County:

Philadelphia. Philadelphia is the county seat.

Population:

Philadelphia has a population of 1,449,634 (US Census Bureau 2007 estimate), making it the the most populous city in Pennsylvania. It is also the 6th most populous city in the country after New York City, NY, Los Angeles, CA, Chicago, IL, Houston, TX and Phoenix, AZ.

Elevation:

39 feet

Year Incorporated:

1701

Public Transportation:

Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority (SEPTA)
Phone: 215-580-7800

SEPTA offers bus and rail service throughout the greater Philadelphia area.

PATCO Speedline provides rail transit between downtown Philadelphia and Lindenwold, New Jersey, going through Camden, New Jersey.

New Jersey Transit offers rail and bus transit options between downtown Philadelphia and various points throughout New Jersey.

Regional and National Transportation:

Greyhound Bus Lines
1001 Filbert St
Philadelphia, PA 19107
Phone: 215-931-4000

Carl R. Bieber Tourways, Capitol Trailways, Martz Trailways, Peter Pan Bus Lines, and Susquehanna Trailways also serve the Philadelphia Greyhound Terminal.

Amtrak
2955 Market Street
30th Street Station
Philadelphia, PA 19104
Phone: 215-349-1069

Philadelphia International Airport (PHL)
8000 Essington Avenue
Philadelphia, PA 19153
Phone: 215-937-6937
E-mail: comments@phl.org

Traffic Conditions:

Philadelphia area traffic report at traffic.com

Newspaper:

The Philadelphia Inquirer and Philadelphia Daily News
400 N Broad Street
Philadelphia, PA 19130
Phone: 215-854-2000

Public Library:

Free Library of Philadelphia
Central Library
1901 Vine Street
Philadelphia, PA 19103
Phone: 215-686-5322

The Free Library of Philadelphia has 54 branches located throughout the city of Philadelphia.

Museum:

The Civil War and
Underground Railroad Museum of Philadelphia
1805 Pine Street
Philadelphia, PA 19103
Phone: 215-735-8196

The Franklin Institute
222 North 20th Street
Philadelphia, PA 19103
Phone: 215-448-1200
Email: guestservices@fi.edu

The Franklin Institute consists of sciences and technology oriented exhibits in its science museum, an IMAX theater, The Franklin Center, The Center for Innovation in Science Learning and the Benjamin Franklin National Memorial.

Independence National Historical Park
Highlights of this park include the Liberty Bell Center, Independence Hall, the National Constitution Center and numerous other historical attractions. The Visitor Center is located at 6th and Market Streets in downtown Philadelphia.

National Liberty Museum
321 Chestnut Street
Philadelphia, PA 19106
Phone: 215-925-2800
E-mail: liberty@libertymuseum.org

Philadelphia Museum of Art
2600 Benjamin Franklin Pkwy
Philadelphia, PA 19130
Phone: 215-763-8100

Interesting fact: The steps of the Philadelphia Museum of Art have become well known due to appearances in a number of the "Rocky" films. The statue of Rocky Balboa, originally created for the film, "Rocky III", is now located at the museum.

Town Hall:

Philadelphia City Hall
Broad St and Market St
Philadelphia, PA 19107
Phone: 215-686-1776

Chamber of Commerce and Visitor Information:

Greater Philadelphia Chamber of Commerce
200 South Broad Street, Suite 700
Philadelphia, PA 19102
Phone: 215-545-1234

Official Visitor Site for Greater Philadelphia:
Greater Philadelphia Tourism Marketing Corporation
30 South 17th Street
Suite 1710
Philadelphia, PA 19103
Phone: 215-599-0776

Philadelphia Convention and Visitors Bureau
1700 Market Street, Suite 3000
Philadelphia, PA 19103
Phone: 215-636-3300

Other Websites:

Reading Terminal Market
12th and Arch Streets
Philadelphia, PA 19107
Phone: 215-922-2317

The Reading Terminal Market, established in 1892, is the country's oldest continuously operating farmers' market.

Select TV and Radio Stations:

Also see:

List of Philadelphia area radio stations at radio-locator.com

List of Philadelphia area TV stations at stationindex.com

Public Radio: WHYY 90.9 FM

Talk and News Radio: KYW 1060 AM, WPHT 1210 AM

Music: WRDV 89.3 FM, a mix of 20th century nostalgia

Music: WOGL 98.1 FM, greatest hits of the 60's, 70's and 80's

TV Stations:

3	KYW	CBS
6	WPVI	ABC
10	WCAU	NBC
12	WHYY	PBS

Annual Events:

Annual Canal Day, May
This event celebrates the opening of the Schuylkill Navigation System in the 1820's. The Manayunk Canal is part of this system. The event attracts crowds along Main Street in the Manayunk neighborhood of Philadelphia.

Manayunk Arts Festival, June
The Manayunk Arts Festival attracts more than 250 artists from across the nation and over 300,000 visitors to Main Street in the Manayunk neighborhood of Philadelphia. The event offers arts, crafts, music, food and more.

Sunoco Welcome America, starts the week before July 4
This event is a celebration of this nation's birthday in the city where this nation was born. Crowds come for concerts, festivals, all you can eat ice cream festivals, fireworks and much more.

Philadelphia Live Arts Festival and Philadelphia Fringe Festival
This event, which starts Labor Day weekend, offers music, dance, theater, spoken word and other performances. Performance stages include traditional venues as well as street corners, restaurants, cars and other locations around the city.

Thanksgiving Day Parade
This annual event dates back to 1920 and claims to be the oldest and longest running Thanksgiving Day parade in the country.

Notable for:

Philadelphia is notable for much, but it is best known for ideas and actions by its citizens that lead to the American Revolution and independence from Great Britain.

By the end of the 1700's, Philadelphia had become the most populous city in the country and also the new nations' capital for a short time.

History:

Before the Europeans arrived, a Lenape (Delaware) Native American village by the name of Shackamaxon was located at what is now Philadelphia. In the early 1600’s, the Swedish and the Dutch were the first to claim the land that is now Philadelphia. The English took over what had been the New Netherlands colony in the 1660’s. In 1682, the land that is now Philadelphia was included in William Penn’s charter for Pennsylvania in 1682.

Although he had been given the land by Charles II of England, William Penn bought the land from the Lenape Native Americans, as he wanted to remain on good terms with them and keep peace in the land. According to legend, in 1683, Penn made a treaty of friendship with the Lenape chief Tamanend (Tammany) under an elm tree in the village of Shackamaxon. The elm tree fell during a storm in 1810 and the land around the tree became Penn Treaty Park in 1893.

Penn was a Quaker that had suffered religious persecution and he wanted his city and colony to be a place where citizens of all races and creeds would be free to pursue in peace their individual religious, political and religious aspirations. He named the city Philadelphia, which comes from the Greek words, philos, meaning “love” or “friendship”, and adelphos, meaning “brother”, and when combined, meaning “brotherly love”.

Philadelphia was chartered as a city by Penn in 1701. The city became a major trading center and major city.

In the 1770’s, Americans were asserting their desire for independence. Carpenters’ Hall in Philadelphia became the chosen location for the First Continental Congress in September 1774. About a month after the American Revolutionary War began in April 1775, the Second Continental Congress met in Philadelphia at the Pennsylvania State House, which is now Independence Hall. On July 4, 1776, the Declaration of Independence was approved by the Continental Congress and read out loud to the public in what is now known as Independence Square. In late 1776, many citizens fled the city, along with the Continental Congress, in anticipation of occupation by the British. In September 1777, the British invaded and occupied Philadelphia for about 10 months. After the war, Philadelphia was the site of the Constitutional Convention. Philadelphia became the new nation’s capital during the 1790’s.

At the start of the 1800’s, Philadelphia was the largest city by population in the country, but New York would soon surpass it. Road, canal and railroad construction would turn Philadelphia in to the country’s first major industrial city. The largest industry in the 1800’s was textile. Other important industries included paper, leather, shoe and boot. Philadelphia was also the country’s financial center until the 1830’s. The first official World’s Fair in the United States was held there in 1876. By the end of the 1800’s, the Pennsylvania Railroad had become a major industry in the city.

During the 1900’s, Philadelphia survived rises and declines industries brought on by two World Wars and the Great Depression. Philadelphia was particularly impacted by the Great Depression, but soon benefited from Franklin Roosevelt’s New Deal’s Work Progress Administration programs. Philadelphia also survived decline and political and social unrest during this time. During the end of the 1900’s and in to the 21st century, city mayors and leaders have done much to revitalize the city.