Francisville is a neighborhood in
North Philadelphia
North Philadelphia, nicknamed North Philly, is a section of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It is immediately north of Center City, Philadelphia, Center City. Though the full extent of the region is somewhat vague, "North Philadelphia" is regarded as ...
, a section of the city of
Philadelphia
Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...
,
Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a U.S. state, state spanning the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern United States, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes region, Great Lakes regions o ...
, United States.
Its boundaries are Fairmount Avenue to the south, Girard Avenue to the north, Broad Street to the east, and Corinthian Avenue to the west. In 2000, it had a population of about 4,500. It is sometimes considered to be a part of the
Fairmount neighborhood, but Fairmount more specifically lies to Francisville's west. To its south is the
Spring Garden neighborhood. The neighborhood is named after
Tench Francis.
Street grid
Francisville's street grid is unique because some of it is parallel to Ridge Avenue, rather than being oriented north-south. This is because this section was settled before the uniform street grid of Philadelphia had extended that far north. The community was likely a small village on the Ridge Avenue route from Philadelphia proper (today's
Center City) to
East Falls
East Falls (also The Falls, formerly the Falls of Schuylkill) is a neighborhood in Lower Northwest, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. It lies on the east bank of the "Falls of the Schuylkill," cataracts submerged in 1822 by the Schu ...
.
Recent history
In recent years the community has become more activist, with the Francisville Neighborhood Development Corporation, Concerned Citizens of Francisville, and the United Francisville Civic Association
representing the neighborhood in efforts to improve housing and cut down on crime. A city program called the Neighborhood Transformation Initiative has brought the wrecking ball to many properties, with the hopes that building some new structures in the region is a better solution than costly renovations to blighted historic buildings.
SEPTA service
The neighborhood is served by
Broad Street subway stations at
Fairmount and
Girard, the
SEPTA Route 15
The G, formerly known as the Route 15 Trolley, is a streetcar line in the SEPTA Metro network that runs along Girard Avenue through North and West Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Service is operated by the City Transit Division of the Southeaster ...
trolley on Girard Avenue, in addition to the 2, 33, and 61 bus routes.
Notable people
*
Lil Uzi Vert
Symere Bysil Woods ( ; born July 31, 1995), known professionally as Lil Uzi Vert, is an American rapper, singer, and songwriter. Born and raised in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, they gained initial recognition following the release of the commer ...
, rapper and singer
References
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Lower North Philadelphia
Neighborhoods in Philadelphia