Franklintown, Philadelphia

Franklintown
Neighborhood of Philadelphia

The Third Philadelphia Mint, now part of the Community College of Philadelphia is in Franklintown
Country  United States
State Pennsylvania
County Philadelphia County
City Philadelphia
Area code(s) Area code 215

Franklintown, or Franklin Town, is an area of Center City, Philadelphia which was the subject of an urban planning effort in the 1970s and early 1980s.[1]

Boundaries

Finkel[2] (who calls the neighborhood "Franklin Town") gives its location as "Vine to Callowhill Streets, vic. 17th Street". The same source defines the boundaries of the Spring Garden and Logan Square neighborhoods in such a way that each completely contains Franklin Town.

The Logan Square Neighborhood Association and the Spring Garden Civic Association, which represent their respective neighborhoods, both consider Spring Garden Street to be the boundary between the two neighborhoods. Franklin Town is therefore in the area represented by the Logan Square Neighborhood Association. It has no separate civic association.

History

The Franklin Town Development Corporation was created by Smith, Kline & French, Philadelphia Electric Company, electrical equipment manufacturer ITE International (now part of Siemens[3] ), the real-estate concern Korman Corporation, and brokerage house Butcher & Sherred (later Butcher & Singer[4] ).[5] All except Butcher & Sherred were large landowners in the area. The FTDC, led by former HUD administrator Jason Nathan, hired noted architect Philip Johnson to create a master plan for development.[6]

Johnson began work on his design in 1970, and it was released the following year. The plan included the rerouting of parts of 17th Street and 18th Street to create the diagonal Franklin Town Boulevard. This was to lead, at its southeastern terminus, to a central "town square".[7] This part of the design was never realized.

Franklintown consists of newer highrise and midrise structures. This contrasts with the neighborhoods north of Spring Garden Street, which are mostly densely packed historic rowhouses. [8]

Community College of Philadelphia and the Philadelphia Pennsylvania Temple of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints are in Franklin Town.

References

  1. ↑ GroJLart. "Empty Lot of the Week-- July 28th". Retrieved 2 December 2013.
  2. ↑ Finkel, Kenneth (1994). Philadelphia Almanac and Citizens' Manual for 1995. Philadelphia: The Library Company of Philadelphia. pp. 156–163. ISBN 9780914076896.
  3. ↑ Price, Bill (22 September 193). "Obituaries: Albert A. Kaval". Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved 7 December 2013. Check date values in: |date= (help)
  4. ↑ Narvaez, Alfonso (21 June 1991). "Howard Butcher 3d, 89, Broker; Guided Pennsylvania's Top Firm". The New York Times. Retrieved 7 December 2013.
  5. ↑ Warner, Susan (28 September 1988). "Firm Aiming To Keep Role In Franklintown". Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved 7 December 2013.
  6. ↑ Carroll, Patrice (1985). Franklin Town: A Neighborhood Study. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania. pp. 2–3.
  7. ↑ Barton, Lisa (1982). Franklin Town: Urban Design Capstone, Summer 1982. University of Pennsylvania Graduate School of Fine Arts Urban Design Program. p. 13.
  8. ↑ City Data

Coordinates: 39°57′43″N 75°10′08″W / 39.962°N 75.169°W / 39.962; -75.169


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