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Logan Circle, also known as Logan Square, is an open-space park in Center City
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 ...
's northwest quadrant and one of the five original planned
squares In geometry, a square is a regular polygon, regular quadrilateral. It has four straight sides of equal length and four equal angles. Squares are special cases of rectangles, which have four equal angles, and of rhombuses, which have four equal si ...
laid out on the city grid. The centerpiece of the park is the Logan Circle, a circular area centered on a large water feature, bounded by a traffic circle carrying 19th Street and the
Benjamin Franklin Parkway Benjamin Franklin Parkway, commonly abbreviated to Ben Franklin Parkway and colloquially called the Parkway, is a boulevard that runs through the cultural heart of Philadelphia, the nation's sixth-largest city as of 2020. The parkway is named ...
with connections to 18th and 20th streets to the east and west and Race and Vine Streets to the south and north. The circle exists within the original bounds of the square; the names Logan Square and Logan Circle are used interchangeably when referring to the park. Originally "Northwest Square" in William Penn's 1684 plan for the city, the square was renamed in 1825 after Philadelphia statesman James Logan. The park is the focal point of the eponymous neighborhood. Logan Square was added to the
National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...
in 1981.


History


19th century

Prior to the 1800s the city developed along the
Delaware River The Delaware River is a major river in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States and is the longest free-flowing (undammed) river in the Eastern United States. From the meeting of its branches in Hancock, New York, the river flows for a ...
, leaving the area around Logan Square as untouched forest through the
American Revolution The American Revolution (1765–1783) was a colonial rebellion and war of independence in which the Thirteen Colonies broke from British America, British rule to form the United States of America. The revolution culminated in the American ...
. Over the next quarter century the square served as a pasture, graveyard, and execution grounds which hosted a gallows until the hanging of William Gross on February 7, 1823. The City of Philadelphia leased the square to the Orphans' Society from 1821 to 1830. While some have suggested that the lease for a “good and noble purpose” was an aim at redirecting public attention away from its previous morbid use following Gross’s death, that is probably revisionist since the lease was executed two full years prior to the last public hanging in the “city of brotherly love”. In 1842, an ordinance “made it an offense to drive or take into Logan, Penn, or Rittenhouse squares any ‘horse, cow, cart, wagon, carriage or wheelbarrow, except by permission, or place any wood, coal, rubbish, carrion, or offensive matter within either 'sic''of the squares, or to climb on the trees, fences or gates . . . or to dig up the soil or injure the grass, or to run or walk over or lie on the same.’” By the 1840s Philadelphia had begun a restoration of the square from its former days as a graveyard, lining the walks with trees, planting greenery and shrubbery, and constructing a wooden fence allowing the square to resemble Penn's vision of an
urban green space In land-use planning, urban green spaces are open-space areas reserved for parks and other "green spaces." These include plant life, water features also known as blue spaces and other kinds of natural environments. Most urban open spaces a ...
. During this period, the city limited access to Logan Square to homeowners with property connected to the square who paid for its upkeep; the city constructed a wrought iron fence around the square in 1852. In 1864, the square was the site of the Great Sanitary Fair, a fundraising event in support of the
United States Sanitary Commission The United States Sanitary Commission (USSC) was a private Aid agency, relief agency created by federal legislation on June 18, 1861, to support sick and wounded soldiers of the United States Army (Federal / Northern / Union Army) during the Ameri ...
to help raise money, support, and buy medicine for the Union troops during the
American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...
. President
Abraham Lincoln Abraham Lincoln (February 12, 1809 – April 15, 1865) was the 16th president of the United States, serving from 1861 until Assassination of Abraham Lincoln, his assassination in 1865. He led the United States through the American Civil War ...
visited the fair and donated forty-eight signed copies of the
Emancipation Proclamation The Emancipation Proclamation, officially Proclamation 95, was a presidential proclamation and executive order issued by United States President Abraham Lincoln on January 1, 1863, during the American Civil War. The Proclamation had the eff ...
, which sold for $10 each. In 1881 the
Pennsylvania Railroad The Pennsylvania Railroad ( reporting mark PRR), legal name as the Pennsylvania Railroad Company, also known as the "Pennsy," was an American Class I railroad that was established in 1846 and headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. At its ...
constructed a viaduct that disconnected Logan Square and Rittenhouse Square, altering William Penn’s original plan of connectivity between the city's five squares. The square was used as a location for concerts and other community events. Since the 1890s, the city had envisioned constructing of a boulevard similar to the Parisian
Champs-Élysées The Avenue des Champs-Élysées (, ; ) is an Avenue (landscape), avenue in the 8th arrondissement of Paris, France, long and wide, running between the Place de la Concorde in the east and the Place Charles de Gaulle in the west, where the Arc ...
.


20th century

In 1907, the plans were approved. The square began to transform again: the original bounds of the square were 18th Street to the east, 20th Street to the west, Race Street to the south, and Vine Street to the north remain intact, and the square began to more closely resemble its appearance today, distinguished by its circle. Construction began in 1917 on a plan to connect Center City with Fairmount Park which later became a segment of
Benjamin Franklin Parkway Benjamin Franklin Parkway, commonly abbreviated to Ben Franklin Parkway and colloquially called the Parkway, is a boulevard that runs through the cultural heart of Philadelphia, the nation's sixth-largest city as of 2020. The parkway is named ...
. It was designed by
Jacques Gréber Jacques-Henri-Auguste Gréber (10 September 1882 – 5 June 1962) was a French architect specializing in landscape architecture and urban design. He was a strong proponent of the Beaux-Arts style and a contributor to the City Beautiful movement ...
, a French landscape architect who converted Logan Square into a circle similar to the oval of the
Place de la Concorde The Place de la Concorde (; ) is a public square in Paris, France. Measuring in area, it is the largest square in the French capital. It is located in the city's eighth arrondissement, at the eastern end of the Champs-Élysées. It was the s ...
in
Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...
. Philadelphia even modeled its Free Library and Family Court Building after the twin buildings of the Hôtel de Crillon and the Hôtel de la Marine in Paris. Among the sites in its immediate vicinity are the
Swann Memorial Fountain The ''Swann Memorial Fountain'' (also known as the ''Fountain of the Three Rivers'') is an art deco fountain sculpture located in the center of Logan Circle (Philadelphia), Logan Circle in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States.Hayes, Margar ...
at the center of the circle, Parkway Central Library, the former Philadelphia Family Court Building, the Academy of Natural Sciences, the
Franklin Institute The Franklin Institute is a science museum and a center of science education and research in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It is named after the American scientist and wikt:statesman, statesman Benjamin Franklin. It houses the Benjamin Franklin ...
, Moore College of Art and Design, the Roman Catholic Cathedral-Basilica of Sts. Peter and Paul, and the Mormon Philadelphia Pennsylvania Temple.


21st century

In early 2005, the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society (PHS) began efforts to clean up and redevelop the park to make it more accessible and inviting to pedestrians. Most noticeably the large
paulownia ''Paulownia'' ( ) is a genus of seven to 17 species of hardwood trees (depending on taxonomic authority) in the family Paulowniaceae, the order Lamiales. The genus and family are native to east Asia and are widespread across China. The genus, o ...
trees that featured prominently round the fountain were removed. City planners with PHS had determined that they had reached the end of their life span and had become an eyesore. They were replaced with similar trees grown especially for Logan Square at Longwood Gardens as part of a larger plan to improve the space. PHS planted lush perennial gardens around the fountain and adjacent parcels and maintain the gardens throughout the year. The city undertook an extensive rehabilitation plan and by 2012 the city had refurbished the original squares with restoration and new greenery bringing the Parkway’s entertainment capabilities full-circle. The city has expressed support of transitioning the circle back into a square, and increasing its aesthetic nature as an urban green space.


Events

When
Pope John Paul II Pope John Paul II (born Karol Józef Wojtyła; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 16 October 1978 until Death and funeral of Pope John Paul II, his death in 2005. In his you ...
visited the city in 1979, he celebrated mass in the plaza on October 3, 1979. To commemorate the end of every school year since the 1960s, the newly appointed Sophomores, Juniors, and Seniors of J. W. Hallahan Catholic Girls High School jump into the fountain. The event is the subject of much local media coverage throughout
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 ...
. In 2016, it was the starting location for the Women's March on Philadelphia. In April 2017, Logan Circle hosted the 2017 NFL draft.


In popular culture

*The band
The Wonder Years ''The Wonder Years'' is an American coming-of-age comedy television series created by Neal Marlens and Carol Black. It ran on ABC from January 31, 1988, until May 12, 1993. The series premiered immediately after ABC's coverage of Super Bowl X ...
has a song named after Logan Circle on their album '' The Upsides''. *The emo band Algernon Cadwallader's song "Spit Fountain" references the statues in Swann Fountain.


Gallery

File:Great Sanitary Fair 1864.jpg, Great Sanitary Fair, June 1864. File:2013 Cathedral Basilica of Saints Peter and Paul from across the Benjamin Franklin Parkway 2.jpg, Cathedral Basilica of Saints Peter and Paul (1846–64). File:LoganCircle Philadelphia.jpg, ''
Swann Memorial Fountain The ''Swann Memorial Fountain'' (also known as the ''Fountain of the Three Rivers'') is an art deco fountain sculpture located in the center of Logan Circle (Philadelphia), Logan Circle in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States.Hayes, Margar ...
'' File:LoganCircle Fountain-North.JPG, North Side File:Swann Fountain North2.jpg, South Side File:LoganCircle Fountain-West.JPG, West Side File:Map of Phila-William-Penn.jpg, Thomas Holme's ''Portraiture of the City of Philadelphia''


See also

* List of parks in Philadelphia * Franklin Square * Rittenhouse Square * Washington Square


References


External links


Logan Square: City of Philadelphia official site (Fairmount Park Commission)
{{Authority control Logan Square, Philadelphia Arch Street Benjamin Franklin Parkway Municipal parks in Philadelphia National Register of Historic Places in Philadelphia Parks in Philadelphia Parks on the National Register of Historic Places in Pennsylvania