Talk:Schuylkill, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

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[edit] SP Review

The place where you live http://www.southphillyreview.com Schuylkill/South of South October 7, 2004

Boundaries: Broad Street to the Schuylkill River, South Street to Washington Avenue Population: 11, 200

Demographics: Approximately 20 percent of the population is under 18. Nearly 70 percent is black; 24 percent is white. More white residents are moving into and renovating old properties in the neighborhood.

Origin of name: One look at the map explains it: The neighborhood is bordered by the Schuylkill River and Center City and, more simply stated, it lies south of South Street.

Brief history: Earliest records indicate that this community started out as an industrial settlement where the men worked and women stayed home caring for the family. Salesmen riding horse-drawn carts or pushcarts supplied residents with daily implements and food.

According to Terry Gillen, Democratic leader of the 30th Ward and a longtime resident, South Street (west of Broad) was the city's center of entertainment from the 1920s to the 1960s.

Famous residents: World-renowned opera singer Marian Anderson lived on Martin Street, just around the corner from Union Baptist Church, 19th and Fitzwater streets, where she sang in the choir.

Major landmarks: Anderson's home; the Naval Home, 2420 Grays Ferry Ave. (now being developed into a gated townhome community by Toll Brothers); and the defunct Royal Theater, 1500 South St., which opened in the 1920s and was the first movie theater built for African Americans.

Architecture: Mostly townhouses

Median home sale price: $350,000

State Senate districts: First, Vincent Fumo (D); District Eight, Anthony Williams (D)

State House district: 186th, Harold James (D)

City Council district: Second, Council President Anna Verna (D)

Ward: 30th

Police district: 17th

Civic groups and townwatches: South of South Neighborhood Association (SOSNA)

Schools: E.M. Stanton Elementary, 17th and Christian streets; Chester A. Arthur Elementary, 20th and Catharine streets; W.S. Peirce Middle School, 24th and Christian streets

Rec centers: Marian Anderson Recreation Center, 17th and Fitzwater streets; Chew Playground, 19th Street and Washington Avenue

Highlights of living there: Residents south of South have an easier time finding parking spots than do their South Philly neighbors. They also enjoy the convenience of walking to prime spots such as Center City, the South Square Market and the Italian Market. It might even help to bring along a pushcart like salesmen did in the old days to tote home all the goodies.

The desirable location is a major drawing point for white, middle-class families who are refurbishing old properties.

For young residents, Anderson Rec Center is a hotbed of activity. The baseball field, complete with pieces of the old Veterans Stadium fence, is home to the Philadelphia Stars. The team of 13-year-old boys from different sections of the city and ethnic backgrounds drew attention this summer for taking a cross-country trip retracing the path of Negro League players.

Seeking to boost community pride, SOSNA held its first-ever fall fair last Saturday, featuring "happy house" home-improvement clinics, face-painting for the kids and art workshops.

Reputation: The quiet neighborhood

Major concerns/issues: "As more white families move in, it's a challenge figuring out how to maintain diversity in the neighborhood," Gillen says.

Both new and old South of South dwellers also cite a lack of green space -- another mild downside of development. After losing one community garden along Fitzwater Street this year, the neighborhood is doing everything possible to ensure the remaining flowers, plants and veggies remain intact.

The future: The community is opening its doors to a variety of new housing units, some of which will offer buyers a Center City view.

SOSNA is partnering with Universal Community Homes in building the Julian Abele Homes, 24 townhouses to be completed by 2006. Bancroft Court, on the 1600 and 1700 blocks of Webster and Fitzwater streets, will include 12 single-family homes and a duplex. And the old Children's Hospital building at 17th and Fitzwater streets is being refurbished into a 36-unit apartment building that will be called Artists' Village.

"It's changing as we know it," SOSNA Neighborhood Advisory Council director Eve Lewis says of the neighborhood. "Homes are going for $300,000 to $400,000. It's an alternative to Center City living. We welcome it."

--by Bill Gelman

It's no Hell's Kitchen

South Jersey has the Jersey Devil. South Philly has The Devil's Pocket.

But don't be scared to enter this small, three-block neighborhood that some 70 families call home.

"Most people don't even know it's here," says Meg Foy, who has lived on the 2600 block of Catharine Street for 24 years. "When someone repeats [The Devil's Pocket] to you, you know they've been here."

The neighborhood that falls south of Lombard Street, east of 27th Street and north of Washington Avenue is filled with century-old rowhomes that are now selling for $120,000.

The toughest thing about living in the area is telling visitors how to get there. South Stillman Street offers access, but Foy notes that most people look down the street and think it dead-ends.

An amusing legend is behind the name of The Devil's Pocket.

"One time, a priest came into the neighborhood and said the kids are so bad that they would steal a chain out of the devil's pocket," Foy says.

The area, once heavily Irish, now serves as prime renting space for students from the University of Pennsylvania, Drexel and Temple.

For curiosity-seekers, there isn't much to see. The corner store, Curran's Deli, closed two years ago, and hasn't been replaced. The old St. Anthony's Catholic Church is now a Baptist church with the same name.

For Foy, the neighborhood has provided many happy years, which have included raising sons Jack, 21, and Tim, 18.

"There is very low crime," she says. "It's like leaving the city."

With Toll Brothers rebuilding the nearby Naval Home, which splits the neighborhood from the South of South area, more outsiders could suddenly find out that The Devil's Pocket isn't so scary after all.

But can they find it?

--by Bill Gelman

[edit] Comments

Schuylkill is in the 19146 area but it actually lies on the south side of 22nd street to the schuylkill river from Spruce Street to Bainbridge. Schuylkill has never been a crime ridden area. There have been few murders, I am sure some drug dealing but hardworking people who didn't have a lot of money but no poverty. It has always been safe to walk around there. I was born there in 1935 and I recall only one murder. You seem to have lumped the real Schuylkill with Center City. Your description seems to apply to a combination of the Devil's Pocket, Grays Ferry and Point Breeze. There were never any schools in Schuylkill per se. The closest Catholic schools were at 20th and Locust and 24th and Grays Ferry Avenue. There were no public schools that I remember but my father used to talk about a Woods school at 23rd and Lombard. When I lived in Schuylkill there was a playground in that location. Now it is a desirable area for the wealthy with million dollar townhouses. My understanding of gentrification never applied to this area. My great grandparents settled in this area in 1835 and they lived on the banks of the Schuylkill river near what is now Lombard/South Street. —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 65.172.130.136 (talk • contribs) .

Is there some kind of story behind the name? Does it mean anything, or is it in a funky language? It seems unusual. -Toptomcat 04:26, 1 October 2006 (UTC)