located in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2000 Census, the population was 508,932. Its county seat is Camden. It was formed on March 13, 1844, from portions of Gloucester County....
to the southeast;
Gloucester County, New JerseyGloucester County is a county located in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2000 Census, the population was 254,673. Its county seat is Woodbury.This county is part of the Delaware Valley area...
to the south; and
Delaware CountyDelaware County is a county located in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. As of 2000, the population was 550,864, making it Pennsylvania's fifth most populous county, behind Philadelphia, Allegheny, Montgomery, and Bucks counties....
to the west.
Climate
Philadelphia falls in the northern periphery of the
humid subtropical climateHumid subtropical climate is a climate zone characterized by hot, humid summers and cool winters. This climate type covers a broad category of climates, and the term "subtropical" may be a misnomer for the winter climate....
zone. Summers are typically hot and muggy, fall and spring are generally mild, and winter is cold. Snowfall is variable, with some winters bringing moderate snow and others bringing some snowstorms. Annual snowfall averages 21 inches (534 mm). Precipitation is generally spread throughout the year, with eight to eleven wet days per month, at an average annual rate of 42 inches (1068 mm).
January lows average 25 °F (−4 °C) and highs average 39 °F (4 °C). The lowest officially recorded temperature was −11 °F (−24 °C) on February 9, 1934, but temperatures below 0 °F (−18 °C) occur only a few times a decade. July lows average 70 °F (21 °C) and highs average 86 °F (30 °C), although heat waves accompanied by high humidity are frequent with highs above 95 °F (35 °C) and the
heat indexThe heat index is an index that combines air temperature and relative humidity in an attempt to determine the human-perceived equivalent temperature — how hot it feels, termed the felt air temperature. The human body normally cools itself by perspiration, or sweating, which evaporates and carries...
running as high as 110 °F (43 °C). The highest recorded temperature was 106 °F (41 °C) on August 7, 1918. Early fall and late winter are generally driest, with February being the driest month, averaging only 2.74 inches (69.8 mm) of precipitation.
Cityscape
Neighborhoods
Philadelphia's neighborhoods are divided into large sections —
NorthNorth Philadelphia is a section of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in the United States. It is immediately north of Center City. Though the full extent of the region is somewhat vague, "North Philadelphia" is sometimes regarded, especially by people with little familiarity with Philadelphia...
,
NortheastNortheast Philadelphia is a section of the city of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. According to the 2000 Census, the Northeast has a sizable percentage of the city's 1.447 million people — a population of between 300,000 and 450,000, depending on how the area is defined...
,
NorthwestNorthwest Philadelphia is a section of the city of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The official boundary is Stenton Avenue to the north, the Schuylkill river to the south, Spring Ln to the west, and Wister Street to the east. The area is divided by Wissahickon Creek into two subsections...
,
WestWest Philadelphia is a section of the City of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Though there is no official definition of its boundaries, West Philly is generally considered to reach from the western shore of the Schuylkill River, to City Line Avenue to the northwest, Cobbs Creek to the...
,
SouthSouth 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.- History :...
and
Southwest PhiladelphiaSouthwest Philadelphia is a section of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. The section can be described as extending from the western side of the Schuylkill River to the city line, with the SEPTA R3 Media-Elwyn line serving as the northern border...
— all of which surround
Center CityCenter City is the "downtown" and Central Business District of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA. Its 2005 population of 88,000 makes it the third most populous downtown in the United States.-Boundaries:...
, which corresponds largely with the city's limits before consolidation in 1854. Each of these large areas contains numerous smaller neighborhoods, some of whose boundaries derive from the boroughs, townships, and other communities that made up Philadelphia County before their absorption into the city. Other neighborhoods are defined more by ethnicity, religion, culture, or commercial reasons.
Architecture
Philadelphia's architectural history dates back to
ColonialThe term colonial history of the United States refers to the history of the land that would become the United States from the start of European settlement to the time of independence from Europe, and especially to the history of the thirteen colonies of Britain which declared themselves independent...
times and includes a wide range of styles. The earliest structures were constructed with
logsA log home is technically the same thing as a log cabin, a house typically made from logs that have not been milled into conventional lumber...
, but brick structures were common by 1700. During the 18th century, the
cityscapeA cityscape is the urban equivalent of a landscape. Townscape is roughly synonymous with cityscape, though it implies the same difference in urban size and density implicit in the difference between the words city and town. In urban design the terms refer to the configuration of built forms and...
was dominated by
Georgian architectureGeorgian architecture is the name given in most English-speaking countries to the set of architectural styles current between 1720 and 1840. It is eponymous for the first four British monarchs of the House of Hanover—George I of Great Britain, George II of Great Britain, George III of the...
, including Independence Hall and
Christ ChurchChrist Church is an Episcopal church located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It was founded in 1695 by members of the Church of England, who built a small wooden church on the site by the next year. When the congregation outgrew this structure some twenty years later, they decided to erect a new...
.
In the first decades of the 19th century,
Federal architectureFederal-style architecture is the classicizing architecture built in the United States between c. 1780 and 1830, particularly from 1785 to 1815. In the early Republic the founding generation consciously chose to associate the nation with the ancient democracies of Greece and the republican values...
and
Greek Revival architectureThe Greek Revival was an architectural movement of the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries, predominantly in northern Europe and the United States. A product of Hellenism, it may be looked upon as the last phase in the development of Neoclassical architecture...
were dominated by Philadelphia architects such as
Benjamin LatrobeBenjamin Henry Boneval Latrobe was a British-born American architect best known for his design of the United States Capitol, as well as his design of the Baltimore Basilica, the first Catholic Cathedral built in the United States...
,
William StricklandWilliam Strickland may refer to:* William Strickland , English clergyman* William Strickland , credited with introducing the turkey to England, later a Member of Parliament...
, John Haviland,
John NotmanJohn Notman , a well known American architect, was born in Scotland and educated at the Royal Scottish Academy. Notman worked in the office of William Henry Playfair in Edinburgh prior to emigrating to the United States in 1831. He eventually settled in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, where one of his...
,
Thomas U. WalterThomas Ustick Walter of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania was the dean of American architecture between the 1820 death of Benjamin Latrobe and the emergence of H.H. Richardson in the 1870s. He was the fourth Architect of the Capitol, responsible for adding the north and south wings and the central dome...
, and
Samuel SloanSamuel Sloan was a leading Philadelphia-based architect and writer of architecture books in the mid-19th century. He specialized in Italianate villas and country houses, churches, and institutional buildings...
.
Frank FurnessFrank Heyling Furness was an acclaimed American architect of the Victorian era. He designed more than 600 buildings, most in the Philadelphia area, and is remembered for his eclectic, muscular, often idiosyncratically-scaled buildings, and for his influence on the Chicago architect Louis Sullivan...
is considered Philadelphia's greatest architect of the second half of the 19th century, but his contemporaries included
John McArthur, Jr.John McArthur Jr was a prominent American architect practicing from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He is best remembered as the architect of the landmark building, Philadelphia City Hall....
,
Addison HuttonAddison Hutton was a Philadelphia architect who designed prominent residences in Philadelphia and its suburbs, plus courthouses, hospitals, and libraries, including the Ridgway Library and the Historical Society of Pennsylvania...
,
Wilson EyreWilson Eyre, Jr. was an influential American architect and writer who practiced in the Philadelphia area. The son of Americans living abroad, he was born in Florence, Italy, and educated in Europe, Newport, Rhode Island, and Canada...
, the
Wilson BrothersA prominent Victorian-era architecture and engineering firm established in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Wilson Brothers & Company was especially noted for its structural expertise. The brothers designed or contributed engineering work to hundreds of bridges, railroad stations and industrial...
, and
Horace TrumbauerHorace Trumbauer was a prominent American architect of the Gilded Age, known for designing residential manors for the wealthy. Later in his career he also designed hotels, office buildings, and much of the campus of Duke University...
. In 1871, construction began on the
Second EmpireIn the United States, the Second Empire style usually combined a rectangular tower, or similar element, with a steep, but short, mansard roof; the roof being the most noteworthy link to the style’s French roots. This tower element could be of equal height as the highest floor, or could exceed the...
-style
Philadelphia City HallPhiladelphia City Hall is the seat of government for the city of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. At 167 m , including the statue, it is the world's tallest masonry building: the weight of the building is borne by granite and brick walls up to thick, rather than steel; the principal exterior...
. Despite the construction of steel and concrete
skyscraperA skyscraper is a tall, continuously habitable building. There is no official definition or height above which a building may clearly be classified as a skyscraper...
s in the 1910s, '20s and '30s, the City Hall remained the tallest building in the city until 1987 when
One Liberty PlaceThe One Liberty Place Building is currently the second tallest building and skyscraper in the City of Philadelphia and the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, after the Comcast Center. It is the 17th tallest building in the United States. Completed in 1987, One Liberty Place has 61 floors and is 945 ft ...
was constructed.
Numerous glass and granite skyscrapers were built from the late 1980s onwards. In 2007, the
Comcast CenterComcast Center is a skyscraper in Center City, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. The 58-story, tower is the tallest building in Philadelphia and the fifteenth tallest building in the United States. Originally called One Pennsylvania Plaza when the building was first announced in 2001, the...
surpassed One Liberty Place to become the city's tallest building and make Philadelphia one of only four American cities with two or more buildings over 900 feet.
For much of Philadelphia's history, the typical Philadelphia home has been the
row houseIn architecture and city planning, a terrace or row house or townhouse is a style of medium-density housing that originated in Europe in the late 17th century, where a row of identical or mirror-image houses share side walls...
. The row house was introduced to the United States via Philadelphia in the early 1800s and, for a time, row houses built elsewhere in the United States were known as "Philadelphia rows". There is a variety of row houses throughout the city from Victorian-style homes in North Philadelphia to twin row houses in West Philadelphia. While newer homes are scattered throughout the city, much of Philadelphia's housing is from the early 20th century or older. The age of the city's homes has created numerous problems which has led to blight and vacant lots in many parts of the city, while other neighborhoods such as
Society HillSociety Hill is an affluent neighborhood in the Center City section of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. The neighborhood, loosely defined as bounded by Walnut, Lombard, Front and 8th Streets, contains the largest concentration of original 18th- and early 19th-century architecture of any...
, which has the largest concentration of 18th-century architecture in the United States, have been rehabilitated and gentrified.
Culture
Philadelphia is home to many
national historical sitesA National Historical Park, National Historic Park, and National Historic Site are designations for protected areas of national historic significance, usually nominated by a governing body overseeing historic resources...
that relate to the founding of the United States.
Independence National Historical ParkIndependence National Historical Park preserves several sites associated with the American Revolution in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States...
is the center of these historical landmarks. Independence Hall, where the
Declaration of IndependenceThe United States Declaration of Independence is a statement adopted by the Continental Congress on July 4, 1776, which announced that the thirteen American colonies then at war with Great Britain were now independent states, and thus no longer a part of the British Empire...
was signed, and the
Liberty BellThe Liberty Bell, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, is one of the most prominent symbols of the American Revolutionary War. It is a familiar symbol of independence within the United States and has been described as an icon of liberty and justice....
are the city's most famous attractions. Other historic sites include homes for
Edgar Allan PoeThe Edgar Allan Poe National Historic Site is a preserved home once rented by American author Edgar Allan Poe, located in the Spring Garden neighborhood of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania...
,
Betsy RossThe Betsy Ross House is generally recognized as the place where Betsy Ross lived when she may have made the first American Flag. Several of her surviving family members, including daughters, grandchildren and a niece, said that this was the site of the legendary event.The house is located just...
, and
Thaddeus KosciuszkoThaddeus Kosciuszko National Memorial, at 301 Pine Street in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, preserves the home of Tadeusz Kościuszko. Instructed to find "a dwelling as small, as remote, and as cheap" as possible, Kosciuszko's secretary, Julian Ursyn Niemcewicz, chose Mrs. Ann Relf's boarding house in...
, early government buildings like the
FirstThe First Bank of the United States was a bank chartered by the United States Congress on February 25, 1791. The charter was for 20 years. The Bank was created to handle the financial needs and requirements of the central government of the newly formed United States, which had previously been...
and
Second Banks of the United StatesThe Second Bank of the United States was chartered in 1816, five years after the First Bank of the United States lost its own charter. The Second Bank of the United States was initially headquartered in Carpenters' Hall, Philadelphia, the same as the First Bank, and had branches throughout the...
,
Fort MifflinFort Mifflin, originally called Fort Island Battery and also known as Mud Island Fort, was commissioned in 1771 and sits on Mud or Deep Water Island on the Delaware River in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. During the American Revolutionary War, the fort was a centerpiece of the British conquest of...
, and the
Gloria Dei (Old Swedes') Church National Historic SiteGloria Dei Church , founded in 1677, is a historic church in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.-Background:Gloria Dei is the oldest church in Pennsylvania and second oldest Swedish church in the United States. Swedish pioneers of New Sweden were the first to settle the area in 1646...
.
Philadelphia's major science museums include the
Franklin InstituteThe Franklin Institute is a museum in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and one of the oldest and premier centers of science education and development in the United States. The Institute itself comprises three centers — The Science Center, The Franklin Center, and The Center for Innovation in Science...
, which contains the
Benjamin Franklin National MemorialBenjamin Franklin National Memorial — located in the rotunda of The Franklin Institute in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania — features a colossal seated statue of Benjamin Franklin. The 20 foot high memorial, sculpted by James Earle Fraser between 1906 and 1911, honors the writer, inventor and American...
, the
Academy of Natural SciencesThe Academy of Natural Sciences is the oldest natural science research institution and museum in the New World. It was founded in 1812 by many of the leading naturalists of the young republic with its expressed mission of "the encouragement and cultivation of the sciences." For over nearly two...
, and the
University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and AnthropologyThe University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archeology and Anthropology, commonly called The University Museum, is an archaeology and anthropology museum that is part of the University of Pennsylvania in University City, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania....
. History museums include the
National Constitution CenterThe National Constitution Center is a history museum on Independence Mall in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, just two blocks from the Liberty Bell and Independence Hall, and across the street from . The museum teaches visitors the history and relevance of the United States Constitution through theatre,...
, the
Atwater Kent Museum of PhiladelphiaThe Atwater Kent Museum was founded in 1938 as Philadelphia's city history museum.-Founding:...
History, the
National Museum of American Jewish HistoryThe National Museum of American Jewish History is a museum in Center City Philadelphia, located just nearby the city's main historical attractions Independence Hall and Liberty Bell within the Independence National Historical Park...
, the
African American Museum in PhiladelphiaThe African American Museum in Philadelphia is notable as the first museum funded and built by a municipality to help preserve, interpret and exhibit the heritage of African Americans...
, the
Historical Society of PennsylvaniaThe Historical Society of Pennsylvania is one of the oldest historical societies in the United States and holds many national treasures. The Society's building, designed by Addison Hutton and listed on the City of Philadelphia's Register of Historical Places, houses some 600,000 printed items and...
, the Grand Lodge of Free and Accepted Masons in the state of Pennsylvania and The Masonic Library and Museum of Pennsylvania and
Eastern State PenitentiaryThe Eastern State Penitentiary is considered one of America's most historic former prisons. It was operational from 1829 until 1971 and is located on Fairmount Avenue between Corinthian Avenue and North 22nd Street in the Fairmount section of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania...
. Philadelphia is home to the United States' first
zooThe Philadelphia Zoo, located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on the west bank of the Schuylkill River, was the first zoo in the United States. Chartered by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania on March 21, 1859, its opening was delayed by the American Civil War until July 1, 1874...
and
hospitalPennsylvania Hospital is a hospital in Center City, Philadelphia, currently affiliated with the University of Pennsylvania Health System...
.
Arts
The city contains many art
museumA museum is a building or institution which houses a collection of artifacts.Museums collect and care for objects of scientific, artistic, or historical importance and make them available for public viewing through exhibits that may be permanent or temporary...
s such as the
Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine ArtsThe Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts is a museum and art school in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It was founded in 1805 and is the oldest art museum and school in the nation. The Academy's museum is internationally known for its collections of 19th and 20th century American paintings,...
and the
Rodin MuseumThe Rodin Museum is a museum located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania which contains the largest collection of sculptor Auguste Rodin's works outside Paris.-Overview:...
, the largest collection of work by Auguste Rodin outside of France. The city’s major art museum, the
Philadelphia Museum of ArtThe Philadelphia Museum of Art, known locally and colloquially as "The Art Museum", is among the largest art museums in the United States. It is located at the west end of the Benjamin Franklin Parkway in Philadelphia's Fairmount Park. The Museum was established in 1876 in conjunction with the...
, is one of the largest art museums in the United States and features the
stepsThe front steps of the Philadelphia Museum of Art in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania have become known as the "Rocky Steps" as a result of their appearance in the three-Oscar-winning film Rocky, and four of its sequels, II, III, V and Rocky Balboa, in which the eponymous character runs up the steps to...
made popular by the film
RockyRocky is a 1976 film written by and starring Sylvester Stallone and directed by John G. Avildsen. It tells the rags-to-riches American Dream story of Rocky Balboa, an uneducated but good-hearted debt collector for a loan shark in Philadelphia. Balboa is also a club fighter who gets a shot at the...
.
The city is home to the
Philadelphia Sketch ClubThe Philadelphia Sketch Club, founded on November 20, 1860, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, is one of America’s oldest artists' clubs. The club's own web page proclaims it the oldest. Prominent members have included Alexander Milne Calder, Thomas Eakins, Maxfield Parrish, and N.C...
, one of the country's oldest artists' clubs; and to a profusion of art galleries, many of which participate in the
First FridayFirst Friday may refer to:* A Catholic Devotion* A city-wide public event that occurs on the first Friday of every month* An art gallery opening* A social networking event* A fighter squadron tradition-A city-wide public event:...
event. The first Friday of every month galleries in Old City are open late. Annual events include film festivals and parades, the most famous being the
New Year's DayNew Year's Day is the first day of the new year. On the modern Gregorian calendar, it is celebrated on January 1, as it was also in ancient Rome . In all countries using the Gregorian calendar as their main calendar, except for Israel, it is a public holiday, often celebrated with fireworks at the...
Mummers ParadeThe Mummers Parade is held each New Year's Day in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Local clubs compete in one of four categories . They prepare elaborate costumes and moveable scenery, which take months to complete...
.
Areas such as South Street and Old City have a vibrant night life. The
Avenue of the ArtsThe Avenue of the Arts is a segment of Broad Street in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, that includes many of the city's cultural institutions, most notably the theater and museum districts south of City Hall....
in Center City contains many restaurants and
theatersTheatre is a branch of the performing arts. While any performance may be considered theatre, as a performing art, it focuses almost exclusively on live performers creating a self contained drama. A performance qualifies as dramatic by creating a representational illusion...
, such as the
Kimmel Center for the Performing ArtsThe Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts is a large performing arts venue located on Broad Street, along the stretch known as the "Avenue of the Arts", in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It is owned and operated by Kimmel Center, Inc., an organization which also managed the Academy of Music in...
, which is home to the
Philadelphia OrchestraThe Philadelphia Orchestra is a symphony orchestra based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in the United States. One of the "Big Five" American orchestras, it was founded in 1900...
, and the
Academy of MusicThe Academy of Music, also known as American Academy of Music, is a concert hall and opera house located at Broad and Locust Streets in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It was built in 1855 and is the oldest opera house in the United States that is still used for its original purpose...
, the nation's oldest continually operating venue, home to the
Opera Company of PhiladelphiaThe Opera Company of Philadelphia is an American opera company in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and is that city's only producer of grand opera. One of the United State's more active opera companies, the organization produces four fully staged opera productions every year, encompassing works from the...
.
Philadelphia has more
public artThe term public art properly refers to works of art in any media that has been planned and executed with the specific intention of being sited or staged in the physical public domain, usually outside and accessible to all...
than any other American city. In 1872, the Fairmount Park Art Association was created, the first private association in the United States dedicated to integrating public art and
urban planningUrban, city, and town planning is the integration of the disciplines of land use planning and transport planning to explore a very wide range of aspects of the built and social environments of urbanized municipalities and communities...
. In 1959, lobbying by the Artists Equity Association helped create the
Percent for ArtThe term "percent for art" refers to a program, often a city ordinance, where a fee, usually some percentage of the project cost, is placed on large scale development projects in order to fund and install public art. The details of such programs vary from area-to-area...
ordinanceLaw is a system of rules, usually enforced through a set of institutions. It shapes politics, economics and society in numerous ways and serves as a primary social mediator of relations between people. Contract law regulates everything from buying a bus ticket to trading on derivatives markets...
, the first for a U.S. city. The program, which has funded more than 200 pieces of public art, is administered by the Philadelphia Office of Arts and Culture, the city's art agency.
In particular, Philadelphia has more murals than any other U.S. city, thanks in part to the 1984 creation of the Department of Recreation's
Mural Arts ProgramThe City of Philadelphia Mural Arts Program is the nation’s largest public arts initiatives of its kind. The Mural Arts Program’s mission is to engage in art education and community public art collaborations, and to increase public access to art...
, which seeks to beautify neighborhoods and provide an outlet for
graffitiGraffiti is the name for images or lettering scratched, scrawled, painted or marked in any manner on property....
artists. The program has funded more than 2,800
muralA mural is any piece of artwork painted directly on a wall, ceiling, or other large permanent surface.-History:Murals of sorts date to Upper Paleolithic times such as the paintings in the Chauvet Cave in Ardèche department of southern France...
s by professional, staff and volunteer artists and educated over 20,000 underserved youth in neighborhoods throughout Philadelphia.
Philadelphia has had a prominent role in
musicThe city of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, is home to a vibrant and well-documented musical heritage, stretching back to colonial times. Innovations in classical music, opera, R&B, jazz and soul have earned the music of Philadelphia national and international renown...
. In the 1970s,
Philadelphia soulFor the American arena football team, see Philadelphia Soul.Philadelphia soul, sometimes called the Philadelphia Sound or Sweet Philly, is a style of soul music characterized by funk influences and lush instrumental arrangements, often featuring sweeping strings and piercing horns...
influenced the music of that and later eras. On July 13 1985, Philadelphia hosted the American end of the
Live AidLive Aid was a multi-venue rock music concert held on . The event was organized by Bob Geldof and Midge Ure to raise funds for famine relief in Ethiopia. Billed as the 'global jukebox', the event was held simultaneously in Wembley Stadium, London and JFK Stadium, Philadelphia...
concert at
John F. Kennedy StadiumJohn F. Kennedy Stadium was an open-air stadium in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania that stood from 1925 to 1992. The South Philadelphia stadium was situated on the east side of the far southern end of Broad Street at a location that is now part of the South Philadelphia Sports Complex...
. The city reprised this role for the
Live 8Live 8 was a string of benefit concerts that took place on 2 July 2005, in the G8 states and in South Africa. They were timed to precede the G8 Conference and summit held at the Gleneagles Hotel in Auchterarder, Scotland from 6-8 July 2005; they also coincided with the 20th anniversary of Live Aid...
concert, bringing some 700,000 people to the Ben Franklin Parkway on July 2 2005. Philadelphia is also home to the world-renowned Philadelphia Boys Choir & Chorale, who have performed their music all over the world. Dr. Robert G. Hamilton, founder of the choir, is a famous Philadelphian. The Philly Pops is another famous Philadelphia music group. The city has played a major role in the development and support of American
rock musicRock music is a genre of popular music that entered the mainstream in the 1960s. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rock and roll, rhythm and blues, country music and also drew on folk music, jazz and classical music....
and rap music. Hip-hop/Rap Artists such as
The RootsThe Roots is an American alternative hip hop band from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. They are famed for beginning with a jazzy, eclectic approach to hip hop which still includes live instrumentals. Their debut album was released in 1993 and they have collaborated with a wide range of artists from...
,
DJ Jazzy Jeff & the Fresh PrinceDJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince is a hip hop group that was popular in the 1980s and 1990s. The vocalist, Will Smith , met Jeff Townes while trying to make a name for himself in West Philadelphia's local hip hop scene. After joining forces with Clarence Holmes aka Ready Rock C, the team members...
, Beanie Segal,
The GoatsThe Goats were an alternative hip-hop quartet from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Their members included rappers Oatie Kato , Madd , and Swayzack...
,
FreewayA freeway is a type of road designed for safer high-speed operation of motor vehicles through the elimination of at-grade intersections. This is accomplished by preventing access to and from adjacent properties and eliminating all cross traffic through the use of grade separations and...
, Schooly D,
EveEve is the first woman created by God in the Book of Genesis.Eve may also refer to:-Days:The day before, or the evening before, a holiday, such as:*New Year's Eve*Christmas Eve*St. John's Eve, also called Midsummer's Eve or Bonfire Night...
and Lisa "Left Eye" Lopes hail from Philadelphia.
Cuisine
The city is known for its
hoagiesA submarine sandwich, also known as a sub, grinder, hero, hoagie, Italian sandwich, po' boy, wedge, zep, torpedo or roll, is a popular Italian American sandwich that consists of an oblong roll, often of Italian or French bread, split lengthwise either into two pieces or opened in a "V" on one side,...
,
scrappleScrapple is traditionally a mush of pork scraps and trimmings combined with cornmeal and flour, often buckwheat flour and spices. It is similar to Pon haus, which uses only the broth from cooked meat. The mush is formed into a semi-solid congealed loaf, and slices of the scrapple are then...
, soft pretzels,
water iceItalian ice is a frozen dessert made from either concentrated syrup flavoring or fruit purees. It is not shaved ice that is flavored, rather, it is made by the same process by which ice cream is made: mixing ingredients and pouring them into a batch freezer...
,
TastykakeTastykake is the brandname for a line of snack foods manufactured by the Tasty Baking Company , headquartered in the Navy Yard Corporate Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Established in 1914 by Philip J. Baur and Herbert T...
, and is home to the
cheesesteakA cheesesteak, also known as a Philadelphia cheesesteak, Philly cheesesteak or steak and cheese, is a sandwich made from thinly sliced pieces of steak and melted cheese on a long roll...
. Its high-end restaurants include
Le Bec-FinLe Bec-Fin is a French restaurant in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania which opened in 1970. Owner and founder Georges Perrier named the restaurant after the French colloquialism for "Fine Palate"...
and Morimoto, run by chef
Masaharu Morimotois a well-known Japanese chef, best-known as the third Iron Chef Japanese on the TV cooking show Iron Chef, and an Iron Chef on its spinoff, Iron Chef America....
, who rose to prominence on the
Iron Chefis a Japanese television cooking show produced by FujiTV. The series, which premiered on October 10, 1993, was a stylized cooking competition featuring accomplished guest chefs challenging one of the show's resident "Iron Chefs" in a timed cooking battle built around a specific theme ingredient....
television show.
Sports
Philadelphia's professional sports teams date at least to the 1860 founding of baseball's Athletics, which later moved to
Oakland, CaliforniaOakland is the eighth-largest city in the U.S. state of California and a major West Coast port city, located on San Francisco Bay about eight miles east of the City of San Francisco. Oakland is a major hub city for the Bay Area subregion collectively called the East Bay, and it is the county seat...
. The city is one of 13 U.S. cities to have
all four major sportsThere are 13 U.S. cities with teams from four major sports, where "city" is defined as the entire metropolitan area, and "major professional sports leagues" as:* Major League Baseball , in existence de facto since 1903...
: the
Philadelphia EaglesThe Philadelphia Eagles are a professional American football team based in Philadelphia. They are members of the East Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League...
of the
National Football LeagueThe National Football League is the largest professional American football league in the world. It was formed by eleven teams in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association, with the league changing its name to the National Football League in 1922. The league currently consists of...
, the
Philadelphia FlyersThe Philadelphia Flyers are a professional ice hockey team based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. They are members of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League . Part of the 1967 NHL Expansion, the Flyers were the first non-Original Six to win the Stanley Cup,...
of the
National Hockey LeagueThe National Hockey League is an unincorporated not-for-profit association which operates a major professional ice hockey league as a joint venture for its self perpetuating membership of 30 franchised member clubs located in the United States and Canada...
, the
Philadelphia PhilliesThe Philadelphia Phillies are a Major League Baseball team based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and are the defending World Series champions. They are the oldest continuous, one-name, one-city franchise in all of professional American sports, dating to 1883. The Phillies are a member of the Eastern...
in the
National LeagueThe National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the National League , is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball, and the world's oldest extant professional team sports league...
of
Major League BaseballMajor League Baseball is the highest level of play in North American professional baseball. Specifically, Major League Baseball refers to the organization that operates the National League and the American League, by means of a joint organizational structure that has developed gradually between...
, and the
Philadelphia 76ersThe Philadelphia 76ers are a professional basketball team based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. They play in the Eastern Conference of the National Basketball Association .-Syracuse Nationals:...
in the
National Basketball AssociationThe National Basketball Association is a professional basketball league, composed of thirty teams in North America . It is an active member of USA Basketball , which is recognized by the International Basketball Federation as the National Governing Body for basketball in the United States...
.
The city's professional teams went without a championship from 1983, when the 76ers won the
NBA ChampionshipThe 1983 NBA World Championship Series was the championship round of the 1982-83 NBA season.-Overview:The final piece of the Philadelphia 76ers' championship puzzle was completed before the 1982-83 season when they acquired center Moses Malone from the Houston Rockets...
, until 2008, when the Phillies won the World Series. In 2004,
ESPNESPN is an American cable television network dedicated to broadcasting and producing sports-related programming 24 hours a day....
ranked Philadelphia second on its list of The Fifteen Most Tortured Sports Cities. The failure was sometimes attributed in jest to the "
Curse of Billy PennThe Curse of Billy Penn was an alleged curse used to explain the failure of professional sports teams based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania to win championships since the March 1987 construction of the One Liberty Place skyscraper, which exceeded the height of William Penn's statue atop Philadelphia...
".
Major-sport professional sports teams that originated in Philadelphia but ultimately moved to other cities include the Golden State Warriors basketball team and the
Oakland AthleticsThe Oakland Athletics are a Major League Baseball team based in Oakland, California. The Athletics are a member of the Western Division of Major League Baseball's American League. From to the present, the Athletics have played in the Oakland Coliseum....
baseball team.
Philadelphia is home to professional, semi-professional and elite amateur teams in
cricketCricket is a bat-and-ball team sport that is first documented as being played in southern England in the 16th century. By the end of the 18th century, cricket had developed to the point where it had become the national sport of England. The expansion of the British Empire led to cricket being...
and other sports. Major sporting events in the city include the
Penn RelaysThe Penn Relays is the oldest and largest track and field competition in the United States, hosted annually since April 21, 1895 by the University of Pennsylvania at Franklin Field in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania...
,
Stotesbury CupThe Stotesbury Cup Regatta, sponsored by the Schuylkill Navy, is "the world's oldest and largest high school rowing competition." It is held annually in mid-May over a two-day period along the Schuylkill River near Boathouse Row in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Although there is no official U.S....
,
Philadelphia MarathonThe Philadelphia Marathon , founded in 1954, is an annual marathon sporting event hosted by the city of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on the third Sunday of November each year...
,
Broad Street RunThe Blue Cross Broad Street Run, held in Philadelphia on the first Sunday in May since 1980, is one of the largest ten-mile road races in the United States.-Course:...
,
Philadelphia International ChampionshipPhiladelphia International Championship is the current name given to an annual bicycle race held in the city of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It is described as "America's top international cycling classic, and one of the richest and most prestigious one day races outside of Europe." It is one of the...
bicycle raceBicycle racing is a sport encompassing many forms in which bicycles are used for competition. This racing includes road bicycle racing, cyclo-cross, mountain bike racing, track cycling, BMX racing and bike trials and cycle speedway.-History:...
, and the
Dad Vail RegattaThe Dad Vail Regatta, held annually on the Schuylkill River in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, is the largest regular intercollegiate rowing event in the USA , drawing over a hundred colleges and universities from North America....
.
Philadelphia is home to the
Philadelphia Big 5The Philadelphia Big 5 is an informal association of college athletic programs in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA. It is not a conference; indeed the five schools that are members of the Big 5 are members of three separate conferences: the Atlantic 10, the Big East, and the Ivy League.The five...
, a group of five Division I college basketball programs: Big 5 are
Saint Joseph's UniversitySaint Joseph's University is a private, coeducational Roman Catholic university located partially in the Wynnefield section of Philadelphia and partially in Lower Merion Township and located in the Pennsylvania Main Line, Pennsylvania, United States.The school was founded in 1851 as Saint Joseph's...
,
University of PennsylvaniaThe University of Pennsylvania is a private research university located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA. Penn is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States, and is one of several institutions that claims to have been the first university in America...
,
La Salle UniversityLa Salle University is a private, co-educational, Roman Catholic university located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S. Named for St. Jean-Baptiste de la Salle, the school was founded in 1863 by the Institute of the Brothers of the Christian Schools. As of 2008 the school has approximately 7,554...
,
Temple UniversityTemple University is a state-related public research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Temple University was founded in 1884 by Dr. Russell Conwell and became known as Temple College in 1888. In 1907, the college became a fully accredited university...
, and
Villanova UniversityVillanova University is a private university located in Radnor Township, a suburb northwest of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in the United States...
. The sixth NCAA Division I school in Philadelphia is
Drexel UniversityDrexel University is a private coeducational university located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. It was founded in 1891 by Anthony J. Drexel, a noted financier and philanthropist.-History:...
. At least one of the teams is competitive nearly every year and at least one team has made the NCAA tournament for the past four decades.
In February 2008, Philadelphia beat several other cities in competition for the 16th
Major League SoccerMajor League Soccer is a professional soccer league based in the United States and sanctioned by United States Soccer Federation . The league comprises 15 teams, 14 in the U.S. and one in Canada...
franchise. The Philadelphia Union will enter the league in 2010 calling Union Field at Chester their home (a
soccer-specific stadiumSoccer-specific stadium is a term used mainly in the United States and Canada, coined by Lamar Hunt, to refer to a sports stadium whose primary purpose is to host association football matches...
) in
Chester, PennsylvaniaChester is a city in Delaware County, Pennsylvania, with a population of 36,854 at the 2000 census. Chester is situated on the Delaware River, between the cities of Philadelphia and Wilmington, Delaware....
.
| Club |
League |
Sport |
Venue |
Established |
Championships |
Philadelphia PhilliesThe Philadelphia Phillies are a Major League Baseball team based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and are the defending World Series champions. They are the oldest continuous, one-name, one-city franchise in all of professional American sports, dating to 1883. The Phillies are a member of the Eastern...
|
MLBMajor League Baseball is the highest level of play in North American professional baseball. Specifically, Major League Baseball refers to the organization that operates the National League and the American League, by means of a joint organizational structure that has developed gradually between...
|
Baseball |
Citizens Bank ParkCitizens Bank Park is a 43,647-seat baseball park in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, part of the South Philadelphia Sports Complex, and home of the Philadelphia Phillies. Citizens Bank Park opened on April 3, 2004 and hosted its first regular season baseball game on April 12 of the same year, with the...
|
1883 |
1980 The 1980 World Series matched the Philadelphia Phillies against the Kansas City Royals, with the Phillies winning in six games to capture the first of two World Series titles in franchise history to date. It is remembered for Game 6, which ended with Tug McGraw striking out Willie Wilson at 11:29 p.m...
, 2008The 2008 World Series was the 104th World Series between the American and National Leagues for the championship of Major League Baseball. The Philadelphia Phillies as champions of the National League and the Tampa Bay Rays, as American League champions, competed to win four games out of a possible...
|
| Philadelphia 76ers The Philadelphia 76ers are a professional basketball team based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. They play in the Eastern Conference of the National Basketball Association .-Syracuse Nationals:...
|
NBAThe National Basketball Association is a professional basketball league, composed of thirty teams in North America . It is an active member of USA Basketball , which is recognized by the International Basketball Federation as the National Governing Body for basketball in the United States...
|
Basketball |
Wachovia CenterThe Wachovia Center, formerly known as the Spectrum II , CoreStates Center, and the First Union Center, is an indoor arena located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in the United States...
|
1963 |
1966-67 The 1966–67 NBA Season was the 21st season of the National Basketball Association. The season ended with the Philadelphia 76ers winning the NBA Championship, beating the San Francisco Warriors 4 games to 2 in the NBA Finals, ending the Boston Celtics' record title run at 8.- Notable occurrences :*...
, 1982-83The 1982–83 NBA season was the 37th season of the National Basketball Association. The season ended with the Philadelphia 76ers winning the NBA Championship, sweeping the Los Angeles Lakers 4 games to 0 in the NBA Finals.-Notable occurrences:...
|
Philadelphia EaglesThe Philadelphia Eagles are a professional American football team based in Philadelphia. They are members of the East Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League...
|
NFLThe National Football League is the largest professional American football league in the world. It was formed by eleven teams in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association, with the league changing its name to the National Football League in 1922. The league currently consists of...
|
American Football |
Lincoln Financial FieldLincoln Financial Field, familiarly known as "The Linc", is the home stadium of the National Football League's Philadelphia Eagles. It has a seating capacity of 68,532...
|
1933 |
1948 The 1948 NFL season was the 29th regular season of the National Football League. During the season, Halfback Fred Gehrke painted horns on the Los Angeles Rams' helmets, making the first modern helmet emblem in pro football. The season ended when the Philadelphia Eagles defeated the Chicago...
, 1949The 1949 NFL season was the 30th regular season of the National Football League. Prior to the season, Boston Yanks owner Ted Collins asked the league to fold his team due to financial woes, and give him a new one in New York City...
, 1960The 1960 NFL season was the 41st regular season of the National Football League. Before the season, Pete Rozelle was elected NFL commissioner as a compromise choice on the twenty-third ballot. Meanwhile, the league expanded to 13 teams with the addition of the Dallas Cowboys. Also, the Cardinals...
|
Philadelphia FlyersThe Philadelphia Flyers are a professional ice hockey team based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. They are members of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League . Part of the 1967 NHL Expansion, the Flyers were the first non-Original Six to win the Stanley Cup,...
|
NHLThe National Hockey League is an unincorporated not-for-profit association which operates a major professional ice hockey league as a joint venture for its self perpetuating membership of 30 franchised member clubs located in the United States and Canada...
|
Ice Hockey |
Wachovia CenterThe Wachovia Center, formerly known as the Spectrum II , CoreStates Center, and the First Union Center, is an indoor arena located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in the United States...
|
1967 |
1973–74, 1974–75 |
| Philadelphia Union |
MLS Major League Soccer is a professional soccer league based in the United States and sanctioned by United States Soccer Federation . The league comprises 15 teams, 14 in the U.S. and one in Canada...
|
Soccer |
Union Field at Chester
(in Chester, PAChester is a city in Delaware County, Pennsylvania, with a population of 36,854 at the 2000 census. Chester is situated on the Delaware River, between the cities of Philadelphia and Wilmington, Delaware....
) |
2010 |
none |
| Philadelphia Independence |
WPS Women's Professional Soccer is the top level professional women's soccer league in the United States that began play on March 29, 2009. The league replaced the Women's United Soccer Association , which folded after the 2003 season...
|
Women's Soccer |
Union Field at Chester
(in Chester, PAChester is a city in Delaware County, Pennsylvania, with a population of 36,854 at the 2000 census. Chester is situated on the Delaware River, between the cities of Philadelphia and Wilmington, Delaware....
) |
2010 |
none |
| Philadelphia Wings The Philadelphia Wings are a member of the National Lacrosse League, a professional box lacrosse league in North America. They play at the Wachovia Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania....
|
NLL The National Lacrosse League is the league of men's indoor lacrosse in North America. It currently has 11 teams; three in Canada and eight in the United States. Unlike other lacrosse leagues which play in the summer, the NLL plays its games in the winter...
|
Arena Lacrosse |
Wachovia CenterThe Wachovia Center, formerly known as the Spectrum II , CoreStates Center, and the First Union Center, is an indoor arena located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in the United States...
|
1987 |
1989, 1990, 1994, 1995, 1998, 2001 |
Philadelphia KiXXThe Philadelphia KiXX is a professional indoor soccer team, founded in 1995 as an NPSL expansion franchise, that plays their games at the Wachovia Spectrum in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The team's original owner was Ed Tepper, who had been one of the co-founders of the original MISL...
|
NISL The National Indoor Soccer League is an indoor soccer league which began play in 2008. Originally, five teams had been announced to play in the inaugural season; four previously in the Major Indoor Soccer League and one formerly in the American Indoor Soccer League...
|
Arena Soccer |
Liacouras Center The Liacouras Center, a 10,200-seat multi-purpose venue, is located on the Temple University campus along North Broad Street in North Philadelphia. The venue is a full entertainment arena featuring concerts, family shows, Temple Men’s and Women’s Basketball games and other events. Global Spectrum...
|
1996 |
2001-02, 2006-07 |
Economy
Philadelphia's economic sectors include manufacturing, oil refining, food processing, health care and biotechnology, tourism and financial services. According to a study prepared by
PricewaterhouseCoopersPricewaterhouseCoopers is one of the world's largest professional services firms. It was formed in 1998 from a merger between Price Waterhouse and Coopers & Lybrand, both formed in London....
, Philadelphia and its surrounding region had the fourth highest GDP among American cities, with a total GDP of $312 billion in 2005. Only
New York CityNew York is the most populous city in the United States, and the center of the New York metropolitan area, which is among the most populous urban areas in the world. A leading global city, New York exerts a powerful influence over worldwide commerce, finance, culture, fashion and entertainment...
($1,133 billion),
Los AngelesLos Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the municipality of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123.445 inhabitants...
($693 billion), and
ChicagoChicago is the largest city in the U.S. state of Illinois, and with more than 2.8 million people, the 3rd largest city in the United States...
($460 billion) had higher total economic output levels among American cities. Philadelphia ranked below
Tokyo, officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan and is located on the eastern side of the main island Honshū. The twenty-three special wards of Tokyo, each governed as a city, cover the area that was once the city of Tokyo in the eastern part of the prefecture, totaling over 8 million people....
($1,191 billion),
ParisParis is the capital of France and the country's most populous city. It is situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
($460 billion),
London[]London is the capital of England and the United Kingdom. It has been a major settlement for two millennia, and the history of London goes back to its founding by the Romans, when it was named Londinium. London's core, the ancient City of London, the 'square mile', retains its medieval boundaries...
($452 billion), Osaka-Kobe ($391 billion),
Mexico CityMexico City is the capital city of Mexico. It is the economic, industrial, and cultural center in the country, and the most populous city, with about 8,836,045 inhabitants in 2008...
($315 billion), and above
Washington, D.C.Washington, D.C. , formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, the District, or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States, founded on July 16, 1790...
($299 billion) and
BostonBoston is the capital and largest city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is considered the economic and cultural center of the region and is sometimes regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England"...
($290 billion).
The city is home to the
Philadelphia Stock ExchangePhiladelphia Stock Exchange is the oldest stock exchange in the United States, founded in 1790. It is now owned by NASDAQ and located at 1900 Market Street, in Center City Philadelphia.-History:...
and several
Fortune 500The Fortune 500 is an annual list compiled and published by Fortune magazine that ranks the top 500 U.S. closely held and public corporations as ranked by their gross revenue after adjustments made by Fortune to exclude the impact of excise taxes companies collect. The list includes publicly and...
companies, including
cable televisionCable television is a system of providing television to consumers via radio frequency signals transmitted to televisions through fixed optical fibers or coaxial cables as opposed to the over-the-air method used in traditional television broadcasting in which a television antenna is required...
and internet provider
ComcastComcast Corporation , founded in 1963, is the largest cable operator in the United States, providing cable television, broadband Internet, and telephone service to both residential and commercial customers. Comcast is headquartered in the One Comcast Center in Center City, Philadelphia,...
,
insuranceInsurance, in law and economics, is a form of risk management primarily used to hedge against the risk of a contingent loss. Insurance is defined as the equitable transfer of the risk of a loss, from one entity to another, in exchange for a premium, and can be thought of as a guaranteed and known...
companies
Colonial PennColonial Penn Life Insurance Company is a Philadelphia, Pennsylvania based life insurance company. Colonial Penn's marketing campaign is aimed at people between the age of 50 and 85, specializing in Guaranteed Acceptance Whole Life Insurance...
,
CIGNACIGNA Corporation is an American for profit health insurance company. The health care headquarters are located in Bloomfield, Connecticut, while the corporate headquarters are located at Two Liberty Place in Center City Philadelphia, Pennsylvania...
and Lincoln Financial Group, energy company
SunocoSunoco Inc. is an American petroleum and petrochemical manufacturer headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States, formerly known as Sun Company Inc. and Sun Oil Co. ....
, food services company
AramarkAramark Limited, known commonly as Aramark, is an American food, facilities, and clothing provider, supplying businesses, courts, educational institutions, health care providers, and armed forces. It is headquartered in Center City Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.Aramark is the 19th largest employer on...
and Crown Holdings Incorporated, chemical makers Rohm and Haas Company and FMC Corporation, pharmaceutical companies
WyethWyeth, formerly known as American Home Products , was one of the largest pharmaceutical companies in the world. The company is based in Madison, New Jersey...
and
GlaxoSmithKline GlaxoSmithKline plc is a United Kingdom-based pharmaceutical, biological, and healthcare company. GSK is the world's second largest pharmaceutical company and a research-based company with a wide portfolio of pharmaceutical products covering anti-infectives, central nervous system, respiratory,...
,
BoeingThe Boeing Company is a major aerospace and defense corporation, founded by William E. Boeing in Seattle, Washington. Boeing has expanded over the years, merging with McDonnell Douglas in 1997. Its international headquarters has been in Chicago, Illinois, since 2001...
helicopterA helicopter is an aircraft that is lifted and propelled by one or more horizontal rotors, each rotor consisting of two or more rotor blades. Helicopters are classified as rotorcraft or rotary-wing aircraft to distinguish them from fixed-wing aircraft because the helicopter achieves lift with the...
s division, and automotive parts retailer
Pep BoysThe Pep Boys — Manny, Moe & Jack , branded as Pep Boys Auto and commonly abbreviated as Pep Boys, is a full-service automotive aftermarket chain. In 1921, Emanuel Rosenfeld, Maurice L. Strauss, and W...
. Early in the 20th Century, it was also home to the pioneering brass era
automobileAn automobile, motor car or car is a wheeled motor vehicle used for transporting passengers, which also carries its own engine or motor...
company
Biddle"Information, rather than Persuasive Sales Talk" was the advertising slogan of the Philadelphia, Pennsylvania based Biddle Motor Car Company. It was noted for conservative advertising. The company produced six models, with the heaviest weighing 2,950 pounds with a four cylinder engine being sold...
.
The federal government has several facilities in Philadelphia. The city served as the capital city of the
United StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, before the construction of
Washington, D.C.Washington, D.C. , formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, the District, or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States, founded on July 16, 1790...
Today, the East Coast operations of the
United States MintThe United States Mint primarily produces circulating coinage for the United States to conduct its trade and commerce. The main Mint facility is located in Washington, D.C., and branch facilities are located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; Denver, Colorado; San Francisco, California; and West...
are based near the historic district, and the Federal Reserve Bank's Philadelphia division is based there as well. Philadelphia is also home to the
U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of PennsylvaniaThe United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania is one of the original 13 federal judiciary districts created by the Judiciary Act of 1789...
and the
U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third CircuitThe United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit is a federal court with appellate jurisdiction over the district courts for the following districts:* District of Delaware* District of New Jersey...
.
With the historic presence of the
Pennsylvania RailroadThe Pennsylvania Railroad was an American railroad, founded in 1846. Commonly referred to as the "Pennsy", the PRR was headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania....
, and the large ridership at 30th Street Station,
AmtrakThe National Railroad Passenger Corporation, doing business as Amtrak , is a government-owned corporation that was organized on May 1, 1971 to provide intercity passenger train service in the United States. "Amtrak" is a blend of the words "America" and "track". It is headquartered at Union Station...
maintains a significant presence in the city. These jobs include customer service representatives and ticket processing and other behind-the-scenes personnel, in addition to the normal functions of the railroad.
The city is a national center of law because of the
University of Pennsylvania Law SchoolThe University of Pennsylvania Law School, located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, is the law school of the University of Pennsylvania, a member of the Ivy League. It is currently ranked 8th overall by U.S...
, Drexel University Earle Mack School of Law,
Temple University Beasley School of LawLocated at the Main Campus of Temple University in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the Temple University James E. Beasley School of Law, informally referred to as Temple Law School, has operated continuously since its founding in 1895....
,
Rutgers University School of Law - CamdenRutgers University School of Law - Camden is a public law school of Rutgers University located in Camden, New Jersey on the Delaware Waterfront. It is one of two law schools of Rutgers University and one of only three law schools in the state of New Jersey...
,
Villanova University School of LawVillanova University School of Law is the law school of Villanova University, a Roman Catholic Augustinian university located in Villanova, Pennsylvania, just outside of Philadelphia. The School of Law campus is located adjacent the main campus of the university, at the corner of Spring Mill Road...
, and
Widener University School of LawWidener University School of Law is the ABA accredited law school of Widener University. The school, founded in 1971 as the Delaware Law School, operates on two of Widener's campuses, one in Wilmington, Delaware, and the other in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.-History:Originally founded in 1971 as the...
. Additionally, the headquarters of the
American Law InstituteThe American Law Institute was established in 1923 to promote the clarification and simplification of American common law and its adaptation to changing social needs. The ALI drafts, approves, and publishes Restatements of the Law, model codes, and other proposals for law reform...
is located in the city.
Philadelphia is an important center for medicine, a distinction that it has held since the colonial period. The city is home to the first hospital in the British North American colonies,
Pennsylvania HospitalPennsylvania Hospital is a hospital in Center City, Philadelphia, currently affiliated with the University of Pennsylvania Health System...
, and the first medical school in what is now the United States, at the
University of PennsylvaniaThe University of Pennsylvania is a private research university located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA. Penn is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States, and is one of several institutions that claims to have been the first university in America...
(Penn). Penn, the city's largest private employer, also runs a large teaching hospital and extensive medical system. There are also major hospitals affiliated with
Temple University School of MedicineTemple University is a state-related public research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Temple University was founded in 1884 by Dr. Russell Conwell and became known as Temple College in 1888. In 1907, the college became a fully accredited university...
,
Drexel University College of MedicineDrexel University College of Medicine is the medical school of Drexel University. The medical school has the nation's largest enrollment for a private medical school, and represents the consolidation of two medical schools: the nation's first medical school for women and the first U.S. college of...
,
Thomas Jefferson UniversityThomas Jefferson University is a private health sciences university in Center City, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in the United States. The university consists of three constituent colleges, Jefferson Medical College, Jefferson College of Graduate Studies, and Jefferson College of Health...
, and
Philadelphia College of Osteopathic MedicineThe Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine is one of the oldest and largest osteopathic medical schools. Founded in 1899, PCOM is home to over 1000 medical students as well as graduate-level students in several other fields of health care. One of the largest medical schools in the United...
. Philadelphia also has three distinguished children's hospitals:
Children's Hospital of PhiladelphiaThe Children's Hospital of Philadelphia is one of the largest and oldest children's hospitals in the world. CHOP has been ranked as the best children's hospital in the United States by U.S. News & World Report and Parents Magazine in recent years. As of 2008, it was ranked #1 in the nation for...
, the nation's first pediatric hospital (located adjacent to the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania), St. Christopher's Hospital, and the Shriners' Hospital. In the city's northern section are Albert Einstein Hospital, and in the northeast section,
Fox Chase Cancer CenterThe Fox Chase Cancer Center is a National Cancer Institute-designated Comprehensive Cancer Center research facility and hospital located in the Fox Chase section of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. The main facilities of the center are located on property adjoining Burholme Park...
. Together, health care is the largest sector of employment in the city. Several medical professional associations are headquartered in Philadelphia.
With Philadelphia's importance as a medical research center, the region supports the pharmaceutical industry.
GlaxoSmithKline GlaxoSmithKline plc is a United Kingdom-based pharmaceutical, biological, and healthcare company. GSK is the world's second largest pharmaceutical company and a research-based company with a wide portfolio of pharmaceutical products covering anti-infectives, central nervous system, respiratory,...
,
AstraZenecaAstraZeneca plc is a large Anglo-Swedish pharmaceutical company formed on 6 April 1999 by the remerger of Swedish Astra AB and British Zeneca Group plc. Zeneca had been part of Imperial Chemical Industries, as 3 divisions that were spun off from ICI on 1 June 1993...
,
WyethWyeth, formerly known as American Home Products , was one of the largest pharmaceutical companies in the world. The company is based in Madison, New Jersey...
,
MerckMerck & Co., Inc. , also known as Merck Sharp & Dohme or MSD outside the USA and Canada, is one of the largest pharmaceutical companies in the world. The headquarters of the company is located in Whitehouse Station, New Jersey, an unincorporated area in Readington Township...
,
GE HealthcareGE Healthcare is a unit of GE Technology Infrastructure, which is a unit of General Electric . It employs more than 46,000 people worldwide and is headquartered in Little Chalfont, Buckinghamshire, United Kingdom. The CEO of GE Healthcare is John Dineen. GE Healthcare is the first GE business...
, Johnson and Johnson and
Siemens Medical SolutionsSiemens Healthcare is a supplier to the healthcare industry, and is headquartered in Erlangen, Germany. Prior to being acquired by Siemens in 2000, the company was known as Shared Medical Systems Corporation and traded on the New York Stock Exhange as "SMS"...
are just some of the large pharmaceutical companies with operations in the region. The city is also home to the nation's first school of pharmacy, the Philadelphia College of Pharmacy, now called the
University of the Sciences in PhiladelphiaThe University of the Sciences in Philadelphia , located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, offers bachelor's, master's, and doctoral degrees in pharmacy and a variety of other health-related disciplines. Originally known as the Philadelphia College of Pharmacy, it was the first college of pharmacy in...
.
Tourism is a major industry in Philadelphia, which was the 11th-most-visited city in the United States in 2008. It welcomed 710,000 visitors from foreign countries in 2008, up 29% from the previous year.
Shopping
Shopping options in
Center CityCenter City is the "downtown" and Central Business District of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA. Its 2005 population of 88,000 makes it the third most populous downtown in the United States.-Boundaries:...
include
The Gallery at Market EastThe Gallery at Market East or "The Gallery" as it's known to locals, is an urban mall in downtown Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States with over 130 stores and a food court. The mall's major anchor stores are Kmart and Burlington Coat Factory....
, The Shops at Liberty Place,
Jewelers' RowJewelers' Row, located in the Center City section of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, is composed of more than 300 retailers, wholesalers, and craftsmen on Sansom Street, between Seventh and Eighth streets, and on Eighth Street between Chestnut and Walnut streets....
,
South StreetSouth Street is an east-west street in the Center City neighborhood of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The stretch of South Street between Front Street and Seventh Street is known for its "bohemian" atmosphere and its diverse and urban mix of shops, bars, and eateries...
, and a variety of standalone independent retailers. Rittenhouse Row, a four block section of
Walnut StreetWalnut Street is located in downtown Philadelphia and extends from the city's Delaware River waterfront through Center City and West Philadelphia. Walnut Street has been characterized as "the city's premier shopping district"...
, has higher-end clothing chain stores as well as
hipsterHipster may refer to:*Hipster *Hipster *Hipster PDA, a paper-based personal organizer...
-inspired clothing stores. The parallel streets of Sansom and Chestnut in this area have some high end boutiques and clothing retailers. Old City has some emerging boutiques from local, as well as international merchandisers. The
Reading Terminal MarketReading Terminal Market is an enclosed public market found at 12th and Arch Streets in downtown Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Over 80 merchants offer fresh produce, meats, fish, groceries, ice cream, flowers, baked goods, crafts, books, clothing, and specialty and ethnic foods...
includes dozens of take-out restaurants, specialty food vendors, and small
grocery storeA grocery store is a store established primarily for the retailing of food. A grocer, the owner of a grocery store, stocks different kinds of foods from assorted places and cultures, and sells them to customers. Large grocery stores that stock products other than food, such as clothing or household...
operators, a few of which are operated by Amish farmers from nearby
Lancaster CountyLancaster County, known as the Garden Spot of America, is a county located in the south-central part of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, in the United States. With an estimated 2005 population of 490,562, Lancaster County forms the Lancaster Metropolitan Statistical Area, the 99th largest of 361...
.
Philadelphia also has a few eclectic neighborhood shopping districts, usually consisting of a few blocks along a major neighborhood thoroughfare, such as in
ManayunkManayunk is a neighborhood in the northwestern section of the city of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in the United States. Located on the banks of the Schuylkill River, it contains the first canal begun in the United States . The area's name comes from the language of the Lenape Indians...
or
Chestnut HillChestnut Hill is an affluent neighborhood in the Northwest Philadelphia section of the United States city of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.-Boundaries:Chestnut Hill is bounded as follows:...
. The
Italian MarketThe Italian Market is the popular name for the South 9th Street Curb Market, an area of Philadelphia featuring many grocery shops, cafes, restaurants, bakeries, cheese shops, butcher shops, etc., many with an Italian influence. It is generally considered to extend along 9th Street from Fitzwater...
in South Philadelphia offers groceries, meats, cheeses and housewares, historically from Italy, but now from many nationalities. Two famed
cheesesteakA cheesesteak, also known as a Philadelphia cheesesteak, Philly cheesesteak or steak and cheese, is a sandwich made from thinly sliced pieces of steak and melted cheese on a long roll...
restaurants,
Geno'sGeno's Steaks is a Philadelphia restaurant specializing in cheesesteaks, founded in 1966 by Joe Vento. Geno's is located in the South Philadelphia neighborhood at the intersection of 9th Street and Passyunk Avenue, directly across the street from rival Pat's King of Steaks, which claims to have...
and Pat's, are located nearby.
There are several large shopping malls and strip malls in the region, including
Franklin MillsFranklin Mills is an enclosed shopping mall located in northeast Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, bordering Bensalem in Bucks County and outside Center City...
in
Northeast PhiladelphiaNortheast Philadelphia is a section of the city of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. According to the 2000 Census, the Northeast has a sizable percentage of the city's 1.447 million people — a population of between 300,000 and 450,000, depending on how the area is defined...
, and many in the suburbs, most notably the
King of Prussia MallThe King of Prussia Mall is the largest shopping mall on the East Coast of the United States, and the largest shopping mall in the United States of America in terms of leasable retail space....
in
King of PrussiaKing of Prussia is an unincorporated community in Upper Merion Township, Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, United States. As of the 2000 census, its population was 18,511. The community took its name in the 18th century from a local tavern named "The King of Prussia Inn", which was named for...
,
PennsylvaniaThe Commonwealth of Pennsylvania , often colloquially referred to as PA by natives and Northeasterners, is a state located in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States...
, 19 miles from the heart of the city. The King of Prussia Mall is the largest shopping mall on the
USThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
East CoastThe East Coast of the United States, also known as the "Eastern Seaboard" or "Atlantic Seaboard", refers to the easternmost coastal states in the central and northern United States, which touch the Atlantic Ocean and stretch up to Canada...
and
the largest in the country in terms of leasable retail space.
Media
Philadelphia's two major
daily newspapersA newspaper is a publication containing news, information, and advertising. General-interest newspapers often feature articles on political events, crime, business, art/entertainment, society and sports. Most traditional papers also feature an editorial page containing columns that express the...
are
The Philadelphia InquirerThe Philadelphia Inquirer is a morning daily newspaper that serves the Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, metropolitan area of the United States. The newspaper was founded by John R. Walker and John Norvell in June 1829 as The Pennsylvania Inquirer and is the third-oldest surviving daily newspaper in the...
and the
Philadelphia Daily NewsThe Philadelphia Daily News is a tabloid newspaper that began publishing on March 31, 1925, under founding editor Lee Ellmaker. In its early years, it was dominated by crime stories, sports and sensationalism. By 1930, daily circulation of the morning paper exceeded 200,000...
, both of which are owned by Philadelphia Media Holdings L.L.C.
The Philadelphia Inquirer, founded in 1829, is the third-oldest surviving daily newspaper in the United States.
The BulletinThe Bulletin was a morning daily newspaper that serves the Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, metropolitan area of the United States. The newspaper was founded in 2004 as a modern iteration of the Philadelphia Bulletin, originally founded in 1847....
, another newspaper that operates in Philadelphia, traces its history back to
The Philadelphia Bulletin that went defunct in 1982.
The Bulletin is locally owned by The Bulletin, Inc.
The first experimental
radioRadio is the transmission of signals by modulation of electromagnetic waves with frequencies below those of visible light. Electromagnetic radiation travels by means of oscillating electromagnetic fields that pass through the air and the vacuum of space...
license was issued in Philadelphia in August, 1912 to
St. Joseph's CollegeSaint Joseph's University is a private, coeducational Roman Catholic university located partially in the Wynnefield section of Philadelphia and partially in Lower Merion Township and located in the Pennsylvania Main Line, Pennsylvania, United States.The school was founded in 1851 as Saint Joseph's...
. The first commercial radio stations appeared in 1922: first
WIPWIP is a Philadelphia radio station with an all-sports format. Located at 610 AM, the station adopted its current all-sports format in 1986, making it the first all-sports radio station in the United States. Its transmitters are located in the Cresent Park section of Bellmawr, New Jersey.The...
, then owned by
Gimbel's department storeGimbel Brothers was an iconic American department store corporation from 1887 through the late 20th century. The name is often misspelled with an apostrophe. The store is known for creating the Gimbels Thanksgiving Day Parade, the oldest parade in the country. Gimbels was also once the largest...
, on March 17, followed the same year by
WFILWFIL is the name of a radio station, and also the former name of a television station, serving the city of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Its transmitter is located in Lafayette Hill, Pennsylvania....
,
WOOWoO is a catalogue prepared in 1955 by Harry Halm and Georg Kinsky, listing all of the compositions of Ludwig van Beethoven that were not originally published with an opus number, or survived only as fragments...
,
WCAUWPHT is a CBS Radio station located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania broadcasting on 1210 kHz. The station broadcasts with 50 kW power omnidirectionally, and uses the nickname " The Big Talker 1210." The station is owned by CBS Radio. Its transmitter is located in Moorestown Township, New Jersey...
and WDAS. The highest-rated stations in Philadelphia include
soft rockSoft rock is a style of music which uses the techniques of rock and roll to compose a softer, more toned-down sound for listening. Soft rock songs generally tend to focus on themes like love, everyday life and relationships...
WBEBWBEB is a radio station broadcasting a Soft Rock/Adult Contemporary format. Licensed to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, it serves the Greater Philadelphia metropolitan area. It first began broadcasting in 1963 under the call sign WDVR. The station is currently owned by Jerry Lee...
,
KYW NewsradioKYW is a class A AM radio station on 1060 kHz licensed to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. KYW is owned by the CBS Radio unit of CBS Corporation, and has an all-news format...
, and
urban adult contemporaryUrban adult contemporary is the name for a format of radio music, similar to an urban contemporary format. Radio stations using this format usually would not have rap music on their playlists. The format was designed by Barry Mayo when he, Lee S. Simonson and Bill Pearson organized Broadcast...
WDAS-FMWDAS-FM is an Urban Adult Contemporary radio station that features R&B and Classic Soul, and is licensed to the city of Philadelphia. The station is widely regarded as one of the originators of the Urban AC format which mixes R&B oldies with non-rap contemporary R&B and is now found in many major...
. Philadelphia is served by three major
public radioPublic broadcasting includes radio, television and other electronic media outlets that receive some or all of their funding from the public. Public broadcasters may receive their funding from individuals through voluntary donations, a specific tax such as a television licence fee, or as direct...
stations,
WHYY-FMWHYY-FM is a National Public Radio member and serves the Delaware Valley area, which is the metro area of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Offices are located in Philadelphia and Wilmington, Delaware...
(NPR),
WRTIWRTI is a member-supported radio service of Temple University in Philadelphia. It broadcasts on a frequency of 90.1 MHz and is repeated on several relay radio stations throughout eastern Pennsylvania, southern New Jersey and Delaware. The station's schedule is divided between classical music during...
(jazz, classical), and WXPN-FM (adult alternative music), as well as several smaller stations.
In the 1930s, the experimental station
W3XEKYW-TV, virtual channel 3 , is the CBS owned and operated station in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA. KYW-TV shares a studio facility with its sister CW station WPSG just north of Center City Philadelphia and its transmitter is located in the Roxborough section of Philadelphia.-As WPTZ-TV:The...
, owned by
PhilcoPhilco, the Philadelphia Storage Battery Company , was a pioneer in early battery, radio and television production as well as former employer of Philo Farnsworth, inventor of cathode ray tube television.Philco's rise to the top of radio makers was an amazing feat...
, became the first
television stationA television station is a type of broadcast station that broadcasts video and possibly audio to television receivers in a particular area. Traditionally, TV stations made their broadcasts by sending specially-encoded radio signals over the air, called terrestrial television...
in Philadelphia; it became
NBCThe National Broadcasting Company is an American television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices in Burbank,California...
's first affiliate in 1939, and later became
KYW-TVKYW-TV, virtual channel 3 , is the CBS owned and operated station in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA. KYW-TV shares a studio facility with its sister CW station WPSG just north of Center City Philadelphia and its transmitter is located in the Roxborough section of Philadelphia.-As WPTZ-TV:The...
(
CBSCBS Broadcasting Inc. is an American television network, one of television's original "big three", which also include NBC and ABC. Like NBC, CBS started out as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System...
).
WCAU-TVWCAU, channel 10, is an owned-and-operated television station of the NBC Television Network, located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. WCAU has its studios on the border between Philadelphia and Bala Cynwyd, and transmitter in the Roxborough neighborhood...
,
WPVI-TVWPVI-TV channel 6 is an owned-and-operated station of the Walt Disney Company-owned American Broadcasting Company, located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. WPVI has its studios located on the border between Philadelphia and Bala Cynwyd and its transmitter is located in the Roxborough neighborhood...
,
WHYY-TVFor the former channel 12 in Wilmington, see WVUE .WHYY-TV channel 12 is the PBS member station in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Its main studio and office facility is co-located with sister station WHYY-FM in Center City Philadelphia. The station also operates a secondary studio in Wilmington,...
,
WPHL-TVWPHL-TV channel 17 is a television station in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania owned by the Tribune Company and currently affiliated with News Corporation-owned MyNetworkTV...
, and
WTXF-TVWTXF-TV channel 29 is an owned-and-operated station of the News Corporation-owned Fox Broadcasting Company, based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania...
had all been founded by the 1970s. In 1952 WFIL (now WPVI), premiered the television show
Bandstand, which later became the nationally broadcast
American BandstandAmerican Bandstand was a television show that aired in various versions from 1952 to 1989, hosted from 1957 until its final season by Dick Clark, who also served as producer...
hosted by
Dick ClarkRichard Wagstaff "Dick" Clark is an American television, radio personality, game show host and businessman; he served as chairman and CEO of Dick Clark Productions, which he has sold part of in recent years...
. Today, as in many large metropolitan areas, each of the commercial networks has an affiliate, and call letters have been replaced by corporate IDs: CBS3, 6ABC, NBC10, FOX29, Telefutura28, Telemundo62, Univision65, plus My PHL 17 and CW Philly 57. The region is served also by
public broadcastingPublic broadcasting includes radio, television and other electronic media outlets that receive some or all of their funding from the public. Public broadcasters may receive their funding from individuals through voluntary donations, a specific tax such as a television licence fee, or as direct...
stations WYBE-TV (Philadelphia), WHYY-TV (Wilmington, Delaware and Philadelphia),
WLVT-TVWLVT-TV is a PBS television station serving the Lehigh Valley region of Pennsylvania in the United States.The station signed on in September 1965 as a NET affiliate. Due to cable television, its signal is now carried in Eastern Pennsylvania, western and parts of southern New Jersey, and available...
(Lehigh Valley), and
New Jersey NetworkThe New Jersey Network, or NJN, is a state-wide public television and radio network serving the U.S. state of New Jersey. It is operated by the New Jersey Public Broadcasting Authority....
. In September 2007, Philadelphia approved a public access cable channel.
Rock stations
WMMRWMMR is a rock radio station in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, broadcasting at 93.3 MHz FM. The station is owned by Greater Media.Philadelphia's radio market is ranked the seventh largest in the United States by Arbitron's ranking system, and WMMR was the leading rock format station in the market,...
and
WYSPWYSP is a radio station broadcasting a classic rock format. Referred to on-air as "94 WYSP", the station broadcasts on the 94.1 FM frequency in the Philadelphia area. WYSP is owned by CBS Radio. Its studios are on the 9th floor of 400 Market Street in Center City Philadelphia. The station's...
have traditionally been intense rivals. Since 2005, WMMR has played more music after a shift in WYSP's programming from rock (including controversial
shock jockShock jock is a slang term used to describe a type of radio broadcaster who attracts attention using humor that a significant portion of the listening audience may find offensive...
Howard SternHoward Allan Stern is an American radio and media personality most notable for his radio show which since January 9, 2006, has been broadcasting on Sirius XM, an uncensored satellite radio service...
) to a
Free FMFree FM was a short-lived, mostly-talk-radio format and brand name for eleven FM CBS Radio stations in the United States, and was created because of Howard Stern's departure to Sirius Satellite Radio in January 2006. Free FM was given its name to highlight that its stations broadcast free-to-air,...
format. WYSP has since returned to the classic rock format it shed in 1995. WYSP also broadcasts all
Philadelphia EaglesThe Philadelphia Eagles are a professional American football team based in Philadelphia. They are members of the East Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League...
games. WMMR's
The Preston and SteveThe Preston and Steve show is a morning radio comedy and variety broadcast on Philadelphia Active Rock station 93.3 FM WMMR featuring DJs Preston Elliot and Steve Morrison. The show, which originated at Y100 in Philadelphia, features daily telephone interviews, in-studio guests, celebrity...
Show has been the area's top-rated morning show since
Howard SternHoward Allan Stern is an American radio and media personality most notable for his radio show which since January 9, 2006, has been broadcasting on Sirius XM, an uncensored satellite radio service...
left for Sirius Radio. In November 2008, WYSP launched a competing show hosted by Philadelphia native
Danny BonaduceDante Daniel "Danny" Bonaduce is an American radio/television personality, comedian, professional wrestler, and former child actor who, as an adult, became known for his tumultuous personal life...
. Both stations host regular live music and other events in throughout the region.
Four urban stations (
WUSLWUSL, known as "Power 99 FM", is a mainstream urban radio station, owned by Clear Channel Communications and licensed to Philadelphia...
("Power 99"), WPHI ("100.3 The Beat"),
WDASWDAS-FM is an Urban Adult Contemporary radio station that features R&B and Classic Soul, and is licensed to the city of Philadelphia. The station is widely regarded as one of the originators of the Urban AC format which mixes R&B oldies with non-rap contemporary R&B and is now found in many major...
and
WRNBWRNB is an Urban Adult Contemporary station broadcasting at 107.9 FM. Licensed to Pennsauken, New Jersey, it serves the Philadelphia market and is owned by Radio One. The station features R&B , Classic Soul, Gospel, and the syndicated Tom Joyner Morning Show. The main competitor of WRNB in the...
) are popular choices on the FM dial. WNUW is the city's Adult Contemporary station. The station had been home of "
Smooth JazzSmooth jazz is a sub-genre of jazz which is influenced stylistically by R&B, funk and pop.Beginning in the early 1970s, it was an evolution into jazz with a modern, electronic sensibility...
" WJJZ after the format was dropped from the 106.1 frequency (now
WISXWISX is a [[Rhythmic AC]] radio station licensed to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. They are owned by Clear Channel Communications and its slogan is "Move to the Music" which is used to describe their upbeat mix of mostly Rhythmic hits of the 80's, '90s and today.-Beautiful Music Era:...
) but the format was dropped once again due to poor ratings.
Innovation
Philadelphia is home to many "first-in-America" institutions, including:
- Art school & museum
The Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts is a museum and art school in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It was founded in 1805 and is the oldest art museum and school in the nation. The Academy's museum is internationally known for its collections of 19th and 20th century American paintings,...
- Bank
The First Bank of the United States was a bank chartered by the United States Congress on February 25, 1791. The charter was for 20 years. The Bank was created to handle the financial needs and requirements of the central government of the newly formed United States, which had previously been...
- Botanical garden
Bartram's Garden is the oldest surviving botanic garden in North America, including an historic botanical garden and arboretum , located on the west bank of the Schuylkill River, near the intersection of 54th Street and Lindbergh Boulevard, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania...
- Cancer hospital
The Fox Chase Cancer Center is a National Cancer Institute-designated Comprehensive Cancer Center research facility and hospital located in the Fox Chase section of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. The main facilities of the center are located on property adjoining Burholme Park...
- Electronic computer
ENIAC , short for Electronic Numerical Integrator And Computer, was the first general-purpose electronic computer. It was a Turing-complete, digital computer capable of being reprogrammed to solve a full range of computing problems. ENIAC was designed to calculate artillery firing tables for the U.S...
- Eye hospital
- Hospital
Pennsylvania Hospital is a hospital in Center City, Philadelphia, currently affiliated with the University of Pennsylvania Health System...
- Fire company
Union Fire Company, sometimes called Benjamin Franklin's Bucket Brigade, was a volunteer fire department formed in Philadelphia in 1736 with the assistance of Benjamin Franklin. The first fire fighting organization in Philadelphia, though followed within the year by the Fellowship Fire Company...
- Fire insurance company
The Philadelphia Contributionship for the Insurance of Houses from Loss by Fire is the oldest property insurance company in the United States. It was organized by Benjamin Franklin in 1752, and incorporated in 1768....
- Medical school
- Mint
The Philadelphia Mint was created from the need to establish a national identity and the needs of commerce in the United States. This led the Founding Fathers of the United States to make an establishment of a continental national mint a main priority after the ratification of the Constitution of...
- Municipal water system
The Fairmount Water Works in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania was the first municipal waterworks in the United States. Designed in 1812 by Frederick Graff and built between 1819 and 1822 it operated until 1909, winning praise for its design and becoming a popular tourist attraction...
- Pediatric hospital
The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia is one of the largest and oldest children's hospitals in the world. CHOP has been ranked as the best children's hospital in the United States by U.S. News & World Report and Parents Magazine in recent years. As of 2008, it was ranked #1 in the nation for...
- Penitentiary
The Eastern State Penitentiary is considered one of America's most historic former prisons. It was operational from 1829 until 1971 and is located on Fairmount Avenue between Corinthian Avenue and North 22nd Street in the Fairmount section of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania...
- Pharmacy school
The University of the Sciences in Philadelphia , located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, offers bachelor's, master's, and doctoral degrees in pharmacy and a variety of other health-related disciplines. Originally known as the Philadelphia College of Pharmacy, it was the first college of pharmacy in...
- Post office
The United States Postal Service is an independent agency of the United States government responsible for providing postal service in the United States. It is one of the few government agencies explicitly authorized by the United States Constitution. Within the United States, it is commonly...
- Public library
The Free Library of Philadelphia is the public library system serving Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.-History:In 1890, George S. Pepper, , at the suggestion of Dr...
- Savings bank
The Philadelphia Savings Fund Society , originally called the Philadelphia Saving Fund Society, was a savings bank headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. PSFS was founded in December 1816, becoming the first savings bank to organize and do business in the United States...
- Stock exchange
Philadelphia Stock Exchange is the oldest stock exchange in the United States, founded in 1790. It is now owned by NASDAQ and located at 1900 Market Street, in Center City Philadelphia.-History:...
- Title insurance company
The Real Estate Title Insurance Company of Philadelphia was the world's first title insurance company.-Background:Prior to the invention of title insurance buyers in real estate transactions bore sole responsibility for ensuring the validity of the land title held by the seller...
- University
The University of Pennsylvania is a private research university located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA. Penn is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States, and is one of several institutions that claims to have been the first university in America...
- Zoo
The Philadelphia Zoo, located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on the west bank of the Schuylkill River, was the first zoo in the United States. Chartered by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania on March 21, 1859, its opening was delayed by the American Civil War until July 1, 1874...
Demographics
As of the 2005-2007
American Community SurveyThe American Community Survey is a project of the U.S. Census Bureau that replaces the long form in the decennial census. It is an ongoing statistical survey, sent to approximately 250,000 addresses monthly, and thus more current than information obtained by the long form.-History:Many Americans...
conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau,
White AmericanWhite American is an umbrella term officially employed by the United States Census Bureau, Office of Management and Budget and other U.S...
s made up 42.7% of Philadelphia's population; of which 39.4% were non-Hispanic
whitesWhite people is a term which usually refers to human beings characterized, at least in part, by the light pigmentation of their skin...
.
BlacksThe term black people usually refers to a racial group of humans with skin colors that range from light brown to nearly black. It also has been used to categorize a number of diverse populations into a common group. Some definitions of the term include only people of relatively recent Sub Saharan...
or
African AmericanAfrican Americans are citizens or residents of the United States who have origins in any of the black populations of Africa. In the United States, the terms are generally used for Americans with at least partial Sub-Saharan African ancestry...
s made up 43.8% of Philadelphia's population; of which 43.0% were non-Hispanic blacks.
American IndianThe indigenous peoples of the Americas are the pre-Columbian inhabitants of the Americas, their descendants, and many ethnic groups who identify with those peoples...
s made up 0.2% of the city's population.
Asian American{Infobox Ethnic group|group = Asian American|image =Graduation Rate! align="CENTER" | Bachelor's Degree
or More|-| align="LEFT" | Asian Indians| align="RIGHT" | 90.2%| align="RIGHT" | 67.9%|-| align="LEFT" | Filipinos| align="RIGHT" | 90.8%...
s made up 5.4% of the city's population.
Pacific Islander AmericanPacific Islander Americans, also known as Oceanian Americans, are residents of the United States with original ancestry from Oceania. They represent the smallest racial group counted in the United States census of 2000. They numbered 874,000 people or 0.3 percent of the United States population...
s made up less than 0.1% of the city's population. Individuals from some other race made up 6.2% of the city's population; of which 0.4% were non-Hispanic. Individuals from
two or more racesMultiracial Americans, US residents who identify themselves as of "two or more races", numbered 6.8 million in 2000, or 2.4% of the population.Since the 1967 Supreme Court decision that deemed anti-miscegenation laws unconstitutional, there has been a considerable increase in the number of...
made up 1.6% of the city's population; of which 1.2% were non-Hispanic. In addition,
Hispanics and LatinosHispanic and Latino Americans are Americans of origins in Hispanic countries of Latin America or in Spain - "Mexican," "Puerto Rican," or "Cuban" - as well as those who indicate that they are "other Spanish, Hispanic, or Latino." Origin can be viewed as the heritage, nationality group, lineage, or...
made up 10.3% of Philadelphia's population.
As of the
censusA "census" is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population.In other words every 10 years...next one would be in 2010 The term is used mostly in connection with...
of 2000, there were 1,517,550 people, 590,071 households, and 352,272 families residing in the city. The
population densityPopulation density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans. It is a key term used in geography....
was 11,233.6/square mile (4,337.3/km²). There were 661,958 housing units at an average density of 4,900.1/sq mi (1,891.9/km²). As of the 2004 Census estimations, there were 1,463,281 people, 658,799 housing units, and the racial makeup of the city was 45.0% White, 43.2% African American, 5.5% Asian, 0.3% Native American, 0.1% Pacific Islander, 5.8% from
other racesRace and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the United States Census Bureau and the Federal Office of Management and Budget , are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...
, and 2.2% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 8.5% of the population. The top 5 largest ancestries include
IrishIrish Americans are citizens of the United States who trace their ancestry to Ireland. A total of 36,495,800 Americans reported Irish ancestry in the 2006 American Community Survey. The only self-reported ancestral group larger than Irish Americans are German Americans...
(13.6%),
ItalianAn Italian American is an American of Italian ancestry, and/or may also refer to someone possessing Italian/American dual citizenship. Italian Americans are the fourth largest European ethnic group in the United States.-History:...
(9.2%),
GermanGerman Americans are Americans of German descent. They form the largest self-reported ancestry group in the United States, outnumbering the Irish and English. They account for 50 million people, or 17% of the U.S. population...
(8.1%),
PolishA Polish American , is a citizen of the United States of Polish descent. There are an estimated 10 million such Polish Americans, representing about 3% of the population of the United States....
(4.3%), and
EnglishEnglish Americans are citizens of the United States whose ancestry originates wholly or partly in England. According to 2000 U.S census data, Americans reporting English ancestry made up an estimated 9.4% of the total U.S...
(2.9%).
Of the 590,071 households, 27.6% have children under the age of 18 living with them, 32.1% were
married couplesMarriage is a social union or legal contract between individuals that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged by a variety of ways, depending on the culture or demographic...
living together, 22.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 40.3% were non-families. 33.8% of all households were made up of individuals and 11.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.48 and the average family size was 3.22.
In the city, the population was spread out with 25.3% under the age of 18, 11.1% from 18 to 25, 29.3% from 25 to 45, 20.3% from 45 to 65, and 14.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34 years. For every 100 females there were 86.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 81.8 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $30,746, and the median income for a family was $37,036. Males had a median income of $34,199 versus $28,477 for females. The
per capita incomePer capita income means how much each individual receives, in monetary terms, of the yearly income generated in the country. This is what each citizen is to receive if the yearly national income is divided equally among everyone. Per capita income is usually reported in units of currency per year...
for the city was $16,509. About 18.4% of families and 22.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 31.3% of those under age 18 and 16.9% of those age 65 or over.
As of 2008 more than 500,000 immigrants call the Philadelphia metropolitan area home. More than one-fifth of these immigrants have arrived since 2000, resulting in an increase of 113,000 immigrants between the years 2000 and 2006. This is nearly the same amount of
immigrantsAmerican immigration refers to the movement of non-residents to the United States...
that arrived during the decade of the 1990s, of which today comprise 10.9% of the city's population. As reported by the Brookings Institution, the Philadelphia area is poised to re-emerge as a destination for immigrants, a longtime characteristic of the region that stalled in the mid-20th century.
Philadelphia has the second largest
IrishThe Irish people are a Western European ethnic group who originate in Ireland, in north western Europe. Ireland has been populated for around 9,000 years , with the Irish people's earliest ancestors recorded as the Nemedians, Fomorians, Fir Bolgs, Tuatha Dé Danann and the Milesians The Irish...
,
ItalianThe Italian people are an ethnic group, in the sense of sharing a common Italian culture, descent, and speaking the Italian language as a mother tongue...
, and
JamaicanJamaican Americans are Americans of Jamaican heritage or Jamaican-born people who live in the United States of America. American citizenship is not a prerequisite of being a Jamaican American as permanent residents are also given this title....
populations and the fourth largest
African AmericanAfrican Americans are citizens or residents of the United States who have origins in any of the black populations of Africa. In the United States, the terms are generally used for Americans with at least partial Sub-Saharan African ancestry...
population in the nation. Philadelphia also has the fourth largest population of Polish residents. In recent years, the
HispanicHispanic is a term that historically denoted a relationship to the ancient Hispania . During the modern era, it took on a more limited meaning, relating to the contemporary nation of Spain....
and
Asian American{Infobox Ethnic group|group = Asian American|image =Graduation Rate! align="CENTER" | Bachelor's Degree
or More|-| align="LEFT" | Asian Indians| align="RIGHT" | 90.2%| align="RIGHT" | 67.9%|-| align="LEFT" | Filipinos| align="RIGHT" | 90.8%...
populations have significantly increased. Hispanics have settled throughout the city, especially around
El Centro de OroEl Centro de Oro is a Latino area in the east side of North Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.El Centro de Oro is located in "5th & Lehigh" district of the city. Cultural rhythms, businesses and restaurants abound here...
. Philadelphia is home to the third largest Puerto Rican population in the United States. In recent years many
MexicanMexican Americans are Americans of Mexican descent. They account over 12.5% of the country's population: 28.3 million Americans listed their ancestry as Mexican as of 2006 forming about 64% of all Hispanics and Latinos in the United States. The United States is home to the second largest Mexican...
immigrants have come to areas around the Italian Market. There are an estimated 10,000 Mexicans living in South Philadelphia. Mexicans and Guatemalans also have settled in small communities in North Philadelphia, mainly in the Kensington neighborhood. Colombian immigrants have also come to the Olney neighborhood. The
AsianAsian people or Asiatic people is a demonym for people from Asia. However, the use of the term varies by country and person, often referring to people from a particular region or subregion of Asia...
population was once concentrated in the city's thriving Chinatown, but now
Korean AmericanKorean Americans are Americans of Korean descent. The Korean American community is the fifth largest Asian American subgroup, after the Chinese American, Filipino American, Indian American, and Vietnamese American communities...
s have come to Olney, and
VietnamVietnam , officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam , is the easternmost country on the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia. It is bordered by China to the north, Laos to the northwest, Cambodia to the southwest, and the South China Sea to the east...
ese have forged bazaars next to the
Italian MarketThe Italian Market is the popular name for the South 9th Street Curb Market, an area of Philadelphia featuring many grocery shops, cafes, restaurants, bakeries, cheese shops, butcher shops, etc., many with an Italian influence. It is generally considered to extend along 9th Street from Fitzwater...
in
South PhiladelphiaSouth 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.- History :...
. Concentrations of
Cambodian AmericanA Cambodian American is an American who is born, raised, or from Cambodia usually of Khmer descent but also including Chinese Cambodians, Vietnamese Cambodians, Cham people and other ethnicities of Cambodia...
neighborhoods can be found in North and South Philadelphia.
IndiaIndia, officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the south, the Arabian Sea on the west, and the Bay of Bengal...
ns and
ArabArab people or Arabs are an ethnic group whose members identify along linguistic, cultural or genealogical grounds...
s have come to
Northeast PhiladelphiaNortheast Philadelphia is a section of the city of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. According to the 2000 Census, the Northeast has a sizable percentage of the city's 1.447 million people — a population of between 300,000 and 450,000, depending on how the area is defined...
along with Russian and Ukrainian immigrants. This large influx of Asians has given Philadelphia one of the largest populations of Vietnamese, Cambodians, Chinese, Indonesians and Koreans in
United StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. The Philadelphia region also has the fourth largest population of Indian Americans. The West Indian population is concentrated in
Cedar ParkCedar Park is a neighborhood located in the West Philadelphia section of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It was built as a streetcar suburb for Center City between 1850 and 1910. It is a racially and ethnically diverse part of the city, with much of the historic architecture preserved...
.
GermansThe German people are an ethnic group, in the sense of sharing a common German culture, descent, and speaking the German language as a mother tongue. Within Germany, Germans are defined by citizenship , distinguished from people of German ancestry...
,
GreeksThe Greeks , also known as Hellenes, are a nation and ethnic group native to Greece, Cyprus and neighbouring regions, who can also be found in diaspora communities around the world....
,
ChineseHan Chinese are an ethnic group native to China and, by most modern definitions, the largest single ethnic group in the world.Han Chinese constitute about 92 percent of the population of the People's Republic of China , 98 percent of the population of the Republic of China , 75 percent of the...
,
JapaneseThe are the predominant ethnic group of Japan. Worldwide, approximately 130 million people are of Japanese descent; of these, approximately 127 million are residents of Japan. People of Japanese ancestry who live in other countries are referred to as...
,
EnglishThe English are a nation and ethnic group native to England, who speak English. The English identity as a people is of early medieval origin, when they were known in Old English as the Anglecynn....
, Pakistanis,
IraniansIranians may refer to:*the inhabitants and/or citizens of the country of Iran, see Demographics of Iran*speakers of Iranian languages, see Iranian peoples...
, and also immigrants from the former
YugoslaviaYugoslavia is a term that describes three political entities that existed successively on the Balkan Peninsula in Europe, during most of the 20th century.The first country to be known by this...
along with other ethnic groups can be found throughout the city.
Government
From a governmental perspective, Philadelphia County is a
legal nullityLegal nullity is a phrase used to refer to any entity which might theoretically be of some legal significance, but in fact possesses no identity or distinct structure of its own....
, as all county functions were assumed by the city in 1952, which has been coterminous with the county since 1854.
Philadelphia’s 1952 Home Rule Charter was written by the City Charter Commission, which was created by the Pennsylvania General Assembly in an Act of April 21, 1949, and a city ordinance of June 15, 1949. The existing City Council received a proposed draft on February 14, 1951, and the electors approved it in an election held April 17, 1951. The first elections under the new Home Rule Charter were held in November, 1951, and the newly elected officials took office in January, 1952.
The city uses the "strong-mayor" version of the mayor-council form of government, which is headed by one
mayor"Mayor" is a modern title used in many countries for the highest ranking officer in a municipal government....
, in whom executive authority is vested. Elected "
at-largeAt-Large is a designation for representative members of a governing body who are elected or appointed to represent the whole membership of the body , rather than a subset of that membership....
," the mayor is limited to two consecutive four-year terms under the city's
home ruleHome rule is where constituent parts of a state are given greater self-government within the administrative purview of the central government....
charter, but can run for the position again after an intervening term. The current city mayor, having taken office in January 2008, is Michael Nutter, replacing
John F. StreetJohn Franklin Street was the 97th Mayor of the City of Philadelphia. He was first elected to a term beginning on January 3, 2000, and was re-elected to a second term beginning in 2004...
who served two terms from 1999 to the end of 2007. Nutter, as all Philadelphia mayors have been since 1952, is a member of the Democratic Party, which tends to dominate local politics so thoroughly that the Democratic primary for mayor is often more noticeable than the general mayoral election. The legislative branch, the
Philadelphia City CouncilThe Philadelphia City Council, the legislative body of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, consists of ten members elected by district and seven members elected at-large. The council president is elected by the members from among their number...
, consists of ten council members representing individual districts and seven members elected at large. The current council president is
Anna C. VernaHonorable Anna Cibotti Verna is President of the Philadelphia City Council on which she has served since 1975 as the representative of the Second District, which encompasses most of South Philadelphia and as well as most of the western end of Center City. She is a Democrat and generally thought...
.
The Philadelphia County
Court of Common PleasThe Pennsylvania Courts of Common Pleas are the trial courts of the Unified Judicial System of Pennsylvania .The Courts of Common Pleas are the trial courts of general jurisdiction in the state....
(First Judicial District) is the felony-level
trial courtA trial court or court of first instance is a court in which trials take place. Such courts are said to have original jurisdiction.A trial court of general jurisdiction is authorized to hear any type of civil or criminal case that is not committed exclusively to another court...
of general jurisdiction for Philadelphia. It is funded and operated largely by city resources and employees. The Philadelphia Municipal Court handles matters of limited jurisdiction as well as landlord-tenant disputes, appeals from traffic court, preliminary hearings for felony-level offenses, and misdemeanor criminal trials.
Traffic CourtTraffic court is a term that refers to a municipality's specialized judicial process for handling traffic ticket cases. In the United States, a person who is given a citation by a police officer can either plead guilty and pay the indicated fine directly to the court house, by mail, or in some...
is a court of special jurisdiction that hears violations of traffic laws.
Pennsylvania's three
appellate courtAn appellate court is any court of law that is empowered to hear an appeal of a trial court or other lower tribunal. In most jurisdictions, the court system is divided into at least three levels: the trial court, which initially hears cases and reviews evidence and testimony to determine the facts...
s also have sittings in Philadelphia. The
Supreme Court of PennsylvaniaThe Supreme Court of Pennsylvania is the court of last resort for the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. It meets in Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, and Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.-History:...
, the court of last resort in the state, regularly hears arguments in
Philadelphia City HallPhiladelphia City Hall is the seat of government for the city of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. At 167 m , including the statue, it is the world's tallest masonry building: the weight of the building is borne by granite and brick walls up to thick, rather than steel; the principal exterior...
. Also, the
Superior Court of PennsylvaniaThe Superior Court of Pennsylvania is the intermediate court of appeal in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, between the trial court of general jurisdiction—called the Court of Common Pleas—and the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania. Appeal to the Superior Court is generally of right from...
and the
Commonwealth Court of PennsylvaniaThe Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania is one of two Pennsylvania intermediate appellate courts. The Commonwealth Court's headquarters is located in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. The Superior Court of Pennsylvania is the other intermediate appellate court in the Pennsylvania Unified Judicial System...
sit in Philadelphia several times a year. Judges for these courts are elected at large. Each court has a
prothonotaryThe word prothonotary is recorded in English since 1447, as "principal clerk of a court," from L.L. prothonotarius , from Greek protonotarios "first scribe," originally the chief of the college of recorders of the court of the Byzantine Empire, from Greek protos "first" + Latin notarius ; the -h-...
's office in Philadelphia as well.
The Philadelphia Historical Commission was created in 1955 to preserve the cultural, social, political, economic and architectural history of the city. The commission maintains the Philadelphia Register of Historic Places, adding historic buildings, structures, sites, objects and districts as it sees fit.
The Philadelphia Housing Authority is the largest landlord in the entire Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Established in 1937, it is the nation’s fourth-largest housing authority, housing approximately 84,000 people and employing 1,250. In 2006, its budget was $313 million.
The
United States Postal ServiceThe United States Postal Service is an independent agency of the United States government responsible for providing postal service in the United States. It is one of the few government agencies explicitly authorized by the United States Constitution. Within the United States, it is commonly...
operates post offices in Philadelphia. The main Philadelphia Post Office is at 3000 Chestnut Street in the
University CityUniversity City is the easternmost neighborhood of West Philadelphia, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Its boundaries, as defined by the non-profit organization and the City of Philadelphia, are: the Schuylkill River to the east; Spring Garden Street, Powelton Avenue, and Market Street to the north;...
district. The facility at 3000 Chestnut became Philadelphia's main post office at 8 A.M. on Monday September 29, 2008, after the closure of the former main post office at 30th Street and Market Street in University City.
Politics and elections
Presidential election results
| Year |
RepublicanThe Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the Grand Old Party or the GOP, despite being the younger of the two major parties. In the U.S...
|
Democratic The Democratic Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. It is the oldest political party in continuous operation in the United States and it is one of the oldest parties in the world. In the U.S...
|
| 2008 |
16.33% 117,221 |
83.01% 595,980 |
| 2004 |
19.3% 130,099 |
80.4% 542,205 |
| 2000 |
18.0% 100,959 |
80.0% 449,182 |
| 1996 |
16.0% 85,345 |
77.5% 412,988 |
| 1992 |
20.9% 133,328 |
68.2% 434,904 |
| 1988 |
32.5% 219,053 |
66.6% 449,566 |
| 1984 |
34.6% 267,178 |
64.9% 501,369 |
| 1980 |
34.0% 244,108 |
58.7% 421,253 |
| 1976 |
32.0% 239,000 |
66.3% 494,579 |
| 1972 |
43.4% 340,096 |
55.1% 431,736 |
| 1968 |
30.0% 254,153 |
61.8% 525,768 |
| 1964 |
26.2% 239,733 |
73.4% 670,645 |
| 1960 |
31.8% 291,000 |
68.0% 622,544 |
As of November 2008, there are 1,126,768 registered voters in Philadelphia.
- Democratic
The Democratic Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. It is the oldest political party in continuous operation in the United States and it is one of the oldest parties in the world. In the U.S...
: 880,684 (78.16%)
- Republican
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the Grand Old Party or the GOP, despite being the younger of the two major parties. In the U.S...
: 147,074 (13.05%)
- Other Parties: 99,010 (8.79%)
From the
American Civil WarThe American Civil War , also known as the War Between the States and several other names, was a civil war in the United States of America. Eleven Southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America...
until the mid-20th century, Philadelphia was a bastion of the
Republican PartyThe Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the Grand Old Party or the GOP, despite being the younger of the two major parties. In the U.S...
, which arose from the staunch pro-Northern views of Philadelphia residents during and after the war. After the
Great DepressionThe Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
, Democratic registrations increased, but the city was not carried by Democratic
Franklin D. RooseveltFranklin Delano Roosevelt , the only U.S. President elected to more than two terms, was a central figure in world events during the mid-20th century, leading the United States during a time of worldwide economic crisis and world war...
in his landslide victory of 1932 (in which Pennsylvania was one of the few states won by Republican
Herbert HooverHerbert Clark Hoover was the 31st President of the United States . Hoover was a professional mining engineer and author. As the United States Secretary of Commerce in the 1920s under Presidents Warren Harding and Calvin Coolidge, he promoted government intervention under the rubric "economic...
). While other Northern industrial cities were electing Democratic mayors in the 1930s and 1940s, Philadelphia did not follow suit until 1951. That is, Philadelphia never had a "New Deal" coalition.
The city is now one of the most Democratic in the country, despite the frequent election of Republicans to statewide offices since the 1930s; in 2008, Democrat
Barack ObamaBarack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office, as well as the first president born in Hawaii...
drew 83% of the city's vote.
Philadelphia once comprised six
congressional districtA congressional district is an electoral constituency that elects a single member of a congress. Countries with congressional districts include the United States, the Philippines, and Japan...
s. However, as a result of the city's declining population, it now has only four:
the 1st districtPennsylvania's first congressional district includes primarily central and South Philadelphia, the City of Chester, the Philadelphia International Airport, and other small sections of Delaware County. The district currently has an overwhelming Democratic majority. Bob Brady, the chairman of the...
, represented by
Bob BradyRobert A. "Bob" Brady is a politician from the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. Since 1998, he has represented in the United States House of Representatives. He is currently the Chairman of the United States House Committee on House Administration.-Early biography:Brady was born in Philadelphia,...
;
the 2ndPennsylvania's second district includes predominantly African American sections of the city of Philadelphia-West Philadelphia, North Philadelphia, and Northwest Philadelphia in addition to Cheltenham Township in Montgomery County...
, represented by
Chaka FattahChaka Fattah , has served as a Democratic member of the United States House of Representatives since 1994, representing the 2nd congressional district of Pennsylvania , which includes North Philadelphia, West Philadelphia, a very small portion of Northeast Philadelphia and Cheltenham Township in...
;
the 8thThe 8th Pennsylvania Congressional District serves Bucks County, along with a small portion of Montgomery County and Northeast Philadelphia, in Pennsylvania...
, represented by
Patrick MurphyPatrick Joseph Murphy is the Congressman from Pennsylvania's 8th congressional district, an American lawyer, and a former U.S. Army soldier. Murphy is the first veteran of the Iraq War to serve in Congress...
; and
the 13thThe 13th Congressional District of Pennsylvania is located in Southeastern Pennsylvania, covering eastern Montgomery County and Northeast Philadelphia. The district traditionally included most of Montgomery County, but was redrawn in 2002...
, represented by
Allyson SchwartzAllyson Young Schwartz is an American politician and Democratic member of the United States House of Representatives, representing the Thirteenth Congressional District of Pennsylvania since 2005. Her district includes parts of Montgomery County, and a portion of Philadelphia...
. All four are Democrats. Although they are usually swamped by Democrats in city, state and national elections, Republicans still have some support in the area; a Republican represented a significant portion of Philadelphia in the House as late as 1983. Pennsylvania's Democratic
SenatorThe United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral United States Congress, the lower house being the House of Representatives. The composition and powers of the Senate and the House are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution . Each U.S state is represented by two senators,...
,
Arlen SpecterArlen Specter is the senior United States Senator from Pennsylvania and a member of the Democratic Party. Specter was a member of the Democratic Party until 1965, when he enlisted as a Republican in order to challenge the Democratic district attorney of Philadelphia. Elected to the Senate in 1980,...
, is from Philadelphia.
Crime
Like many American cities, Philadelphia saw a gradual yet pronounced rise in crime in the years following
World War IIWorld War II, or the Second World War , was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including all great powers, organized into two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. There were 525 murders in 1990, a rate of 31.5 per 100,000. There were an average of about 600 murders a year for most of the 1990s. The murder count dropped in 2002 to 288, then surged four years later to 406. Out of the ten most populous cities in the United States in 2006, Philadelphia had the highest homicide rate at 27.7 per 100,000 people, though the number of murders decreased to 392 in 2007.
In 2004, there were 7,513.5 crimes per 200,000 people in Philadelphia. In 2005, Philadelphia was ranked by
Morgan QuitnoMorgan Quitno Press is a research and publishing company based in Lawrence, Kansas. They compile books with statistics of crime rates, health care, education, and other categories, ranking cities and states in the United States...
as the sixth-most dangerous among 32 American cities with populations over 500,000. Among its neighboring Mid-Atlantic cities in the same population group,
BaltimoreBaltimore is an independent city and the largest city in the state of Maryland. The city is located in central Maryland along the tidal portion of the Patapsco River, an arm of the Chesapeake Bay. Baltimore is sometimes referred to as Baltimore City in order to distinguish it from surrounding...
and
Washington, D.C.Washington, D.C. , formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, the District, or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States, founded on July 16, 1790...
were ranked second- and third-most dangerous cities in the United States, respectively, and
CamdenThe City of Camden is the county seat of Camden County, New Jersey, in the United States. It is located across the Delaware River from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania...
,
New JerseyNew Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It is bordered on the north by New York, and to the east by the Hudson River, Upper New York Bay, the Kill Van Kull, Newark Bay, the Arthur Kill, Raritan Bay, Sandy Hook Bay, Westchester County, New York City, Long Island, and...
, a city across the Delaware River from Philadelphia, was ranked as the most dangerous city in the United States.
In 2008, Camden was the second-most dangerous city in the country, lower than its 2004 ranking, but still high for a city its size, while Philadelphia was ranked 22nd.
Education
EducationEducation in its broadest sense is any act or experience that has a formative effect on the mind, character or physical ability of an individual...
in Philadelphia is provided by many private and public institutions. The
School District of PhiladelphiaThe School District of Philadelphia is a school district based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, that includes all public schools in the city of Philadelphia. Established in 1818, it is the tenth largest school district in the nation....
runs the city's
public schoolsIn most of the world, excluding England and Wales and some Commonwealth countries, a public school is an educational institution that is funded with tax revenue and most commonly administered by a local government or government agency...
. The Philadelphia School District is the eighth largest
school district-United States:In the United States, public schools are either school districts, which are independent special-purpose governments, or dependent school systems, which are under the control of state or local government. A school district is a legally separate body corporate and politic...
in the United States with 210,432 students in 346 public and charter schools.
Philadelphia is one of the largest
college townA college town or university town is a community which is dominated by its university population...
s in the United States and has the second-largest student concentration on the East Coast with over 120,000 college and university students enrolled within the city and nearly 300,000 in the metropolitan area. There are over 80 colleges, universities, trade, and specialty schools in the Philadelphia region. The city contains three major research universities: the
University of PennsylvaniaThe University of Pennsylvania is a private research university located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA. Penn is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States, and is one of several institutions that claims to have been the first university in America...
,
Drexel UniversityDrexel University is a private coeducational university located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. It was founded in 1891 by Anthony J. Drexel, a noted financier and philanthropist.-History:...
, and
Temple UniversityTemple University is a state-related public research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Temple University was founded in 1884 by Dr. Russell Conwell and became known as Temple College in 1888. In 1907, the college became a fully accredited university...
. Other institutions of higher learning within the city's borders include
Saint Joseph's UniversitySaint Joseph's University is a private, coeducational Roman Catholic university located partially in the Wynnefield section of Philadelphia and partially in Lower Merion Township and located in the Pennsylvania Main Line, Pennsylvania, United States.The school was founded in 1851 as Saint Joseph's...
,
La Salle UniversityLa Salle University is a private, co-educational, Roman Catholic university located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S. Named for St. Jean-Baptiste de la Salle, the school was founded in 1863 by the Institute of the Brothers of the Christian Schools. As of 2008 the school has approximately 7,554...
,
Peirce CollegePeirce College is an educational institution of higher learning located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania which caters primarily to working adults.- History :...
,
University of the Sciences in PhiladelphiaThe University of the Sciences in Philadelphia , located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, offers bachelor's, master's, and doctoral degrees in pharmacy and a variety of other health-related disciplines. Originally known as the Philadelphia College of Pharmacy, it was the first college of pharmacy in...
, The University of the Arts, Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts, the
Curtis Institute of MusicThe Curtis Institute of Music is a conservatory in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania that offers courses of study leading to a performance Diploma, Bachelor of Music, Master of Music in Opera, and Professional Studies Certificate in Opera. According to statistics compiled by U.S...
,
Thomas Jefferson UniversityThomas Jefferson University is a private health sciences university in Center City, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in the United States. The university consists of three constituent colleges, Jefferson Medical College, Jefferson College of Graduate Studies, and Jefferson College of Health...
,
Moore College of Art and DesignMoore College of Art & Design is an independent college of art and design located in the heart of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The first and only women's visual arts college in the nation, and one of only two in the world, Moore thrives on the promise of empowering women to achieve financial...
, The Art Institute of Philadelphia,
Philadelphia College of Osteopathic MedicineThe Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine is one of the oldest and largest osteopathic medical schools. Founded in 1899, PCOM is home to over 1000 medical students as well as graduate-level students in several other fields of health care. One of the largest medical schools in the United...
,
The Restaurant School at Walnut Hill CollegeThe Restaurant School at Walnut Hill College was founded in 1974 as America's first private college to offer career training in fine dining and the luxury hospitality industry. The college offers four majors: Culinary Arts, Restaurant Management, Pastry Arts and Hotel Management...
,
Philadelphia UniversityPhiladelphia University, founded in 1884, is a private university located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Philadelphia University's student body consists of about 3,500 individuals from all 50 states and over 30 countries...
,
Chestnut Hill CollegeChestnut Hill College is an inclusive coeducational Roman Catholic college in the Chestnut Hill section of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA. It was founded in 1924 as a women's college by the Sisters of St. Joseph. It was originally called Mount Saint Joseph College and assumed its current name in...
, Holy Family University, the
Community College of PhiladelphiaCommunity College of Philadelphia is a community college in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. The main campus is located at 1700 Spring Garden Street in a building that was the former Philadelphia Mint...
and
Messiah College Philadelphia CampusMessiah College is a private Christian college of the liberal and applied arts and sciences in the unincorporated village of Grantham in south-central Pennsylvania...
.
Philadelphia's famous
Pennsylvania Main LineThe Main Line is an unofficial region of suburban Philadelphia comprising a collection of affluent towns built along the old Main Line of the Pennsylvania Railroad which runs northwest from Center City Philadelphia...
and western suburbs are home to other notable colleges and universities including
Villanova UniversityVillanova University is a private university located in Radnor Township, a suburb northwest of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in the United States...
,
Bryn Mawr CollegeBryn Mawr College is a women's liberal arts college located in Bryn Mawr, a community in Lower Merion Township, Pennsylvania, ten miles west of Philadelphia...
,
Haverford CollegeHaverford College is a private, coeducational liberal arts college located in Haverford, Pennsylvania, a suburb of Philadelphia.The college was founded in 1833 by area members of the Orthodox Philadelphia Yearly Meeting of the Religious Society of Friends to ensure an education grounded in Quaker...
, and
Swarthmore CollegeSwarthmore College is a private, independent, liberal arts college in the United States with an enrollment of about 1,500 students. The college is located in the borough of Swarthmore, Pennsylvania, 11 miles southwest of Philadelphia....
.
In early September 2009, the
Free Library of PhiladelphiaThe Free Library of Philadelphia is the public library system serving Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.-History:In 1890, George S. Pepper, , at the suggestion of Dr...
announced that the Parkway Central Library and all of its local and regional branches will cease operations as of the 2nd of October, 2009 due to the state budget crisis in Harrisburg.
Infrastructure
Philadelphia is served by the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority (SEPTA), which operates
busA bus is a road vehicle designed to carry passengers. A bus seats a maximum of 8 to 300 passengers...
es,
trainA train is a connected series of vehicles for rail transport that move along a track to transport freight or passengers from one place to another. The track usually consists of two rails, but might also be a monorail or maglev guideway....
s,
rapid transitA rapid transit, metro, subway, underground, or elevated railway system is an electric passenger railway in an urban area with high capacity and frequency, and which is grade separated from other traffic. Rapid transit systems are typically either in underground tunnels or elevated above street level...
,
trolleysA tram, tramcar, trolley, trolleycar, or streetcar is a railborne vehicle, of lighter weight and construction than a conventional train, designed for the transport of passengers within, close to, or between villages, towns and/or cities, on tracks running primarily on streets...
, and
trackless trolleysA trolleybus is an electric bus that draws its electricity from overhead wires using spring-loaded trolley poles...
throughout Philadelphia, the four Pennsylvania
suburbSuburbs are defined in various different ways around the world. They can be the residential areas of a large city, or separate residential communities within commuting distance of a city. Some suburbs have a degree of political autonomy, and most have lower population density than inner city...
an counties of
BucksBucks County is a county located in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. The county seat is Doylestown. This county is part of the Delaware Valley area.As of 2000, the population was 597,635. A 2004 U.S...
,
ChesterChester County is a county located in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. As of 2000, the population was 433,501. The county seat is West Chester...
,
DelawareDelaware County is a county located in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. As of 2000, the population was 550,864, making it Pennsylvania's fifth most populous county, behind Philadelphia, Allegheny, Montgomery, and Bucks counties....
, and
MontgomeryMontgomery County is a county located in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania, in the United States. As of 2000, the population was 750,097. A 2005 U.S. Census estimate placed the population at 795,618, making it the third most populous county in Pennsylvania and the 69th most populous county in the...
, in addition to service to
Mercer County, New JerseyMercer County is a county located in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Its county seat is Trenton, the state capital. It is officially part of both the New York metropolitan area and Delaware Valley, due to it being close to New York City and Philadelphia, as well as the Trenton-Ewing Metropolitan...
and
New Castle County, DelawareNew Castle County is the northernmost of the three counties of the U.S. state of Delaware. As of 2000 its population was 500,265. The county seat is Wilmington. The center of population of Delaware is located in New Castle County, in the town of Townsend...
. The city's subway, opened in 1907, is the third-oldest in America.
SEPTA's
R1The SEPTA R1 is a route of the SEPTA Regional Rail commuter rail system. The Pennsylvania Railroad end of the route terminates at the Philadelphia International Airport and the Reading Company end officially terminates at Glenside, Pennsylvania. In reality, , R1 Airport trains will usually become...
Regional Rail line offers direct service to the
Philadelphia International AirportPhiladelphia International Airport is an airport in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and is the largest airport in the Delaware Valley region and in Pennsylvania. As of 2008 it is the 11th busiest airport in the world in terms of aircraft activity...
.
Philadelphia's 30th Street Station is a major railroad station on
AmtrakThe National Railroad Passenger Corporation, doing business as Amtrak , is a government-owned corporation that was organized on May 1, 1971 to provide intercity passenger train service in the United States. "Amtrak" is a blend of the words "America" and "track". It is headquartered at Union Station...
's
Northeast CorridorThe Northeast Corridor is the busiest passenger rail line in the United States by ridership and service frequency. The route is fully electrified and serves a densely urbanized string of cities from Washington, D.C., in the south through Baltimore, Wilmington, Philadelphia, Trenton, Newark, New...
, which offers access to Amtrak, SEPTA, and
New Jersey TransitThe New Jersey Transit Corporation is a statewide public transportation system serving the state of New Jersey, United States, and Orange and Rockland counties in New York...
lines.
The PATCO Speedline provides
rapid transitA rapid transit, metro, subway, underground, or elevated railway system is an electric passenger railway in an urban area with high capacity and frequency, and which is grade separated from other traffic. Rapid transit systems are typically either in underground tunnels or elevated above street level...
service to
CamdenThe City of Camden is the county seat of Camden County, New Jersey, in the United States. It is located across the Delaware River from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania...
,
CollingswoodCollingswood is a Borough in Camden County, New Jersey, United States. As of the United States 2000 Census, the borough population was 14,326....
, Westmont,
HaddonfieldThe fictional town from the Halloween film series.Haddonfield is a borough located in Camden County, New Jersey. As of the United States 2000 Census, the borough had a total population of 11,659....
,
Woodcrest (Cherry Hill)Cherry Hill is a township in Camden County, New Jersey, in the United States. In the United States 2000 Census, the township had a total population of 69,965 and was the 13th-largest municipality in New Jersey by population...
, Ashland (Voorhees), and
LindenwoldLindenwold, also know as the Home of the Brave, is a Borough in Camden County, New Jersey, United States. As of the United States 2000 Census, the borough population was 17,414....
,
New JerseyNew Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It is bordered on the north by New York, and to the east by the Hudson River, Upper New York Bay, the Kill Van Kull, Newark Bay, the Arthur Kill, Raritan Bay, Sandy Hook Bay, Westchester County, New York City, Long Island, and...
, from stations on Locust Street between 16th and 15th, 13th and 12th, and 10th and 9th Streets, and on Market Street at 8th Street.
Airports
Two airports serve Philadelphia: the
Philadelphia International AirportPhiladelphia International Airport is an airport in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and is the largest airport in the Delaware Valley region and in Pennsylvania. As of 2008 it is the 11th busiest airport in the world in terms of aircraft activity...
(PHL), straddling the southern boundary of the city, and the
Northeast Philadelphia AirportNortheast Philadelphia Airport is a public airport located just north of the intersection of Grant Avenue and Ashton Road in the Ashton-Woodenbridge neighborhood of Northeast Philadelphia. It is part of the Philadelphia Airport System along with Philadelphia International Airport, and is the...
(PNE), a general aviation reliever airport in
Northeast PhiladelphiaNortheast Philadelphia is a section of the city of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. According to the 2000 Census, the Northeast has a sizable percentage of the city's 1.447 million people — a population of between 300,000 and 450,000, depending on how the area is defined...
. Philadelphia International Airport provides scheduled domestic and international air service, while Northeast Philadelphia Airport serves general and corporate aviation. As of March 2006, Philadelphia International Airport was the 10th largest airport measured by "traffic movements" (i.e. takeoffs and landings), and was also a primary hub for
US AirwaysUS Airways, Inc., an operating unit of US Airways Group, is the fifth largest airline in the United States.A member of the Star Alliance, the airline has a fleet of 353 mainline jet aircraft and 319 regional jet and turbo-prop aircraft connecting 200 destinations in North America, Central America,...
.
Roads
Interstate 95Interstate 95 is a Interstate highway running from Miami, Florida north to Houlton, Maine. In the U.S. state of Pennsylvania, the route is known by many as the Delaware Expressway, but is officilaly named The Vietnam Veterans Memorial Highway. and locally known as "95"...
runs through the city along the Delaware River as a main north-south artery. The city is also served by the
Schuylkill ExpresswayThe Schuylkill Expressway, locally known simply as the Schuylkill,, is a freeway through southeastern Montgomery County and the city of Philadelphia, and the easternmost segment of Interstate 76 in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania...
, a portion of
Interstate 76This article is about the eastern Interstate 76. For the other Interstate 76, see Interstate 76 Interstate 76 is an Interstate Highway in the United States, running 435 miles from an interchange with Interstate 71 west of Akron, Ohio, east to Interstate 295 near Camden, New Jersey.East of Akron,...
that runs along the
Schuylkill RiverThe Schuylkill River, most often , is a river in the U.S. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. It is a designated Pennsylvania Scenic River....
. It meets the
Pennsylvania TurnpikeThe Pennsylvania Turnpike is a toll highway system operated by the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States. The turnpike system encompasses 532 miles in three sections. Its main section, extending from the Ohio state line in the west to the New...
at
King of Prussia, PennsylvaniaKing of Prussia is an unincorporated community in Upper Merion Township, Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, United States. As of the 2000 census, its population was 18,511. The community took its name in the 18th century from a local tavern named "The King of Prussia Inn", which was named for...
, providing access to
Harrisburg, PennsylvaniaHarrisburg is the capital of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, in the United States of America. As of the 2000 census, the city had a population of 48,950, making it the tenth largest city in Pennsylvania, after Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Allentown, Erie, Reading, Scranton, Bethlehem, Lancaster, and...
and points west.
Interstate 676Interstate 676 is an Interstate Highway that serves as a major thoroughfare through Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, where it is known as the Vine Street Expressway, and Camden, New Jersey, where it is known as the northern segment of the North-South Freeway, as well as the Martin Luther King Jr....
, the Vine Street Expressway, was completed in 1991 after years of planning. A link between I-95 and I-76, it runs below street level through Center City, connecting to the Ben Franklin Bridge at its eastern end.
Roosevelt BoulevardRoosevelt Boulevard , often referred to simply as "the Boulevard," is a major traffic artery through North and Northeast Philadelphia...
and the Roosevelt Expressway (
U.S. 1U.S. Route 1 is a major north-south U.S. Highway, extending from the Florida Keys in the south to the Canadian border in the north. In the U.S. state of Pennsylvania, US 1 runs for from the Maryland state line near Oxford to the New Jersey state line near Trenton.-Maryland to Interstate 476:US 1...
) connect
Northeast PhiladelphiaNortheast Philadelphia is a section of the city of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. According to the 2000 Census, the Northeast has a sizable percentage of the city's 1.447 million people — a population of between 300,000 and 450,000, depending on how the area is defined...
with Center City. Woodhaven Road (
Route 63Pennsylvania Route 63 is a long state highway located in the Philadelphia, Pennsylvania area. The western terminus of the route is at Pennsylvania Route 29 in Green Lane. The eastern terminus is at I-95 in Bensalem Township.-Montgomery County:...
), built in 1966, and Cottman Avenue (Route 73) serve the neighborhoods of
Northeast PhiladelphiaNortheast Philadelphia is a section of the city of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. According to the 2000 Census, the Northeast has a sizable percentage of the city's 1.447 million people — a population of between 300,000 and 450,000, depending on how the area is defined...
, running between
Interstate 95Interstate 95 is a Interstate highway running from Miami, Florida north to Houlton, Maine. In the U.S. state of Pennsylvania, the route is known by many as the Delaware Expressway, but is officilaly named The Vietnam Veterans Memorial Highway. and locally known as "95"...
and the Roosevelt Boulevard (
U.S. 1U.S. Route 1 is a major north-south U.S. Highway, extending from the Florida Keys in the south to the Canadian border in the north. In the U.S. state of Pennsylvania, US 1 runs for from the Maryland state line near Oxford to the New Jersey state line near Trenton.-Maryland to Interstate 476:US 1...
). The Fort Washington Expressway (
Pennsylvania Route 309Pennsylvania Route 309, sometimes known locally simply as "309", is a major highway which runs for 134 miles through Pennsylvania, in the United States that connects Philadelphia and its northern suburbs to Allentown, Hazleton, and Wilkes-Barre...
) extends north from the city's northern border, serving
Montgomery CountyMontgomery County is a county located in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania, in the United States. As of 2000, the population was 750,097. A 2005 U.S. Census estimate placed the population at 795,618, making it the third most populous county in Pennsylvania and the 69th most populous county in the...
and
Bucks CountyBucks County is a county located in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. The county seat is Doylestown. This county is part of the Delaware Valley area.As of 2000, the population was 597,635. A 2004 U.S...
.
Route 30The Philadelphia and Lancaster Turnpike, first used in 1795, is the first long-distance, paved road built in the United States according to engineered plans and specifications. It links Lancaster, Pennsylvania and Philadelphia at 34th Street, stretching for sixty-two miles. However, the western...
, extending east-west from
West PhiladelphiaWest Philadelphia is a section of the City of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Though there is no official definition of its boundaries, West Philly is generally considered to reach from the western shore of the Schuylkill River, to City Line Avenue to the northwest, Cobbs Creek to the...
to Lancaster, is known as Lancaster Avenue throughout most of the city and through the adjacent
Main LineThe Main Line is an unofficial region of suburban Philadelphia comprising a collection of affluent towns built along the old Main Line of the Pennsylvania Railroad which runs northwest from Center City Philadelphia...
suburb.
Interstate 476Interstate 476 is a auxiliary Interstate Highway in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania designated between Interstate 95 near Chester and Interstate 81 near Scranton, serving as the primary north-south Interstate corridor through eastern Pennsylvania...
, commonly nicknamed the "Blue Route" through
Delaware CountyDelaware County is a county located in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. As of 2000, the population was 550,864, making it Pennsylvania's fifth most populous county, behind Philadelphia, Allegheny, Montgomery, and Bucks counties....
, bypasses the city to the west, serving the city's western suburbs, as well as providing a link to
AllentownAllentown is a city located in Lehigh County, Pennsylvania, in the United States. It is Pennsylvania's third most populous city, after Philadelphia and Pittsburgh. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 106,632...
and points north. Similarly,
Interstate 276Interstate 276 is a segment of the Pennsylvania Turnpike mainline running from Interstate 76 in King of Prussia, Pennsylvania to the Pennsylvania/New Jersey border at the Delaware River, where it connects with the New Jersey Turnpike extension...
, the Pennsylvania Turnpike's Delaware River Extension, acts as a bypass and commuter route to the north of the city as well as a link to the
New Jersey TurnpikeThe New Jersey Turnpike is a toll road in New Jersey and is one of the most heavily traveled highways in the United States...
to
New YorkNew York is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States and is the nation's third most populous. The state is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
.
However, other planned
freewayA freeway is a type of road designed for safer high-speed operation of motor vehicles through the elimination of at-grade intersections. This is accomplished by preventing access to and from adjacent properties and eliminating all cross traffic through the use of grade separations and...
s have been canceled, such as an
Interstate 695Interstate 695 was a proposed three-digit Interstate Highway that would connect Interstate 95 in Southwest Philadelphia, at the Philadelphia International Airport, with I-95 near the Delaware River waterfront near the Benjamin Franklin Bridge...
running southwest from downtown, two freeways connecting
Interstate 95Interstate 95 is a Interstate highway running from Miami, Florida north to Houlton, Maine. In the U.S. state of Pennsylvania, the route is known by many as the Delaware Expressway, but is officilaly named The Vietnam Veterans Memorial Highway. and locally known as "95"...
to
Interstate 76This article is about the eastern Interstate 76. For the other Interstate 76, see Interstate 76 Interstate 76 is an Interstate Highway in the United States, running 435 miles from an interchange with Interstate 71 west of Akron, Ohio, east to Interstate 295 near Camden, New Jersey.East of Akron,...
that would have replaced Girard Avenue and South Street and a freeway upgrade of
Roosevelt BoulevardRoosevelt Boulevard , often referred to simply as "the Boulevard," is a major traffic artery through North and Northeast Philadelphia...
.
The
Delaware River Port AuthorityThe Delaware River Port Authority or DRPA is a bi-state port district located within the State of New Jersey and the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. The agency's links the two states across the Delaware River.-Board of commissioners:...
operates four bridges in the Philadelphia area across the
Delaware RiverThe Delaware River is a major river on the Atlantic coast of the United States.The Delaware was explored by Adriaen Block as part of the New Netherlands Colony, and was named the South River to mark the southernmost reach of that colony....
to
New JerseyNew Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It is bordered on the north by New York, and to the east by the Hudson River, Upper New York Bay, the Kill Van Kull, Newark Bay, the Arthur Kill, Raritan Bay, Sandy Hook Bay, Westchester County, New York City, Long Island, and...
: the
Walt Whitman BridgeThe Walt Whitman Bridge is a suspension bridge spanning the Delaware River from Philadelphia to Gloucester City, New Jersey. Named after the poet Walt Whitman, who resided in nearby Camden toward the end of his life, the Walt Whitman Bridge is one of the larger bridges on the east coast of the...
(I-76), the
Benjamin Franklin BridgeThe Benjamin Franklin Bridge , originally named the Delaware River Bridge, is a suspension bridge across the Delaware River connecting Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and Camden, New Jersey...
(I-676 and
US 30In the U.S. state of Pennsylvania, U.S. Route 30 runs east-west across the southern part of the state, passing through Pittsburgh and Philadelphia on its way from the West Virginia state line east to the Benjamin Franklin Bridge over the Delaware River into New Jersey...
), the
Betsy Ross BridgeThe Betsy Ross Bridge is a continuous truss bridge spanning the Delaware River from Philadelphia to Pennsauken, New Jersey. It was originally planned as the Delair Bridge, after a paralleling vertical lift bridge owned by Pennsylvania Railroad , but was instead named for Betsy Ross, reputed creator...
(Route 90), and the
Commodore Barry BridgeThe Commodore Barry Bridge is a cantilever bridge that spans the Delaware River from Chester, Pennsylvania to Bridgeport, in Logan Township, New Jersey, USA...
(US 322). The
Tacony-Palmyra BridgeThe Tacony–Palmyra Bridge is a combination steel arch, double-leaf bascule bridge across the Delaware River, connecting New Jersey Route 73 in Palmyra, New Jersey and Pennsylvania Route 73 in the Tacony section of Philadelphia. The bridge has a total length of 3,659 feet and spans 2,324 feet . It...
connects
PA Route 73Pennsylvania Route 73 is a 62.51 miles long east-west state highway in southeastern Pennsylvania. It runs from Pennsylvania Route 61 in Leesport to the New Jersey state line on the Tacony-Palmyra Bridge in Philadelphia, where it continues as New Jersey Route 73.Predating the Interstate and U.S...
in the
TaconyTacony may refer to:Companies* Tacony Corporation, a St. Louis, Missouri-based manufacturer and wholesale distributor of vacuum cleaners, sewing machines, ceiling fans, and commercial floor care equipmentPlaces...
section of
Northeast PhiladelphiaNortheast Philadelphia is a section of the city of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. According to the 2000 Census, the Northeast has a sizable percentage of the city's 1.447 million people — a population of between 300,000 and 450,000, depending on how the area is defined...
with New Jersey's Route 73 in
PalmyraPalmyra is a Borough in Burlington County, New Jersey, United States. As of the United States 2000 Census, the borough population was 7,091.Palmyra was originally incorporated as a township by an Act of the New Jersey Legislature on April 19, 1894, from portions of Cinnaminson Township and Riverton...
,
Camden CountyCamden County is a county located in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2000 Census, the population was 508,932. Its county seat is Camden. It was formed on March 13, 1844, from portions of Gloucester County....
, and is maintained by the
Burlington County Bridge CommissionThe Burlington County Bridge Commission is a public agency responsible for the operation and maintenance of several bridges in Burlington County, New Jersey across the Delaware River. It now manages eight bridges, including the Tacony-Palmyra Bridge, the Burlington-Bristol Bridge, and the...
.
Bus Service
Philadelphia is also a major hub for
Greyhound LinesGreyhound Lines, Inc., based in Dallas, Texas, USA, is an intercity common carrier of passengers by bus serving over 3,700 destinations in the United States and Canada, operating under the well-known logo of a leaping greyhound. It was founded in Hibbing, Minnesota, USA, in 1914 and incorporated...
, which operates 24-hour service to points east of the
Mississippi RiverThe Mississippi River is the second longest river in the United States, with a length of from its source in Lake Itasca in Minnesota to its mouth in the Gulf of Mexico....
. Most of Greyhound's services in Philadelphia operate to/from the
Philadelphia Greyhound TerminalThe Philadelphia Greyhound Terminal is the primary intercity bus station in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It is located at 1001 Filbert Street in Center City Philadelphia, immediately north of The Gallery at Market East shopping mall and the SEPTA Market East Station, a few hundred feet east of the...
, located at 1001 Filbert Street in Center City Philadelphia. In 2006, the Philadelphia Greyhound Terminal was the second busiest Greyhound terminal in the United States, after the
Port Authority Bus TerminalThe Port Authority Bus Terminal is the main gateway for interstate buses into Manhattan in New York City. It is operated by the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey....
in New York. Besides Greyhound, six other bus operators provide service to the Center City Greyhound terminal. These are Bieber Tourways, Capitol Trailways, Martz Trailways,
Peter Pan Bus LinesPeter Pan Bus Lines is a long-distance bus carrier that operates in the northeastern states of the United States. Over four million passengers travel on Peter Pan's bus routes every year....
, Susquehanna Trailways, and the
bus division for New Jersey TransitNew Jersey Transit Bus Operations is the bus division of New Jersey Transit, providing bus service throughout New Jersey along with service along one light rail line, with many routes going to New York City and Philadelphia.-History:...
Other services include
MegabusMegabus, branded on buses as megabus.com, is a "no-frills" intercity bus services of Coach USA/Coach Canada providing discount travel services since 2006.-History:...
and Bolt Bus.
Rail
Since the early days of
rail transport in the United StatesToday, most rail transport in the United States is based in freight train shipments. The U.S. rail industry has experienced repeated convulsions due to changing U.S. economic needs and the rise of automobile, bus, and air transport. Despite the difficulties, U.S. railroads carried 427 billion...
, Philadelphia has served as hub for several major rail companies, particularly the
Pennsylvania RailroadThe Pennsylvania Railroad was an American railroad, founded in 1846. Commonly referred to as the "Pennsy", the PRR was headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania....
and the Reading Railroad. The Pennsylvania Railroad first operated
Broad Street StationBroad Street Station at Broad & Market Streets was the primary passenger terminal for the Pennsylvania Railroad in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania from 1881 to the 1950s...
, then
30th Street Station30th Street Station is the main railroad station in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It is the heart of Philadelphia's passenger rail network except for the Broad Street Line, which the nearest station available for all intents and purposes is the Suburban Station directly east of 30th Street Station,...
and
Suburban StationSuburban Station is an underground commuter rail station in the Penn Center district of Center City Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Its official SEPTA address is 16th Street and JFK Boulevard. The station is operated by SEPTA and is one of the three core Center City stations on the SEPTA Regional Rail...
, and the Reading Railroad operated out of
Reading TerminalThe Reading Terminal is a complex of buildings located in the Market East section of Center City in the city of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States...
, now part of the
Pennsylvania Convention CenterThe Pennsylvania Convention Center is a multi-use public facility in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania which is designed to accommodate conventions, exhibitions, conferences and other events. It comprises four main halls or rooms, smaller meeting rooms and auditoriums, and the grand hall, which is part...
. The two companies also operated competing commuter rail systems in the area, known collectively as the Regional Rail system. The two systems today, for the most part still intact but now connected, operate as a single system under the control of the
SEPTAThe Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority is a regional public authority that operates various forms of public transit — bus, subway and elevated rail, regional rail, light rail, and electric trolley bus — that serve 3.8 million people in and around Philadelphia,...
, the regional transit authority. Additionally, Philadelphia is linked to southern
New JerseyNew Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It is bordered on the north by New York, and to the east by the Hudson River, Upper New York Bay, the Kill Van Kull, Newark Bay, the Arthur Kill, Raritan Bay, Sandy Hook Bay, Westchester County, New York City, Long Island, and...
via the PATCO Speedline subway system.
Philadelphia, once home to more than 4,000 trolleys on 65 lines, is one of the few North American cities to maintain streetcar lines. Today, SEPTA operates five "subway-surface" trolleys that run on street-level tracks in
West PhiladelphiaWest Philadelphia is a section of the City of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Though there is no official definition of its boundaries, West Philly is generally considered to reach from the western shore of the Schuylkill River, to City Line Avenue to the northwest, Cobbs Creek to the...
and subway tunnels in
Center CityCenter City is the "downtown" and Central Business District of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA. Its 2005 population of 88,000 makes it the third most populous downtown in the United States.-Boundaries:...
. SEPTA also recently reintroduced trolley service to the
Girard Avenue LineRoute 15 is a heritage streetcar line, operated by the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority , along Girard Avenue through North and West Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. , it is the only surface trolley line in the City Transit Division that is not part of the Subway–Surface...
, Route 15. The route is considered by some a "heritage" line, yet the use of rebuilt
1947 PCC streetcarsThe PCC streetcar design was first built in the United States in the 1930s. The design proved successful in its native country, and after World War II was licensed for use elsewhere in the world...
was primarily for budgetary reasons, not a historic tribute.
Today, Philadelphia is a hub of the semi-nationalized
AmtrakThe National Railroad Passenger Corporation, doing business as Amtrak , is a government-owned corporation that was organized on May 1, 1971 to provide intercity passenger train service in the United States. "Amtrak" is a blend of the words "America" and "track". It is headquartered at Union Station...
system, with 30th Street Station being a primary stop on the Washington-Boston
Northeast CorridorThe Northeast Corridor is the busiest passenger rail line in the United States by ridership and service frequency. The route is fully electrified and serves a densely urbanized string of cities from Washington, D.C., in the south through Baltimore, Wilmington, Philadelphia, Trenton, Newark, New...
and the
Keystone CorridorThe Keystone Corridor is a Federal Railroad Administration "designated high speed corridor" with a 349-mile railroad line between Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania with a top speed of 110 miles per hour...
to
HarrisburgHarrisburg is the capital of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, in the United States of America. As of the 2000 census, the city had a population of 48,950, making it the tenth largest city in Pennsylvania, after Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Allentown, Erie, Reading, Scranton, Bethlehem, Lancaster, and...
and
PittsburghPittsburgh is a city in and the county seat of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, United States, and the second largest city in the state. Its population was 334,563 at the 2000 census; by 2006, it was estimated to have fallen to 312,819. The population of the seven-county metropolitan area is...
,
PennsylvaniaThe Commonwealth of Pennsylvania , often colloquially referred to as PA by natives and Northeasterners, is a state located in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States...
. 30th Street also serves as a major station for services via the Pennsylvania Railroad's former
Pennsylvania Main LineThe Main Line of the Pennsylvania Railroad was a rail line in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania, connecting Philadelphia with Pittsburgh via Harrisburg...
to
ChicagoChicago is the largest city in the U.S. state of Illinois, and with more than 2.8 million people, the 3rd largest city in the United States...
. 30th Street is Amtrak's third-busiest station in numbers of passengers as of fiscal year 2003. It is also a terminus of
New Jersey TransitThe New Jersey Transit Corporation is a statewide public transportation system serving the state of New Jersey, United States, and Orange and Rockland counties in New York...
's
Atlantic City LineThe Atlantic City Line is a rail line operated by New Jersey Transit between Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and Atlantic City, New Jersey, operating along the corridor of the White Horse Pike. It runs over trackage that was controlled by both the Pennsylvania Railroad and the Pennsylvania-Reading...
.
Telecommunications
Southeastern Pennsylvania was, at one time, served only by the 215 area code, beginning in 1947 when the
North American Numbering PlanThe North American Numbering Plan is an integrated telephone numbering plan of 24 countries and territories: the United States and its territories, Canada, Bermuda, and 16 of the Caribbean countries...
of the "
Bell SystemThe Bell System was the AT&T monopoly that provided telephone service in the United States from 1877 to 1984 when it was broken up into separate companies by a Federal mandate....
" went into effect. The area covered by the code was severely truncated when area code 610 was split from 215. Today only the city and its northern suburbs are covered by 215. An overlay area code, 267, was added to the 215 service area in 1997. A plan to introduce
area code 445Area code 445 was a proposed telephone area code for Pennsylvania. Plans to implement area code 445 as an overlay with area codes 215 and 267, which include Philadelphia were delayed, then rescinded by the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission....
as an additional overlay in 2001 was delayed and later rescinded.
Philadelphia is now also served by
Wireless Philadelphia, a citywide initiative to provide
Wi-FiWi-Fi is a trademark of the Wi-Fi Alliance for certified products based on the IEEE 802.11 standards. This certification warrants interoperability between different wireless devices....
service. The Proof of Concept area was approved on May 23, 2007, and service is now available in many areas of the city; although discontinued by Earthlink.
Sister cities
Philadelphia has ten sister cities, as designated by the
International Visitors Council of Philadelphia (IVC):
| Florence Florence is the capital city of the Italian region of Tuscany and of the province of Florence...
, ItalyItaly , officially the Italian Republic , is a country located on the Italian Peninsula in Southern Europe and on the two largest islands in the Mediterranean Sea, Sicily and Sardinia. Italy shares its northern, Alpine boundary with France, Switzerland, Austria and Slovenia...
(1964) Tel AvivTel Aviv-Yafo , usually called Tel Aviv, is the second largest city in Israel, with an estimated population of 391,300. The city is situated on the Israeli Mediterranean coastline, with a land area of...
, IsraelIsrael officially the State of Israel , is a developed state in Western Asia located on the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea. It borders Lebanon in the north, Syria in the northeast, Jordan in the east, and Egypt on the southwest, and contains geographically diverse features within its...
(1966) ToruńToruń is a city in northern Poland, on the Vistula River, with population over 207,190 as of 2006, making it the second-largest city of Kujawy-Pomerania Province, after Bydgoszcz. The medieval old town of Toruń is the birthplace of Nicolaus Copernicus...
, PolandPoland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe . Poland is bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
(1976) Tianjin' is the sixth largest city of the People's Republic of China in terms of urban population. Administratively it is one of the four municipalities that have provincial-level status, reporting directly to the central government...
, People's Republic of ChinaThe People's Republic of China , commonly known as China, is the largest country in East Asia and the most populous in the world with over 1.3 billion people, approximately one-fifth of the world's population...
(1980) IncheonIncheon, officially the Incheon Metropolitan City, is South Korea's third largest metropolis, after Seoul and Busan. As the largest seaport on the west coast and home to the country's largest airport, Incheon International Airport, Incheon is South Korea's most important transport hub...
, South KoreaSouth Korea, officially the Republic of Korea and often simply referred to as Korea, is a country in East Asia, located on the southern half of the Korean Peninsula. It is neighbored by China to the west, Japan to the east, and North Korea to the north. Its capital is Seoul, the second largest...
(1984) |
DoualaDouala is the largest city in Cameroon and the capital of Cameroon's Littoral Province. Home to Cameroon's largest port and its major international airport, Douala Airport, it is the commercial capital of the country. Consequently, it handles most of the country's major exports, such as oil,...
, CameroonThe Republic of Cameroon is a unitary republic of central and western Africa. It is bordered by Nigeria to the west; Chad to the northeast; the Central African Republic to the east; and Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, and the Republic of the Congo to the south. Cameroon's coastline lies on the Bight of...
(1986) Kobeis the sixth-largest city in Japan and is the capital city of Hyōgo Prefecture and a prominent port city in Japan with a population of about 1.5 million. The city is located in the Kansai region of Japan and is part of the metropolitan area...
, Japanis an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, People's Republic of China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
(1986) Nizhny NovgorodNizhny Novgorod , colloquially shortened as Nizhny, is the fourth largest city in Russia, ranking after Moscow, St. Petersburg, and Novosibirsk...
, RussiaRussia , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia . It is a semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
(1992) AbruzzoAbruzzo Abruzzo Abruzzo (IPA: /aˈbruttso/ is a region in Italy, its western border lying less than 50 miles due east of Rome. Abruzzo borders the region of Marche to the north, Lazio to the west and south-west, Molise to the south-east, and the Adriatic Sea to the east...
, ItalyItaly , officially the Italian Republic , is a country located on the Italian Peninsula in Southern Europe and on the two largest islands in the Mediterranean Sea, Sicily and Sardinia. Italy shares its northern, Alpine boundary with France, Switzerland, Austria and Slovenia...
(1997) Aix-en-ProvenceAix , or Aix-en-Provence to distinguish it from other cities built over hot springs, is a city in southern France, some north of Marseille...
, FranceFrance , officially the French Republic , is a country located in Western Europe, with several overseas islands and territories located on other continents. Metropolitan France extends from the Mediterranean Sea to the English Channel and the North Sea, and from the Rhine to the Atlantic Ocean...
(1999) |
Philadelphia has dedicated landmarks to its sister cities. Dedicated in June 1976, the Sister Cities Plaza, a one-half-acre site located at 18th and Benjamin Franklin Parkway, honors Philadelphia's relationships with
Tel AvivTel Aviv-Yafo , usually called Tel Aviv, is the second largest city in Israel, with an estimated population of 391,300. The city is situated on the Israeli Mediterranean coastline, with a land area of...
and
FlorenceFlorence is the capital city of the Italian region of Tuscany and of the province of Florence...
which were its first Sister Cities. Another landmark, the Torun Triangle, honoring the Sister City relationship with
ToruńToruń is a city in northern Poland, on the Vistula River, with population over 207,190 as of 2006, making it the second-largest city of Kujawy-Pomerania Province, after Bydgoszcz. The medieval old town of Toruń is the birthplace of Nicolaus Copernicus...
,
PolandPoland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe . Poland is bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
, was constructed in 1976, west of the United Way building at 18th Street and the Benjamin Franklin Parkway. The Triangle contains the Copernicus monument. The Chinatown Gate, erected in 1984 and crafted by artisans of Tianjin, China, stands astride the intersection of 10th and Arch Streets as an elaborate and colorful symbol of the Sister City relationship.
See also
- 2007 Philadelphia Mayoral Election
- Largest metropolitan areas in the Americas
- List of people from Philadelphia
- United States metropolitan areas
- List of municipalities in Pennsylvania
External links