Fishtown

Fishtown is a neighborhood in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Related Topics:
Philadelphia - Pennsylvania

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For many decades the center of Philadelphia's working class Irish-American community; it has partly gentrified into an upscale, trendy location. Located immediately northeast of Center City, its borders are somewhat disputed, but are roughly defined by the Delaware River, Frankford Avenue, York and Girard Ave. It is named for its former role as the center of the fishing industry in Philadelphia, though an apocryphal local legend traces the name to Charles Dickens who purportedly visited the neighborhood in March 1842.

Related Topics:
Irish-American - Charles Dickens

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Originally inhabited by members of the Lenni Lenape Native American Nation (the Delaware American Indian Tribe), the first European settlers were British shipbuilders. Within a few generations they were vastly outnumbered by German immigrants, then Polish immigrants, and then Irish immigrants. The neighborhood has traditionally been working class, although poverty grew after jobs left in the de-industrialization which afflicted many "rust belt" cities. Property values have risen rapidly in recent years as the neighborhood has seen an influx of artists and professionals in a wave of gentrification.

Related Topics:
Lenni Lenape - European - British - German - Polish - Irish - Gentrification

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