Philadelphia (pronounced /ˌfɪləˈdɛlfiə/) is the largest city A city is a relatively large and permanent urban settlement. Although there is no agreement on how a city is distinguished from a town within general English language meanings, many cities have a particular administrative, legal, or historical status based on local law in Pennsylvania Pennsylvania has 51 miles of coastline along Lake Erie and 57 miles (92 km) of shoreline along the Delaware Estuary and the sixth-most-populous The following is a list of the most populous incorporated places in the United States. As defined by the United States Census Bureau, an "incorporated place" includes a variety of designations, including a city, town, village, borough, and municipality.[a] Some census-designated places may also be included in the Census Bureau's listing city in the United States ^ b. English is the de facto language of American government and the sole language spoken at home by 80% of Americans age five and older. Spanish is the second most commonly spoken language.

In 2008, the population of the city proper was estimated to be over 1.54 million,^[3] while the Greater Philadelphia The Delaware Valley is a term used to refer 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. The federal Office of Management and Budget officially defines the region as the Philadelphia–Camden–Wilmington Metropolitan Statistical Area metropolitan area A 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. One or more large cities may serve as its hub or hubs, and the metropolitan area is normally named after either the largest or most's population of 5.8 million made it the country's fifth-largest. The city, which lies approximately 46 miles southwest of New York City New York is the most populous city in the United States, and the center of the New York metropolitan area, which is one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. A leading global city, New York exerts a powerful influence over global commerce, finance, media, culture, art, fashion, research, education, and entertainment. As host of the,^[4] is the nation's fourth-largest urban area by population and its fourth-largest consumer media market as ranked by the Nielsen Media Research Nielsen Media Research is an American firm that measures media audiences, including television, radio, theatre films (via the AMC MAP program[citation needed]) and newspapers. NMR, headquartered in New York City and operating primarily from Chicago, is best-known for the Nielsen ratings, a measurement of television viewership which for years has. It is the county seat of Philadelphia County Philadelphia 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 2008, the United States Census Bureau estimated the population had grown to 1,540,351, making it the most populous county in the state. Philadelphia County is one of the three original (with which it is coterminous). Popular nicknames for Philadelphia include Philly and The City of Brotherly Love, from Greek Greek , 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 ancient Greek literature and the New Testament of: Φιλαδέλφεια ([pʰilaˈdelpʰeːa], Modern Greek: [filaˈðɛlfia]) "brotherly love", from φίλος (philos love Love is the emotion of strong affection and personal attachment. In philosophical context, love is a virtue representing all of human kindness, compassion, and affection. In religious context, love is not just a virtue, but the basis for all being , and the foundation for all divine law (Golden Rule)) and ἀδελφός (adelphos brother).

A commercial, educational, and cultural center, the city was once the second-largest in the British Empire The 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 the largest empire in history and, for over a^[5] (after London London is a leading global city being the world's largest financial centre alongside New York City, and has the largest city GDP in Europe. Central London is home to the headquarters of most of the UK's top 100 listed companies and more than 100 of Europe's 500 largest. London's influence in politics, finance, education, entertainment, media,), and the social and geographical center of the original 13 American colonies The Thirteen Colonies were British colonies on the Atlantic coast of North America, which declared their independence in the American Revolution and formed the United States of America. The colonies, whose territory ranged from what is now Maine to the north and Georgia to the south, were Delaware, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Georgia, Connecticut,. Ben Franklin Benjamin Franklin was one of the Founding Fathers of the United States. A noted polymath, Franklin was a leading author and printer, satirist, political theorist, politician, postmaster, scientist, inventor, civic activist, statesman, and diplomat. As a scientist, he was a major figure in the American Enlightenment and the history of physics for 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 Revolution The American Revolution was the political upheaval during the last half of the 18th century in which thirteen colonies in North America joined together to break free from the British Empire, combining to become the United States of America. They first rejected the authority of the Parliament of Great Britain to govern them from overseas without and American Independence The 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. Written primarily by Thomas Jefferson, the Declaration is a formal, making Philadelphia a centerpiece of early American history. It was the most populous city of the young United States, although by the first census The United States Census of 1790 was the first Census conducted in the United States. It was conducted on August 2, 1790. It showed that 3,929,326 people were living in the United States of which 697,681 were slaves, and that the largest cities were New York City with 33,000 inhabitants; Philadelphia, with 28,000; Boston, with 18,000; Charleston, in 1790, New York City had overtaken it. Philadelphia served as one of the nation's many capitals Washington, D.C., has been the capital of the United States since 1800. Eight other cities have served as the meeting place for Congress and are therefore considered to have once been the capital of the United States. In addition, each of the 50 U.S. states and the five principal territories of the United States maintains its own capital during the Revolutionary War and after. Following the ratification of the U.S. Constitution The Constitution of the United States of America is the supreme law of the United States. The Constitution is the framework for the organization of the United States government and for the relationship of the federal government to the states, to citizens, and to all people within the United States, it was the temporary national capital from 1790 to 1800 while Washington, DC 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. The City of Washington was originally a separate municipality within the Territory of Columbia until an act of Congress in 1871 effectively merged the City and the was under construction.

Contents 1 History 2 Geography 2.1 Topography 2.2 Climate 3 Cityscape 3.1 Neighborhoods 3.2 Architecture 3.3 Parks 4 Culture 4.1 Arts 4.2 Cuisine 4.3 Sports 5 Economy 5.1 Shopping 5.2 Media 5.3 Innovation 6 Demographics 7 Government 7.1 Mayor and City Council 7.2 Philadelphia County Courts 7.3 Pennsylvania appellate courts 7.4 Philadelphia Historical Commission 7.5 Philadelphia Housing Authority 7.6 Politics and elections 7.7 Crime 8 United States Postal Service 9 Education 10 Infrastructure 10.1 Airports 10.2 Roads 10.3 Bus Service 10.4 Rail 10.5 Telecommunications 11 Sister cities 12 See also 13 References 14 External links

History

Main article: History of Philadelphia "Penn's Treaty with the Indians" by Benjamin West Benjamin West, RA was an Anglo-American painter of historical scenes around and after the time of the American War of Independence. He was the second president of the Royal Academy in London, serving from 1792 to 1805 and 1806 to 1820.

Prior to the arrival of Europeans, the Philadelphia area was the location of the Lenape (Delaware) The Lenape are a group of several organized bands of Native American peoples with shared cultural and linguistic characteristics. Their name for themselves (autonym), sometimes spelled Lennape or Lenapi, means "the people." They are also known as the Lenni Lenape (the "true people") or as the Delaware Indians. English settlers Indian Native Americans in the United States are the 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 which survive as intact political communities. The terminology used to village Shackamaxon Shackamaxon or Shakamaxon was a village inhabited by Delaware Indians, located within 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 authenticated – under an ancient elm tree, which blew.

Europeans arrived in the Delaware Valley The Delaware Valley is a term used to refer 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. The federal Office of Management and Budget officially defines the region as the Philadelphia–Camden–Wilmington Metropolitan Statistical Area in the early 1600s, with the first settlements founded by the Dutch The Netherlands (pronounced /ˈnɛðɚləndz/ ; Dutch: Nederland, pronounced [ˈneːdərlɑnt] ( listen)) is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located in North-West Europe. It is a parliamentary democratic constitutional monarchy. The Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany, British The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland[note 7] 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 the island of Ireland, and many small islands. Northern Ireland is the only part of the UK with a land and Swedish Sweden (pronounced /ˈswiːdən/ SWEE-dən, Swedish: Sverige [ˈsvær.jə]), officially the Kingdom of Sweden (Swedish: Konungariket Sverige (help·info)), is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden has land borders with Norway to the west and Finland to the northeast, and water borders with Denmark, Germany and. After Sweden's first expedition to North America North 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 Ocean; South America lies to the southeast embarked in late 1637, the Swedes took control of land on the west side of the Delaware River The 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 River The Schuylkill River is a river in the U.S. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. It is a designated Pennsylvania Scenic River: today's Philadelphia, southeast Pennsylvania Pennsylvania has 51 miles of coastline along Lake Erie and 57 miles (92 km) of shoreline along the Delaware Estuary, Delaware Delaware is located in the northeastern portion of the Delmarva Peninsula and is the second smallest state in area . Estimates in 2007 rank the population of Delaware as 45th in the nation, but 6th in population density, with more than 60% of the population in New Castle County. Delaware is divided into three counties. From north to south, these, and Maryland Maryland is a major center for life sciences research and development. With more than 350 biotechnology companies located there, Maryland is the third-largest nexus in this field in the United States. In 1644, New Sweden New Sweden was a Swedish colony along the Delaware River on the Mid-Atlantic coast of North America from 1638 to 1655. Fort Christina, now in Wilmington, Delaware, was the first settlement. New Sweden included parts of the present-day American states of Delaware, Maryland, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania. Along with Swedes and Finns, a number of the 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 River The 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 Penn William Penn was an English real estate entrepreneur, philosopher, and founder and "absolute proprietor" of the Province of Pennsylvania, the English North American colony and the future U. S. State of Pennsylvania. He was an early champion of democracy and religious freedom, notable for his good relations and successful treaties with's charter for Pennsylvania Pennsylvania has 51 miles of coastline along Lake Erie and 57 miles (92 km) of shoreline along the Delaware Estuary.

In 1681, in partial repayment of a debt, Charles II of England Charles II was monarch of the three kingdoms of England, Scotland, and Ireland granted William Penn William Penn was an English real estate entrepreneur, philosopher, and founder and "absolute proprietor" of the Province of Pennsylvania, the English North American colony and the future U. S. State of Pennsylvania. He was an early champion of democracy and religious freedom, notable for his good relations and successful treaties with a charter A charter is the grant of authority or rights, stating that the granter formally recognizes the prerogative of the recipient to exercise the rights specified. It is implicit that the granter retains superiority , and that the recipient admits a limited (or inferior) status within the relationship, and it is within that sense that charters were for what would become the Pennsylvania colony The 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 "forest". The name itself means "Penn's. 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.^[6] According to legend A 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. Legend, for its active and passive participants includes no happenings that are outside the realm of "possibility", defined by a highly flexible Penn made a treaty of friendship with Lenape chief Tammany Tamanend or Tammany, 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. Tamanend is best known as a lover of peace and friendship who played a prominent role in the establishment of peaceful relations among the Native American tribes and the under an elm tree at Shackamaxon Shackamaxon or Shakamaxon was a village inhabited by Delaware Indians, located within 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 authenticated – under an ancient elm tree, which blew, in what is now the city's Fishtown section.^[7] As a Quaker The Religious Society of Friends is a Christian religious movement, whose members are known as Friends or Quakers. The roots of this movement lie in 17th century English dissenters, but the movement has since branched out into many independent national and regional organizations, often called Yearly Meetings, which have a variety of names, beliefs, 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 Greek Greek , 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 ancient Greek literature and the New Testament of for brotherly love (philos, "love" or "friendship", and adelphos, "brother").^[8] Penn planned a city on the Delaware River The 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 plan The 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 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.^[9] 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 Franklin, a leading citizen of the time, helped improve city services and founded new ones, such as one of the American Colonies' first hospitals.

Benjamin Franklin

In pursuit of this aim, a number of important philosophical societies were formed: the Philadelphia Society for Promoting Agriculture (1785), the Pennsylvania Society for the Encouragement of Manufactures and the Useful Arts (1787), The Academy of Natural Sciences (1812), and the Franklin Institute (1824).^[10] These set out to establish and finance new industries and attract skilled and knowledgeable emigrants from Europe.

Philadelphia's importance and central location in the colonies made it a natural center for America's revolutionaries. The city hosted the First Continental Congress before the war; the Second Continental Congress, which signed the United States Declaration of Independence, during the war; and the Constitutional Convention after the war. Several battles were fought in and near Philadelphia as well.

President's House, Philadelphia. This mansion at 6th & Market Streets served as the presidential mansion of George Washington and John Adams, 1790-1800.

Philadelphia served as the temporary capital of the United States, 1790-1800, while the Federal City was under construction in the District of Columbia.^[11] In 1793, one of the largest yellow fever epidemics in U.S. history killed as many as 5,000 people in Philadelphia, roughly 10% of the population.^[12]

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 City soon surpassed Philadelphia in population, but construction of roads, canals, 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 textiles. Major corporations in the 19th and early 20th centuries included the Baldwin Locomotive Works, William Cramp and Sons Ship and Engine Building Company, and the Pennsylvania Railroad.^[13] Industry, along with the U.S. Centennial, was celebrated in 1876 with the Centennial Exposition, the first official World's Fair in the United States. Immigrants, mostly German and Irish, settled in Philadelphia and the surrounding districts. The rise in population of the surrounding districts helped lead to the Act of Consolidation of 1854 which extended the city of Philadelphia to include all of Philadelphia County.^[14] In the later half of the century immigrants from Russia, Eastern Europe and Italy and African Americans from the southern U.S. settled in the city.^[15] Between 1880 and 1930, the African American population of Philadelphia increased from 31,699 to 219,559.^[16][17]

8th and Market Street, showing the Strawbridge and Clothier department store, 1910s.

By the 20th century, Philadelphia had become known as "corrupt and contented," with a complacent population and entrenched Republican political machine.^[18] 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 Council from two houses to just one.^[19] In the 1920s, the public flouting of Prohibition laws, mob violence, and police involvement in illegal activities led to the appointment of Brigadier General Smedley Butler of the U.S. Marine Corps as director of public safety, but political pressure prevented any long-term success in fighting crime and corruption.^[20]

The population peaked at more than two million residents in 1950, then began to decline. Revitalization and gentrification of neighborhoods began in the 1960s and continues into the 21st century, with much of the development in the Center City and University City 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 Park 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.^[21][22]

Geography

Topography

A simulated-color satellite image of Philadelphia taken on NASA's Landsat 7 satellite. The Delaware River is visible in this shot.

Philadelphia is located at 40° 00′ north latitude and 75° 09′ west longitude. According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 142.6 square miles (369.3 km²), of which 135.1 square miles (349.9 km²) is land and 7.6 square miles (19.7 km²), or 5.29%, is water. Bodies of water include the Delaware and Schuylkill Rivers, and Cobbs, Wissahickon, and Pennypack Creeks.

The lowest point is sea level, while the highest point is in Chestnut Hill, at approximately 445 feet (136 m) above sea level (near the intersection of Germantown Avenue and Bethlehem Pike).^[23]

Philadelphia is located on the Fall Line separating the Atlantic Coastal Plain from the Piedmont.^[24] The rapids on the Schuylkill River at East Falls disappeared after the completion of the Fairmount Dam.^[25]

The city is the seat of its own county. The adjacent counties are Montgomery to the north; Bucks to the northeast; Burlington County, New Jersey to the east; Camden County, New Jersey to the southeast; Gloucester County, New Jersey to the south; and Delaware County to the west.

	Pennsylvania Main Line	Jenkintown	Bensalem
	Upper Darby		Camden, New Jersey
		Philadelphia
	Tinicum Township (Delco)	Glassboro, New Jersey	Cherry Hill, New Jersey

Climate

Philadelphia
Climate chart ()
J F M A M J J A S O N D 3.5 39 26 2.7 42 28 3.8 51 35 3.5 62 44 3.9 72 55 3.3 81 64 4.4 86 70 3.8 84 69 3.9 77 61 2.8 66 49 3.2 55 40 3.3 44 31 average max. and min. temperatures in °F precipitation totals in inches source: NOAA
Metric conversion J F M A M J J A S O N D 89 4 -4 70 6 -3 97 11 2 89 17 7 99 22 13 84 27 18 112 30 21 97 29 20 99 25 16 70 19 9 80 13 4 84 7 -1 average max. and min. temperatures in °C precipitation totals in mm

Philadelphia falls in the northern periphery of the humid subtropical 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 only light snow and others bringing several major snowstorms. The average annual snowfall is 19.3 in (49.0 cm). Precipitation is generally spread throughout the year, with eight to eleven wet days per month,^[26] at an average annual rate of 42.1 in (1,070 mm).

The January average is 32.3 °F (0.2 °C), though lows may push into the 10–15 °F (-12.2–-9.4 °C) range and highs may soar above 50 °F (10 °C). The lowest officially recorded temperature was −11 °F (−24 °C) on February 9, 1934,^[27] but temperatures below 0 °F (−18 °C) occur only a few times a decade. July averages 77.6 °F (25.3 °C) , although heat waves accompanied by high humidity are frequent with highs above 95 °F (35 °C) and the heat index running as high as 110 °F (43 °C). The highest recorded temperature was 106 °F (41 °C) on August 7, 1918.^[27] Early fall and late winter are generally driest, with October being the driest month by average daily precipitation, averaging 2.75 inches (70 mm) for the month.

The snowiest winter has been the 2009-2010 winter season,^[28] with 78.7 inches (199.9 cm) of snow ^[29] The least snowy winter was the 1972-1973 season, with only trace amounts of snowfall.^[30] The city's heaviest single-storm snowfall (30.7 inches (78.0 cm)) occurred in January 1996.

Climate data for Philadelphia

Month	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Year
Record high °F (°C)	74 (23)	79 (26)	87 (31)	95 (35)	97 (36)	102 (39)	104 (40)	106 (41)	102 (39)	96 (36)	84 (29)	73 (23)	106 (41)
Average high °F (°C)	39.0 (3.9)	42.1 (5.6)	51.3 (10.7)	62.0 (16.7)	72.1 (22.3)	80.6 (27)	85.5 (29.7)	84.0 (28.9)	76.7 (24.8)	65.7 (18.7)	54.8 (12.7)	44.2 (6.8)	63.2 (17.3)
Average low °F (°C)	25.5 (-3.6)	27.5 (-2.5)	35.1 (1.7)	44.2 (6.8)	54.8 (12.7)	64.0 (17.8)	69.7 (20.9)	68.5 (20.3)	60.9 (16.1)	48.7 (9.3)	39.5 (4.2)	30.6 (-0.8)	47.4 (8.6)
Record low °F (°C)	-7 (-22)	-11 (-24)	5 (-15)	14 (-10)	28 (-2)	44 (7)	51 (11)	44 (7)	35 (2)	25 (-4)	8 (-13)	-5 (-21)	-11 (-24)
Precipitation inches (mm)	3.52 (89.4)	2.74 (69.6)	3.81 (96.8)	3.49 (88.6)	3.89 (98.8)	3.29 (83.6)	4.39 (111.5)	3.82 (97)	3.88 (98.6)	2.75 (69.9)	3.16 (80.3)	3.31 (84.1)	42.05 (1,068.1)
Snowfall inches (cm)	6.4 (16.3)	6.6 (16.8)	3.2 (8.1)	0.6 (1.5)	0	0	0	0	0	0	0.4 (1)	2.0 (5.1)	19.3 (49)
Avg. snowy days	4.3	3.4	2.0	0.4	0	0	0	0	0	0	0.3	1.6	12
Avg. precipitation days	10.9	9.7	10.5	10.9	11.7	10.0	9.4	8.4	9.1	8.0	9.4	10.6	118.6
Source #1: NCDC [32] 2010-04-20
Source #2: The Weather Channel [31] 2008-09-27

Cityscape

Panoramic view of the Philadelphia skyline from across the Delaware River in Camden, New Jersey.

Neighborhoods

Row houses in West Philadelphia. Center City Philadelphia showing One Liberty Place and City Hall See also: List of Philadelphia neighborhoods

Philadelphia's neighborhoods are divided into large sections—North, Northeast, Northwest, West, South and Southwest Philadelphia—all of which surround Center City, which corresponds closely with the city's limits before consolidation in 1854. Each of these large areas contains numerous 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.^[33]

Architecture

Main article: Buildings and architecture of Philadelphia See also: List of tallest buildings in Philadelphia

Philadelphia's architectural history dates back to Colonial times and includes a wide range of styles. The earliest structures were of logs construction, but brick structures were common by 1700. During the 18th century, the cityscape was dominated by Georgian architecture, including Independence Hall and Christ Church.

In the first decades of the 19th century, Federal architecture and Greek Revival architecture were dominated by Philadelphia architects such as Benjamin Latrobe, William Strickland, John Haviland, John Notman, Thomas U. Walter, and Samuel Sloan.^[34] Frank Furness is considered Philadelphia's greatest architect of the second half of the 19th century, but his contemporaries included John McArthur, Jr., Addison Hutton, Wilson Eyre, the Wilson Brothers, and Horace Trumbauer. In 1871, construction began on the Second Empire-style Philadelphia City Hall. Despite the construction of steel and concrete skyscrapers in the 1910s, '20s and '30s, the 548 ft (167 m) City Hall remained the tallest building in the city until 1987 when One Liberty Place was constructed.

Numerous glass and granite skyscrapers were built from the late 1980s onwards. In 2007, the Comcast Center 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 home has been the row house. 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".^[35] A variety of row houses are found 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 the housing is from the early 20th century or older. The great age of the homes has created numerous problems, including blight and vacant lots in many parts of the city, while other neighborhoods such as Society Hill, which has the largest concentration of 18th-century architecture in the United States, have been rehabilitated and gentrified.^[36][37]

Parks

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The total parkland amounts to about 10,600 acres (135 sq. miles). Philadelphia's largest park, Fairmount Park, consists of 9,200 acres of this parkland. The total expenditures of the park in 2005 were $164 million. It is the single largest municipal park in the United States.

Culture

Main article: Culture of Philadelphia See also: List of people from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and List of sites of interest in Philadelphia Independence Hall in Philadelphia

Philadelphia is home to many national historical sites that relate to the founding of the United States. Independence National Historical Park is the center of these historical landmarks. Independence Hall, where the Declaration of Independence was signed, and the Liberty Bell are the city's most famous attractions. Other historic sites include homes for Edgar Allan Poe, Betsy Ross, and Thaddeus Kosciuszko, early government buildings like the First and Second Banks of the United States, Fort Mifflin, and the Gloria Dei (Old Swedes') Church National Historic Site.^[38]

Philadelphia's major science museums include the Franklin Institute, which contains the Benjamin Franklin National Memorial, the Academy of Natural Sciences, the Mütter Museum, and the University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology. History museums include the National Constitution Center, the Atwater Kent Museum of Philadelphia History, the National Museum of American Jewish History, the African American Museum in Philadelphia, the Historical Society of Pennsylvania, the Grand Lodge of Free and Accepted Masons in the state of Pennsylvania and The Masonic Library and Museum of Pennsylvania and Eastern State Penitentiary. Philadelphia is home to the United States' first zoo and hospital, as well as to Fairmount Park, one of America's oldest and largest urban parks.

Arts

Philadelphia sculptor James Peniston's Keys To Community in the Old City neighborhood, one of the city's many public artworks featuring Benjamin Franklin. Location: 39°57′09″N 75°08′47″W / 39.952414°N 75.146301°W Two statues, The Amazon and Rocky, outside the Philadelphia Museum of Art.

The city contains many art museums such as the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts and the Rodin Museum, the largest collection of work by Auguste Rodin outside of France. The city’s major art museum, the Philadelphia Museum of Art, is one of the largest art museums in the United States and features the steps made popular by the film Rocky.^[39]

The city is home to the Philadelphia Sketch Club, one of the country's oldest artists' clubs; and to a profusion of art galleries, many of which participate in the First Friday 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 Day Mummers Parade.

Areas such as South Street and Old City have a vibrant night life. The Avenue of the Arts in Center City contains many restaurants and theaters, such as the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts, which is home to the Philadelphia Orchestra, generally considered one of the top five orchestras in the United States, and the Academy of Music, the nation's oldest continually operating venue, home to the Opera Company of Philadelphia and the Pennsylvania Ballet.^[39]

Philadelphia has more public art than any other American city.^[40] In 1872, the Fairmount Park Art Association was created, the first private association in the United States dedicated to integrating public art and urban planning.^[41] In 1959, lobbying by the Artists Equity Association helped create the Percent for Art ordinance, the first for a U.S. city.^[42] 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.^[43]

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 Program, which seeks to beautify neighborhoods and provide an outlet for graffiti artists. The program has funded more than 2,800 murals by professional, staff and volunteer artists and educated over 20,000 underserved youth in neighborhoods throughout Philadelphia.^[44]

Philadelphia has had a prominent role in music. In the 1970s, Philadelphia soul influenced the music of that and later eras. On July 13, 1985, Philadelphia hosted the American end of the Live Aid concert at John F. Kennedy Stadium. The city reprised this role for the Live 8 concert, bringing some 700,000 people to the Ben Franklin Parkway on July 2, 2005.^[45] Philadelphia is also home to the world-renowned Philadelphia Boys Choir & Chorale, which has performed its 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 music and rap music. Hip-hop/Rap Artists such as The Roots, DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince, Beanie Segal, The Goats, Freeway, Schooly D, Eve, and Lisa "Left Eye" Lopes hail from Philadelphia.

Cuisine

Pat's Steaks in South Philadelphia. Main article: Cuisine of Philadelphia

The city is known for its hoagies, scrapple, soft pretzels, water ice, Tastykake, and is home to the cheesesteak. Its high-end restaurants include Le Bec-Fin and Morimoto, run by chef Masaharu Morimoto, who rose to prominence on the Iron Chef television show.

Sports

Main article: Sports in Philadelphia See also: U.S. cities with teams from four major sports

Philadelphia's professional sports teams date at least to the 1860 founding of baseball's Athletics. The city is one of 13 U.S. cities to have all four major sports: the Philadelphia Eagles of the National Football League, the Philadelphia Flyers of the National Hockey League, the Philadelphia Phillies in the National League of Major League Baseball, and the Philadelphia 76ers in the National Basketball Association.

The city's professional teams went without a championship from 1983, when the 76ers won the NBA Championship, until 2008, when the Phillies won the World Series. In 2004, ESPN ranked Philadelphia second on its list of The Fifteen Most Tortured Sports Cities.^[46] The failure was sometimes attributed in jest to the "Curse of Billy Penn." Also, in recent years, Philadelphia sports teams have befallen to what John Smallwood of The Philadelphia Daily News called the "Curse of the Inauguration,"^[47] an alleged curse on all Philadelphia sports teams for their inability to win a championship whenever they have gone to their league's finals during a presidential inaugural year,^[47] dating back to the 76ers loss in the 1977 NBA Finals.

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 Athletics baseball team.

Philadelphia is home to professional, semi-professional and elite amateur teams in cricket and other sports. Major sporting events in the city include the Penn Relays, Stotesbury Cup, Philadelphia Marathon, Broad Street Run, Philadelphia International Championship bicycle race, and the Dad Vail Regatta.

Philadelphia is home to the Philadelphia Big 5, a group of five Division I college basketball programs: Big 5 are Saint Joseph's University, University of Pennsylvania, La Salle University, Temple University, and Villanova University. The sixth NCAA Division I school in Philadelphia is Drexel University. 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 Soccer franchise. The Philadelphia Union entered the league in 2010 calling PPL Park their home (a soccer-specific stadium) in Chester, Pennsylvania.

Club	League	Sport	Venue	Established	Championships
Philadelphia Phillies	MLB	Baseball	Citizens Bank Park	1883	1980, 2008
Philadelphia 76ers	NBA	Basketball	Wachovia Center	1963	1966-67, 1982-83
Philadelphia Eagles	NFL	American Football	Lincoln Financial Field	1933	1948, 1949, 1960
Philadelphia Flyers	NHL	Ice Hockey	Wachovia Center	1967	1973–74, 1974–75
Philadelphia Union	MLS	Soccer	PPL Park (in Chester, PA)	2010	none
Philadelphia Independence	WPS	Women's Soccer	PPL Park (in Chester, PA)	2010	none
Philadelphia Wings	NLL	Arena Lacrosse	Wachovia Center	1987	1989, 1990, 1994, 1995, 1998, 2001
Philadelphia KiXX	NISL	Arena Soccer	Liacouras Center	1996	2001-02, 2006–07

Economy

Comcast Center, Philadelphia's newest office building and Pennsylvania's tallest building.

Philadelphia's economic sectors include manufacturing, oil refining, food processing, health care and biotechnology, tourism and financial services. According to a study prepared by PricewaterhouseCoopers, Philadelphia and its surrounding region had the fourth highest GDP among American cities, with a total GDP of $312 billion in 2005.^[48] Only New York City ($1,133 billion), Los Angeles ($693 billion), and Chicago ($460 billion) had higher total economic output levels among American cities.^[48] Philadelphia ranked below Tokyo ($1,191 billion), Paris ($460 billion), London ($452 billion), Osaka-Kobe ($391 billion), Mexico City ($315 billion), and above Washington, D.C. ($299 billion) and Boston ($290 billion).

The city is home to the Philadelphia Stock Exchange and several Fortune 500 companies, including cable television and internet provider Comcast, insurance companies Colonial Penn, CIGNA and Lincoln Financial Group, energy company Sunoco, food services company Aramark and Crown Holdings Incorporated, chemical makers Rohm and Haas Company and FMC Corporation, pharmaceutical companies Wyeth and GlaxoSmithKline, Boeing Rotorcraft Systems, and automotive parts retailer Pep Boys. Early in the 20th Century, it was also home to the pioneering brass era automobile company Biddle.^[49]

The federal government has several facilities in Philadelphia. The city served as the capital city of the United States, before the construction of Washington, D.C. Today, the East Coast operations of the United States Mint 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 Pennsylvania and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit.

With the historic presence of the Pennsylvania Railroad, and the large ridership at 30th Street Station, Amtrak 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.

Baltimore Avenue towards Center City.

The city is a national center of law because of the University of Pennsylvania Law School, Drexel University Earle Mack School of Law, Temple University Beasley School of Law, Rutgers University School of Law - Camden, Villanova University School of Law, and Widener University School of Law. Additionally, the headquarters of the American Law Institute 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 Hospital, and the first medical school in what is now the United States, at the University of Pennsylvania (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 Medicine, Drexel University College of Medicine, Thomas Jefferson University, and Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine. Philadelphia also has three distinguished children's hospitals: Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, 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 Center. 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, AstraZeneca, Wyeth, Merck, GE Healthcare, Johnson and Johnson and Siemens Medical Solutions 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 Philadelphia.

See also: List of companies based in the Philadelphia area

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.^[50]

Shopping

The Italian Market in South Philadelphia is a major Philadelphian landmark.

Shopping options in Center City include The Gallery at Market East, The Shops at Liberty Place, Jewelers' Row, South Street, and a variety of standalone independent retailers. Rittenhouse Row, a four block section of Walnut Street, has higher-end clothing chain stores as well as hipster-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 Market includes dozens of take-out restaurants, specialty food vendors, and small grocery store operators, a few of which are operated by Amish farmers from nearby Lancaster County.

Philadelphia also has a few eclectic neighborhood shopping districts, usually consisting of a few blocks along a major neighborhood thoroughfare, such as in Manayunk or Chestnut Hill. The Italian Market in South Philadelphia offers groceries, meats, cheeses and housewares, historically from Italy, but now from many nationalities. Two famed cheesesteak restaurants, Geno's and Pat's, are located nearby.

There are several large shopping malls and strip malls in the region, including Franklin Mills in Northeast Philadelphia, and many in the suburbs, most notably the King of Prussia Mall in King of Prussia, Pennsylvania, 19 miles from the heart of the city. The King of Prussia Mall is the largest shopping mall on the US East Coast^[51] and the largest in the country in terms of leasable retail space.

Media

Main article: Media of Philadelphia The Inquirer Building on North Broad Street.

Philadelphia's two major daily newspapers are The Philadelphia Inquirer and the Philadelphia Daily News, 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.^[52] The Bulletin, 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 radio license was issued in Philadelphia in August, 1912 to St. Joseph's College. The first commercial radio stations appeared in 1922: first WIP, then owned by Gimbel's department store, on March 17, followed the same year by WFIL, WOO, WCAU and WDAS.^[53] The highest-rated stations in Philadelphia include soft rock WBEB, KYW Newsradio, and urban adult contemporary WDAS-FM. Philadelphia is served by three major public radio stations, WHYY-FM (NPR), WRTI (jazz, classical), and WXPN-FM (adult alternative music), as well as several smaller stations.

In the 1930s, the experimental station W3XE, owned by Philco, became the first television station in Philadelphia; it became NBC's first affiliate in 1939, and later became KYW-TV (CBS). WCAU-TV, WPVI-TV, WHYY-TV, WPHL-TV, and WTXF-TV had all been founded by the 1970s.^[53] In 1952 WFIL (now WPVI), premiered the television show Bandstand, which later became the nationally broadcast American Bandstand hosted by Dick Clark.^[54] 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 broadcasting stations WYBE-TV (Philadelphia), WHYY-TV (Wilmington, Delaware and Philadelphia), WLVT-TV (Lehigh Valley), and New Jersey Network. In September 2007, Philadelphia approved a public access cable channel.

Rock stations WMMR and WYSP have traditionally been intense rivals. Since 2005, WMMR has played more music after a shift in WYSP's programming from rock (including controversial shock jock Howard Stern) to a Free FM format. WYSP has since returned to the classic rock format it shed in 1995. WYSP also broadcasts all Philadelphia Eagles games. WMMR's The Preston and Steve Show has been the area's top-rated morning show since Howard Stern left for Sirius Radio. In November 2008, WYSP launched a competing show hosted by Philadelphia native Danny Bonaduce. Both stations host regular live music and other events in throughout the region.

Four urban stations (WUSL ("Power 99"), WPHI ("100.3 The Beat"), WDAS and WRNB) are popular choices on the FM dial. WNUW is the city's Adult Contemporary station. The station had been home of "Smooth Jazz" WJJZ after the format was dropped from the 106.1 frequency (now WISX) but the format was dropped once again due to poor ratings.

Innovation

Philadelphia is home to many "first-in-America" institutions, including:^[55][56]

Art school & museum Bank Botanical garden Cancer hospital Electronic computer Eye hospital Hospital Fire company Fire insurance company Medical school Mint

Municipal water system Pediatric hospital Penitentiary Pharmacy school Post office Public library Savings bank Stock exchange Title insurance company University Zoo

Demographics

Main article: Demographics of Philadelphia

Historical populations
Census	Pop.		%±
1790	28,522		—
1800	41,220		44.5%
1810	53,722		30.3%
1820	63,802		18.8%
1830	80,462		26.1%
1840	93,665		16.4%
1850	121,376		29.6%
1860	565,529		365.9%
1870	674,022		19.2%
1880	847,170		25.7%
1890	1,046,964		23.6%
1900	1,293,697		23.6%
1910	1,549,008		19.7%
1920	1,823,779		17.7%
1930	1,950,961		7.0%
1940	1,931,334		−1.0%
1950	2,071,605		7.3%
1960	2,002,512		−3.3%
1970	1,948,609		−2.7%
1980	1,688,210		−13.4%
1990	1,585,577		−6.1%
2000	1,517,550		−4.3%
Est. 2009	1,547,297		2.0%

As of the 2005-2007 American Community Survey conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau, White Americans made up 42.7% of Philadelphia's population; of which 39.4% were non-Hispanic whites. Blacks or African Americans made up 43.8% of Philadelphia's population; of which 43.0% were non-Hispanic blacks. American Indians made up 0.2% of the city's population. Asian Americans made up 5.4% of the city's population. Pacific Islander Americans 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 races made up 1.6% of the city's population; of which 1.2% were non-Hispanic. In addition, Hispanics and Latinos made up 10.3% of Philadelphia's population.^[57][58]

As of the census^[59] of 2000, there were 1,517,550 people, 590,071 households, and 352,272 families residing in the city. The population density 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 races, 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 Irish (13.6%), Italian (9.2%), German (8.1%), Polish (4.3%), and English (2.9%).^[60]

Of the 590,071 households, 27.6% have children under the age of 18 living with them, 32.1% were married couples 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 income 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.^[61] 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.^[61] This is nearly the same amount of immigrants that arrived during the decade of the 1990s, of which today comprise 10.9% of the city's population.^[61] 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.^[61]

Philadelphia has the second largest Irish, Italian, and Jamaican populations and the fourth largest African American population in the nation. Philadelphia also has the fourth largest population of Polish residents. The Philadelphia's Jewish population, sixth largest in the nation, was estimated at 206,000 in 2001.^[62]

In recent years, the Hispanic and Asian American populations have significantly increased. Hispanics have settled throughout the city, especially around El Centro de Oro. Philadelphia is home to the third largest Puerto Rican population in the United States. In recent years, many 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. In the year 2010, about 10 percent of Philadelphians are thought to be Hispanic.^{[citation needed]}

The Asian population was once concentrated in the city's thriving Chinatown, but now Korean Americans have come to Olney, and Vietnamese have forged bazaars next to the Italian Market in South Philadelphia. Concentrations of Cambodian American neighborhoods can be found in North and South Philadelphia. Indians and Arabs have come to Northeast Philadelphia 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 States. The Philadelphia region also has the fourth largest population of Indian Americans. The West Indian population is concentrated in Cedar Park.^{[citation needed]}

Also to note Canadians (French Canadians), Germans, Greeks, Chinese, Japanese, English, Welsh, Pakistanis, Iranians, Armenians, Turks, Swedes and also immigrants from the former Yugoslavia and Albania along with other ethnic groups can be found throughout the city.

There is a small Native American community known as Lenapehoking for Lenni-Lenape Indians of West Philadelphia.

Sticker by the Delaware Valley's Lenape Indians in 2008 claiming West Philadelphia is their home.

Government

City Hall illuminated with projected lights for the 2005 winter holidays.

From a governmental perspective, Philadelphia County is a legal nullity, 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.^[63] The first elections under the new Home Rule Charter were held in November, 1951, and the newly elected officials took office in January, 1952.^[64]

Mayor and City Council

The city uses the "strong-mayor" version of the mayor-council form of government, which is headed by one mayor, in whom executive authority is vested. Elected "at-large," the mayor is limited to two consecutive four-year terms under the city's home rule 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. Street 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 Council, consists of ten council members representing individual districts and seven members elected at large. The current council president is Anna C. Verna.

Philadelphia County Courts

The Philadelphia County Court of Common Pleas (First Judicial District) is the felony-level trial court of general jurisdiction for Philadelphia. It has 90 legally trained judges elected by the voters. It is funded and operated largely by city resources and employees. ^[65]

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. It has 25 legally trained judges elected by the voters. ^[66]

Philadelphia Traffic Court is a court of special jurisdiction that hears violations of traffic laws. It has 7 judges elected by the voters. ^[67]

Pennsylvania appellate courts

Pennsylvania's three appellate courts also have sittings in Philadelphia. The Supreme Court of Pennsylvania, the court of last resort in the state, regularly hears arguments in Philadelphia City Hall. Also, the Superior Court of Pennsylvania and the Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania sit in Philadelphia several times a year. Judges for these courts are elected at large. Each court has a prothonotary's office in Philadelphia as well.

Philadelphia Historical Commission

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.^[68]

Philadelphia Housing Authority

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.^[69]

Politics and elections

See also: List of mayors of Philadelphia

Presidential election results

Year	Republican	Democratic
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.^[70]

• Democratic: 880,684 (78.16%)
• Republican: 147,074 (13.05%)
• Other Parties: 99,010 (8.79%)

From the American Civil War until the mid-20th century, Philadelphia was a bastion of the Republican Party, which arose from the staunch pro-Northern views of Philadelphia residents during and after the war. After the Great Depression, Democratic registrations increased, but the city was not carried by Democratic Franklin D. Roosevelt in his landslide victory of 1932 (in which Pennsylvania was one of the few states won by Republican Herbert Hoover). 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 Obama drew 83% of the city's vote.

Philadelphia once comprised six congressional districts. However, as a result of the city's declining population, it now has only four: the 1st district, represented by Bob Brady; the 2nd, represented by Chaka Fattah; the 8th, represented by Patrick Murphy; and the 13th, represented by Allyson Schwartz. 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 Senator, Arlen Specter, is from Philadelphia.

Crime

Main article: Crime in Philadelphia

Like many American cities, Philadelphia saw a gradual yet pronounced rise in crime in the years following World War II. 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.^[71] 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.^[72]

In 2004, there were 7,513.5 crimes per 200,000 people in Philadelphia.^[73] In 2005, Philadelphia was ranked by Morgan Quitno as the sixth-most dangerous among 32 American cities with populations over 500,000.^[74] Among its neighboring Mid-Atlantic cities in the same population group, Baltimore and Washington, D.C. were ranked second- and third-most dangerous cities in the United States, respectively, and Camden, New Jersey, a city across the Delaware River from Philadelphia, was ranked as the most dangerous city in the United States.^[75]

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.^[76]

United States Postal Service

The United States Postal Service operates post offices in Philadelphia. The main Philadelphia Post Office is at 3000 Chestnut Street in the University City district.^[77][78] The facility here became Philadelphia's main post office on September 29, 2008, after the closure of the former main post office at 30th and Market Streets.^[79]

Education

Main article: Education in Philadelphia University of Pennsylvania.

Education in Philadelphia is provided by many private and public institutions. The School District of Philadelphia runs the city's public schools. The Philadelphia School District is the eighth largest school district in the United States with 163,064 students in 347 public and charter schools.^[80]

Philadelphia is one of the largest college towns 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 Pennsylvania, Drexel University, and Temple University. Other institutions of higher learning within the city's borders include Saint Joseph's University, La Salle University, Peirce College, University of the Sciences in Philadelphia, The University of the Arts, Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts, the Curtis Institute of Music, Thomas Jefferson University, Moore College of Art and Design, The Art Institute of Philadelphia, Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine, The Restaurant School at Walnut Hill College, Philadelphia University, Chestnut Hill College, Holy Family University, the Community College of Philadelphia and Messiah College Philadelphia Campus.

Philadelphia's famous Pennsylvania Main Line and western suburbs are home to other notable colleges and universities including Villanova University, Bryn Mawr College, Haverford College, and Swarthmore College.

Infrastructure

30th Street Station, with Cira Centre in the background and statues on the Market Street Bridge over Schuylkill River in the foreground. Further information: Transportation in Philadelphia

Philadelphia is served by the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority (SEPTA), which operates buses, trains, rapid transit, trolleys, and trackless trolleys throughout Philadelphia, the four Pennsylvania suburban counties of Bucks, Chester, Delaware, and Montgomery, in addition to service to Mercer County, New Jersey and New Castle County, Delaware. The city's subway, opened in 1907, is the third-oldest in America.

SEPTA's R1 Regional Rail line offers direct service to the Philadelphia International Airport.

Philadelphia's 30th Street Station is a major railroad station on Amtrak's Northeast Corridor, which offers access to Amtrak, SEPTA, and New Jersey Transit lines.

The PATCO Speedline provides rapid transit service to Camden, Collingswood, Westmont, Haddonfield, Woodcrest (Cherry Hill), Ashland (Voorhees), and Lindenwold, New Jersey, 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 Airport (PHL), straddling the southern boundary of the city, and the Northeast Philadelphia Airport (PNE), a general aviation reliever airport in Northeast Philadelphia. 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 is also a primary hub for US Airways.^[81]

Roads

Aerial view showing the major highways circumscribing Philadelphia. The Schuylkill Expressway, approaching Center City from the North.

Interstate 95 runs through the city along the Delaware River as a main north-south artery. The city is also served by the Schuylkill Expressway, a portion of Interstate 76 that runs along the Schuylkill River. It meets the Pennsylvania Turnpike at King of Prussia, Pennsylvania, providing access to Harrisburg, Pennsylvania and points west. Interstate 676, 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 Boulevard and the Roosevelt Expressway (U.S. 1) connect Northeast Philadelphia with Center City. Woodhaven Road (Route 63), built in 1966, and Cottman Avenue (Route 73) serve the neighborhoods of Northeast Philadelphia, running between Interstate 95 and the Roosevelt Boulevard (U.S. 1). The Fort Washington Expressway (Pennsylvania Route 309) extends north from the city's northern border, serving Montgomery County and Bucks County. Route 30, extending east-west from West Philadelphia to Lancaster, is known as Lancaster Avenue throughout most of the city and through the adjacent Main Line suburb.

Interstate 476, commonly nicknamed the "Blue Route" through Delaware County, bypasses the city to the west, serving the city's western suburbs, as well as providing a link to Allentown and points north. Similarly, Interstate 276, 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 Turnpike to New York.

However, other planned freeways have been canceled, such as an Interstate 695 running southwest from downtown, two freeways connecting Interstate 95 to Interstate 76 that would have replaced Girard Avenue and South Street and a freeway upgrade of Roosevelt Boulevard.

The Delaware River Port Authority operates four bridges in the Philadelphia area across the Delaware River to New Jersey: the Walt Whitman Bridge (I-76), the Benjamin Franklin Bridge (I-676 and US 30), the Betsy Ross Bridge (Route 90), and the Commodore Barry Bridge (US 322). The Tacony-Palmyra Bridge connects PA Route 73 in the Tacony section of Northeast Philadelphia with New Jersey's Route 73 in Palmyra, Camden County, and is maintained by the Burlington County Bridge Commission.

Bus Service

Philadelphia is also a major hub for Greyhound Lines, which operates 24-hour service to points east of the Mississippi River. Most of Greyhound's services in Philadelphia operate to/from the Philadelphia Greyhound Terminal, 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 Terminal 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 Lines, Susquehanna Trailways, and the bus division for New Jersey Transit Other services include Megabus and Bolt Bus.

Rail

Main article: History of rail transport in Philadelphia Suburban Station

Since the early days of rail transport in the United States, Philadelphia has served as hub for several major rail companies, particularly the Pennsylvania Railroad and the Reading Railroad. The Pennsylvania Railroad first operated Broad Street Station, then 30th Street Station and Suburban Station, and the Reading Railroad operated out of Reading Terminal, now part of the Pennsylvania Convention Center. 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 SEPTA, the regional transit authority. Additionally, Philadelphia is linked to southern New Jersey via the PATCO Speedline subway system.

Philadelphia, once home to more than 4,000 trolleys on 65 lines,^[82] 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 Philadelphia and subway tunnels in Center City. SEPTA also recently reintroduced trolley service to the Girard Avenue Line, Route 15. The route is considered by some a "heritage" line, yet the use of rebuilt 1947 PCC streetcars was primarily for budgetary reasons, not a historic tribute.^{[citation needed]}

Today, Philadelphia is a hub of the semi-nationalized Amtrak system, with 30th Street Station being a primary stop on the Washington-Boston Northeast Corridor and the Keystone Corridor to Harrisburg and Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. 30th Street also serves as a major station for services via the Pennsylvania Railroad's former Pennsylvania Main Line to Chicago. 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 Transit's Atlantic City Line.^[83]

Telecommunications

Skyline at night.

Southeastern Pennsylvania was, at one time, served only by the 215 area code, beginning in 1947 when the North American Numbering Plan of the "Bell System" 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 445 as an additional overlay in 2001 was delayed and later rescinded.^[84]

Philadelphia is now also served by Wireless Philadelphia, a citywide initiative to provide Wi-Fi 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):^[85]

Florence, Italy (1964) Tel Aviv, Israel (1966) Toruń, Poland (1976) Tianjin, People's Republic of China (1980) Incheon, South Korea (1984)

Douala, Cameroon (1986) Kobe, Japan (1986) Nizhny Novgorod, Russia (1992) Abruzzo, Italy (1997) Aix-en-Provence, France (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 Aviv and Florence which were its first Sister Cities. Another landmark, the Torun Triangle, honoring the Sister City relationship with Toruń, Poland, 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

Philadelphia portal

• 2007 Philadelphia Mayoral Election
• Largest metropolitan areas in the Americas
• List of municipal authorities in Philadelphia
• List of municipalities in Pennsylvania
• List of people from Philadelphia
• United States metropolitan areas

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Coordinates: 39°57′12″N 75°10′12″W / 39.953333°N 75.17°W

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