Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

See also:Philadelphia in film and television.
. cities with teams from four major sports.
. See also: U.S. Numerous key players were cut or traded by the Titans front office during the off season, including Derrick Mason, Samari Rolle, Kevin Carter, and others. This was done most likely to "clean house", or free up money to put the team farther under the salary cap to make further player acquisitions. The Wachovia Spectrum is now home to the Flyers' top farm team, the Phantoms and the Major League Indoor soccer team, the Kixx. Their 5-11 record turned out to be their worst in a decade.

The Sixers and Flyers share the Wachovia Center with the Soul and Wings. The 2004 season was disappointing for the Titans, who suffered an unusual number of injuries to key players. "The Park," "The Zit," "The Vault" or in a Freudian error, "The Vet", from the Eagles' and Phillies' last home, Veterans Stadium). The Titans made the 2003 playoffs, winning their first-round game over the Baltimore Ravens and losing in the AFC semifinals to the New England Patriots. The Phillies now play in Citizens Bank Park (a.k.a. In 2003, quarterback Steve McNair won the MVP award, sharing it with Peyton Manning. The Eagles now play at Lincoln Financial Field (informally known as "The Linc"). Louis Rams when Kevin Dyson was tackled one yard short of the endzone as regulation time expired.

The Eagles, Phillies, Flyers and 76ers have each recently had a new stadium built for them. The Titans' Cinderella season led to a trip to Super Bowl XXXIV, where they lost a heartbreaker to the St. The city's original NFL team was the Frankford Yellow Jackets (Frankford being a section of the city located in the northeastern part of town); the club disbanded during the 1931 football season, then re-emerged under the same ownership two years later as the Philadelphia Eagles. This game qualifies as one of the greatest games in NFL history and became known as the "Music City Miracle". In the past Philadelphia has also been home to the Philadelphia Athletics (MLB, now the Oakland Athletics), and the Philadelphia Warriors (NBA, now the Golden State Warriors). The 1999 first round win was due to a lateral from tight end Frank Wycheck to Kevin Dyson on a late 4th quarter kickoff return; Dyson returned the pass 75 yards for a touchdown to win the game. The Philadelphia Barrage (Major League Lacrosse, lacrosse) plays at the stadium of Villanova University, which is located in Villanova. The Titans made the playoffs in their inaugural year in the "Music City", which was capped off by their unbelievable first round playoff victory over the Buffalo Bills and a third win over the Jacksonville Jaguars.

Some locals half-jokingly attribute this to the Curse of Billy Penn. In 1999, Adelphia Coliseum, now known simply as The Coliseum, was completed and the newly christened Tennessee Titans were well received by their new fans in Tennessee's state capital. Of late Philadelphia teams have been performing well, but frequently missing championships by failing during the crucial stages. The team relented and played the 1998 home schedule at Vanderbilt Stadium in Nashville. Philadelphia sports fans have a reputation of being devoted to their teams in good times and bad. The 1997 season is often recalled as having consisted of 16 road games. Philadelphia has a long and proud history of professional sports teams. Weary of babysitting Nashville's team, Memphis largely ignored the Oilers, who played before crowds ranging from sparse and indifferent to outright hostile (as in the case of a game against the Pittsburgh Steelers).

The Free Library of Philadelphia. The Oilers rejected Vanderbilt Stadium and played their home games at the Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium while waiting for their new stadium to be finished in their permanent home city, Nashville. Colleges and universities near Philadelphia include. The soon-to-be Tennessee Titans spent 1997 in Memphis as the short-lived Tennessee Oilers. All schools in the district are required to have a school uniform or a similar dress code. Even before the Oilers relocated, they established the future cornerstone of their offense by drafting Steve McNair in 1995. All of Philadelphia is served by the School District of Philadelphia. Unlike his support of an old-line NFL city (Cleveland) in holding on to its tradition, NFL Commissioner Paul Tagliabue did not intervene when Adams declared that no other Houston football team could ever use the name "Oilers".

WPLY 100.3FM had formerly been a purely Philadelphia-based alternative rock station, but its format was changed to hip hop in early 2005. Although the city of Cleveland kept the franchise's name "Browns", and the team's history when it left, Houston's status as the home of the first two American Football League championships did not save the city's AFL heritage. In 2005, Philadelphia became the largest city in the United States without a modern rock-format radio station, in part because of the difficulty such a station has in gaining market share from WMMR and WYSP. The mid-1990s signaled the decline of the Houston Oilers and the ill-fated "run and shoot" offense and by 1997, owner Bud Adams moved the team out of Houston. Philadelphia is home to some of the country's most prominent radio stations, including two of the nation's leading rock stations, WMMR at 93.3FM and WYSP at 94.1FM. Both stations have been breakthrough stations for many contemporary rock bands, and both are widely known in the rock music community for their influence in impacting the country's rock music trends. From 1987 through 1993, the Oilers were one of the most successful teams in the AFC, making the playoffs each year but failing to reach the Super Bowl. Famed comedian Bill Cosby was born and raised in Philadelphia. In 1984, the Oilers won a bidding war for CFL legend Warren Moon but didn't return to the playoffs until 1987, where the Oilers nearly went to the Super Bowl.

Its cultural diversity is reflected in the music and musicians that have come from or through Philadelphia: the R&B styles of Jill Scott and Patti LaBelle, the jazz of Grover Washington Jr., Stan Getz, and Sun Ra, the rock of Pink, the rap of Will Smith, and the opera of Marian Anderson. From 1978 through 1980, the "Luv Ya Blue" Oilers would make the playoffs each year but three postseason losses prompted owner Bud Adams to fire head coach Bum Phillips and signaled the decline of the Oilers for a few years (the 1981 Oilers won their first two games, both on the road - but then the team lost 23 consecutive away games, an all-time NFL record which remained intact until the Detroit Lions lost their 24th straight road game on December 21, 2003). Philadelphia has been home to many people of note, the most famous of whom is probably Ben Franklin, who along with the others in the Continental Congresses helped shape the city along with the country and the world. In 1978, the Oilers' fortunes changed when they drafted University of Texas football star Earl Campbell, who was both Rookie of the Year and MVP that year and led the Oilers to their first NFL playoff appearance. For a list of famous past and present resident of Philadelphia, see: List of people from Philadelphia. They then fell from the AFL elite, and the years immediately following the 1970 AFL-NFL merger proved to not be much brighter. The "Italian Market" section of South Philadelphia is home to an increasing number of Vietnamese residents. The Oilers won the AFL Eastern Division title again in 1967, then became the first professional football team to play in a domed stadium, when they moved into Houston's Astrodome for the 1968 season.

Philadelphia has a large Italian American population along with Irish-Americans, Asian-Americans, African Americans, and growing numbers of Hispanic residents and émigrés from Russia and Asian countries. Dewveall that year caught the longest pass reception for a touchdown in professional football history, 99 yards, from Jacky Lee, against the San Diego Chargers. Distinctive Philadelphian dishes include:. In 1962, the Oilers were the first AFL team to sign an active NFL player away from the other league, when wide receiver Willard Dewveall left the Bears to join the champion Oilers. The following railroads, almost all radiating from downtown, were built in the mid-19th century:. They lost to the Dallas Texans in the classic 1962 double-overtime AFL championship game, at the time the longest, and still one of the best professional football championship games ever played. Philadelphia was an early railroad hub. After winning the first-ever AFL championship over the Los Angeles Chargers in 1960, they repeated over the same team (then in San Diego) in 1961.

Other planned freeways have been cancelled, such as an Interstate 695 running southwest from downtown and a freeway upgrade of Roosevelt Boulevard. Cannon joined other Oiler offensive stars such as quarterback George Blanda, flanker Charlie Hennigan, running back Charlie Tolar, and guard Bob Talamini. Shortly after it was completed, though, it became one of the busiest corridors in the region. They scored an important victory over the NFL when they signed LSU's Heisman Trophy winner, All-America running back Billy Cannon. The construction of 476 between 76 and 95 took much longer than expected due to community opposition and stubborn landowners. The Oilers appeared in the first three AFL championships. The stretch of 476 between 95 and the toll portion of 476 (running North from the Mid-County Interchange at Plymouth Meeting) is referred to locally as "The Blue Route," because regional planners drew a blue line right through Montgomery and Delaware Counties to suggest where a road ought to be built. The Tennessee Titans began in 1960 as the Houston Oilers, charter members of the American Football League.

Opened in the early 1990s, the Northeast Extension (276 & 476) connects highways south of Philly International Airport to ones north of the city. The Tennessee Titans are a National Football League team based in Nashville, Tennessee. The Tacony-Palmyra Bridge connects PA 73 with NJ 73, and is maintained by the Burlington County Bridge Commission. Frank Wycheck. The Delaware River Port Authority operates three bridges in Philadelphia over the Delaware River to New Jersey: the Walt Whitman Bridge (I-76), the Benjamin Franklin Bridge (I-676 and US 30), and the Betsy Ross Bridge (NJ 90). George Webster. Plans to extend the highway west into the suburbs were killed by community opposition. Webster Slaughter.

The Woodhaven Expressway (PA 63), serving the neighborhood of Northeast Philadelphia, runs between Interstate 95 and Roosevelt Boulevard (US 1). Charlie Tolar (1937-2003 ("the human bowling ball")). In recent years, it has become a traffic bottleneck and includes the #2 and #3 worst intersections in the country about a mile from each other, according to a study by State Farm Insurance. Bob Talamini (born 1939, won two AFL titles with the Oilers, AFL and World Championship with the Jets). The boulevard was built for the Lincoln Highway as part of the City Beautiful movement. Mike Rozier. Roosevelt Boulevard and the Roosevelt Expressway (US 1) connects Northeast Philadelphia with Center City. Samari Rolle.

A link between I-95 and I-76, it runs beneath street level through Center City, and connects to the Ben Franklin Bridge at its east end. Allen Pinkett. Interstate 676, the Vine Street Expressway, was completed in 1991 after years of planning. Warren Moon. It meets the Pennsylvania Turnpike at King of Prussia and provides access to Harrisburg and points west. Ron McDole. The city is also served by Interstate 76 (the Schuylkill Expressway), which runs along the Schuylkill River. Wahoo McDaniel.

Interstate 95 runs through the city along the Delaware River, providing transportation from Florida to Maine. Bruce Matthews. Philadelphia International Airport provides domestic and international scheduled air service, while Northeast Philadelphia Airport serves general and corporate aviation. Derrick Mason. Two airports, Philadelphia International Airport and Northeast Philadelphia Airport, reside within the city limits (Philadelphia International also lies in the city limits of Tinicum Township, Delaware County). Jacky Lee. PATCO provides subway service to Camden, Collingswood, Haddonfield, Cherry Hill, Ashland, and Lindenwold, New Jersey, from stations on Locust Street between 16th and 15th, 13th and 12th, and 10th and 9th Streets, and on Market Street at 8th Street. Ernie Ladd.

Amtrak's 30th Street Station is a major railroad facility which offers access to Amtrak, SEPTA, and NJ Transit rail lines. Jevon Kearse. Philadelphia lies directly on Amtrak's Northeast Corridor. Sean Jones. Philadelphia is served by the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority, or SEPTA. SEPTA runs buses, trains, subways, trolleys, and trackless trolleys around Philadelphia and into the suburbs. Charlie Joiner. Out of the total population, 31.3% of those under the age of 18 and 16.9% of those 65 and older are living below the poverty line. Billy "White Shoes" Johnson.

22.9% of the population and 18.4% of families are below the poverty line. Haywood Jeffries. The per capita income for the city is $16,509. Bobby Jancik. Males have a median income of $34,199 versus $28,477 for females. Drew Hill. The median income for a household in the city is $30,746, and the median income for a family is $37,036. Charlie Hennigan (born 1935, first professional football player to catch more than 100 passes in a season (Oilers, 1964)).

For every 100 females age 18 and over, there are 81.8 males. Eddie George. For every 100 females there are 86.8 males. Miller Farr. The median age is 34 years. Ray Childress. In the city the population is spread out with 25.3% under the age of 18, 11.1% from 18 to 24, 29.3% from 25 to 44, 20.3% from 45 to 64, and 14.1% who are 65 years of age or older. Kevin Carter.

The average household size is 2.48 and the average family size is 3.22. Billy Cannon (born 1937, made All-League as a halfback in 1961 and as a tight end in 1969). 33.8% of all households are made up of individuals and 11.9% have someone living alone who is 65 years of age or older. 74 Bruce Matthews. Of the 590,071 households, 27.6% have children under the age of 18 living with them, 32.1% are married couples living together, 22.3% have a female householder with no husband present, and 40.3% are non-families. 65 Elvin Bethea. The ethnic makeup of the city is 43.2% Black, 13.6% Irish, 9.2% Italian, 8.1% German, 6.4% Puerto Rican, and 4.3% Polish. 63 Mike Munchak.

8.50% of the population are Hispanic or Latino of any race. 43 Jim Norton (born 1938, all-time American Football League interception leader). The racial makeup of the city is 45.02% White, 43.22% African American, 0.27% Native American, 4.46% Asian, 0.05% Pacific Islander, 4.77% from other races, and 2.21% from two or more races. 34 Earl Campbell. There are 661,958 housing units at an average density of 1,891.9/km² (4,900.1/mi²). Steve McNair. The population density is 4,337.3/km² (11,233.6/mi²). Brad Hopkins.

As of the census² of 2000, there are 1,517,550 people, 590,071 households, and 352,272 families residing in the city. Andre Dyson. For a more extensive list of Philadelphia neighborhoods, see List of Philadelphia neighborhoods. Keith Bulluck. These include Andorra, Roxborough, Northern Liberties, Old City, Bustleton, Oxford Circle, Somerton, Manayunk, Center City, Queen Village, Kensington, Frankford, University City, Strawberry Mansion, Chestnut Hill, Fishtown, Port Richmond, Germantown, Mount Airy, Wynnefield, Chinatown, Fox Chase, South Philly, Society Hill, the Museum District and many others. Chris Brown. Many of these neighborhoods coincide with the borough and townships that made up Philadelphia County before their absorbtion by the city. Drew Bennett.

Like every big city, Philadelphia has many neighborhoods, each of which has its own identity. Gary Anderson. Bodies of water include the Schuylkill River, Cobbs Creek, Wissahickon Creek, and Pennypack Creek. Mike Munchak. The total area is 5.29% water. Ken Houston. 349.9 km² (135.1 mi²) of it is land and 19.6 km² (7.6 mi²) of it is water. Earl Campbell.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 369.4 km² (142.6 mi²). George Blanda (born 1927, first player to pass for 36 touchdowns (Oilers, 1961)). Philadelphia is located at 39°59'53" North, 75°8'41" West (39.998012, -75.144793)¹. Elvin Bethea. The city is also a national center of law due to the University of Pennsylvania's prestigious law school. Because of the large presence of the federal government, the city has a large contingent of law firms including the head quarters of Morgan, Lewis & Bockius, LLP-- a world-wide firm and federal contractor.

The east-coast operations of the United States Mint are based near the historic district, and the Federal Reserve Bank's Philadelphia division is based there as well. The Federal government plays a large role in Philadelphia as well. The list of major companies in Philadelphia includes Aramark, GlaxoSmithKline, Sunoco, Comcast, and Pep Boys. Philadelphia has its own stock exchange.

Philadelphia's economy is heavily based upon manufacturing, refining, food, and financial services. Judges for all of the above courts are elected at large. Also, the Superior Court of Pennsylvania and the Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania sit in Philadelphia several times a year. Pennsylvania's three appellate courts also sit in Philadelphia. The Supreme Court of Pennsylvania, which is the court of last resort in the state, regularly hears arguments in Philadelphia City Hall.

Traffic Court is a court of special jurisdiction which hears violations of traffic laws. The Philadelphia Municipal Court handles matters of limited jurisdiction as well as landlord-tenant disputes, appeals from traffic court, conducts preliminary examinations for felony-level offenses, and the like. It is funded and operated largely by City resources and employees. The Philadelphia County Court of Common Pleas, also known as the Court of Common Pleas for the First Judicial District of Pennsylvania, is the trial court of general jurisdiction for Philadelphia.

Verna. The current council president is Anna C. Philadelphia has seven council members at large, and ten council members from districts. The legislative branch of Philadelphia is the Philadelphia City Council.

See also: List of mayors of Philadelphia. He was re-elected by a larger majority in 2003. The incumbent is former Philadelphia City Council President John Street (D), who was first elected in 1999. The city is headed by an elected mayor who is limited to two consecutive four-year terms, but can run for the position again after an intervening term.

From a governmental perspective, Philadelphia County is a legal nullity, as all county functions were assumed by the city in 1952, which has been coterminous with the county since 1854. Prior to that, the city of Philadelphia consisted only of those areas between South Street, Vine Street, the Delaware River, and the Schuylkill River. The city limits have been coterminous with Philadelphia County since 1854. The term "Downtown" refers to South Philadelphia.

The Central Business District is known as Center City, and is the third largest of its kind in America. David Rittenhouse was a clockmaker and friend of the American Revolution. William Rittenhouse's original paper mill site is known as Rittenhousetown, and is a delightful rural setting in Fairmount Park. Rittenhouse Square is named after David Rittenhouse, a descendent of the first paper-maker in Philadelphia, the German immigrant William Rittenhouse.

Since the completion of One Liberty Place, no Philadelphia sporting team has won a world championship event in its discipline, a phenomenon locally - and increasingly nationally - known as the "Curse of Billy Penn." There is also a Masonic Temple located only across the street from the City Hall, a legacy of the Founding Fathers and signers of the Declaration of Independence, many of whom were Freemasons. One Liberty Place is the tallest building not only in Philadelphia but in the entire state of Pennsylvania, however in 2005 construction began on the Comcast Center which, when completed in 2007, will be 30 feet taller than One Liberty Place. Since then, seven other skyscrapers have been completed exceeding the statue, including One Liberty Place's little sister, Two Liberty Place. However in March of 1987, One Liberty Place broke the gentlemen's agreement not to exceed the height of the statue of William Penn on the top of the City Hall.

City Hall is the tallest masonry building in the world; and through the late 1980s, City Hall used to be locally known as the tallest building in Philadelphia. Both are the same distance south of City Hall. The eastern edge of Rittenhouse Square is on 18th St., four blocks west of City Hall, while the western edge of Washington Square is between 7th and 8th, about six and a half blocks east of City Hall. He also planned five public parks, one at the intersection of High and Broad Streets in the very center of the city (now occupied by the City Hall) and four others (now called Washington Square, Rittenhouse Square, Logan Square and Franklin Square) surrounding it.

The east-west streets, many of them named for trees, e.g., Chestnut, Walnut, Locust, and Spruce (These are laid out in increasing Hardness from the Soft-wood Pine in the South to the Hard-wood Chestnut in the North) parallel the main thoroughfare named High Street by Penn, but called Market Street since at least the early 18th century (six blocks south of the latter is South Street, noted in recent decades for its raucous night life and the subject of the 1963 hit single by The Orlons of the same name). The numbered streets then resume, continuing in the original plan to 28th at the Schuylkill River. The north-south streets are numbered sequentially from Front (instead of First), along the Delaware River, to 13th, followed by the main north-south thoroughfare, Broad Street (instead of 14th). Penn's surveyor, Thomas Holme, laid out the city in a strict grid, with all streets running either north-south or east-west.

In 1926, the city held the Sesquicentennial Exposition, but Philadelphia was not the central focus of the Bicentennial observances that took place nationwide in the United States in 1976 (New York City held this distinction, as thousands of "tall ships" gathered in New York Harbor on July 4, 1976, the 200th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence). Memorial Hall and the expansive mall in front of it are remnants of this fair. In 1876 Philadelphia hosted the World's Fair known as the Centennial Exposition. The Pennsylvania Railroad, once America's largest railroad by revenue and traffic volume and at one time the largest public corporation in the world, was headquartered on Broad Street, as was its merger successor, the Penn Central.

An early railroad center, Philadelphia was the original home of the Baldwin Locomotive Works, the world's largest builder of steam locomotives (which relocated to nearby Eddystone, Pennsylvania). Philadelphia served as the temporary capital for a decade, until 1800, when the Capitol building in the new Federal city of Washington, DC was opened. In exchange for locating a permanent capital on the banks of the Potomac River, the congressmen agreed to support Hamilton's financial proposals. In 1790, the seat of the United States Government was moved from Federal Hall in New York to Congress Hall in Philadelphia as the result of a compromise between a number of Southern congressmen and United States Secretary of the Treasury Alexander Hamilton.

For a time in the 18th century, Philadelphia was the largest city in the Americas north of Mexico City, and was the fourth largest city under Crown rule (after London, Bristol, and Dublin). The Declaration of Independence and US Constitution were signed in the city's Independence Hall. Philadelphia was a major center of the independence movement during the American Revolutionary War. Penn also required lots of alleyways and open spaces in hopes of controlling fires and disease (which were then common problems in London).

This was intended to allow the city's population to leave the city easily. During early immigration by Quakers and others, when immigrants purchased land in the city, they also received farm land outside of the city. Penn hoped that the city, as the capital of his new colony founded on principles of freedom and religious tolerance, would be a model of this philosophy. The city's name means "city of brotherly love" in ancient Greek.

Philadelphia is a planned city founded and developed by William Penn, a Quaker. In 1700, the group built the Gloria Dei Church, also known as Old Swedes. A congregation was formed in 1646 on Tinicum Island by Swedish missionary Johannes Campanius. In 1669, Swedish colonists became the first Europeans to settle the area (see New Sweden), calling it Wicoca.

Before Europeans arrived, the Delaware (Lenape) Indian town of Shackamaxon was located where Philadelphia now stands. At that time, it eclipsed Boston and New York City in political and social importance, with Benjamin Franklin playing an extraordinary role in Philadelphia's rise.
. During part of the 18th century, the city was the second capital and then-most populous city of the United States. It has played a critical role in American history and the birth of American independence and democracy.

Philadelphia is one of the oldest cities in the United States. Philadelphia is the central city for the Delaware Valley metropolitan area. The Philadelphia metropolitan area is the fourth largest nationally, with some 5.7 million people. However, later estimates showed that Philadelphia's population loss and Phoenix's population growth had both slowed, leaving the rankings unchanged for the present.

A July 1, 2002 census estimate showed the population dropping modestly to 1,492,231, with Phoenix, Arizona surpassing the city proper as the 5th largest city in the United States. Philadelphia (sometimes referred to as "Philly" or "the City of Brotherly Love") is the fifth most populous city in the United States and the most populous city in the state of Pennsylvania, occupying all of Philadelphia County.⁶ As of the 2000 census, the population was 1,517,550. Indoor soccer: Philadelphia Kixx (Major Indoor Soccer League). Indoor lacrosse: Philadelphia Wings (National Lacrosse League).

Arena football: Philadelphia Soul (Arena Football League). hockey: Philadelphia Flyers (National Hockey League), Philadelphia Phantoms (American Hockey League). Basketball: Philadelphia 76ers (National Basketball Association). Baseball: Philadelphia Phillies (Major League Baseball).

football: Philadelphia Eagles (National Football League). Delaware County Community College, Marple Township. West Chester University of Pennsylvania, West Chester. University of Delaware, located just outside Pennsylvania in Newark, Delaware.

Widener University, Chester. Swarthmore College, Swarthmore. Villanova University, Villanova. Neumann College, Aston.

Haverford College, Haverford. Rosemont College, Bryn Mawr. Davids. Eastern University, located in St.

Bryn Mawr College, located in Bryn Mawr. Arcadia University, located in Glenside, Pennsylvania. Manor College, located in Jenkintown, Pennsylvania. Bryn Athyn College of the New Church, located in Bryn Athyn, Pennsylvania.

Temple University's Tyler School of Art, located in Elkin's Park, Pennsylvania. Temple University, located in Ambler, Pennsylvania. Pennsylvania State University, located in Abington, Pennsylvania and Media, Pennsylvania. Montgomery County Community College, located in Blue Bell, Pennsylvania.

University of Pennsylvania. University of the Sciences in Philadelphia. University of the Arts. Thomas Jefferson University.

Temple University. Saint Joseph's University. Philadelphia University. Philadelphia Community College.

Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine. Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts. La Salle University. Holy Family University.

Drexel University. Curtis Institute of Music. Chestnut Hill College. The Art Institute of Philadelphia.

The Resturant School. Moore College of Art. Masterman high school. Central High School.

Philadelphia Auto Show. Philadelphia Flower Show. The Wing Bowl, a chicken wing eating competition. Patrick's Day Parade.

Philadelphia St. The Greek Picnic, a reunion and celebration of African-American college fraternities. The Mummers Parade, held every New Year's Day on Broad Street. For a traditional Philadelphia cheesesteak - Tony Luke's, Pat's Steaks, Geno's Steaks or Jim's Steaks (though cheesteaks can be found at most any corner pizza shop).

South Street. SEPTA Museum. Rittenhouse Square. Reading Terminal Market.

Philadelphia Zoo. Penn's Landing. One Liberty Place. LOVE Park.

Italian market. Gloria Dei National Historic Site, built in 1700, it is the oldest church in the state. Fairmount Park. Elfreth's Alley.

Eastern State Penitentiary. Philadelphia City Hall. Betsy Ross House. 30th Street Station.

University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology. Rosenbach Foundation & Rosenbach Museum. Rodin Museum (largest collection of Auguste Rodin's works outside France). Please Touch Museum.

Philadelphia Museum of Art. National Constitution Center. Mütter Museum of the College of Physicians of Philadelphia (museum of medical and pathological oddities and curiosities). Liberty Bell & Independence Hall.

Franklin Institute. Fort Mifflin. Fairmount Waterworks and its interpretive center. Edgar Allan Poe House.

Barnes Foundation. Atwater-Kent Municipal Museum. Unlike soft pretzels of other cities, which are the same shape as hard pretzels, Philadelphia soft pretzels have a long, thin block-like shape. Soft pretzel -- thick, doughy pretzels, generally salted, often served with mustard.

Polish ice -- A much looser, creamier form of Italian Ice, usually coming only in chocolate and vanilla. Irish ice -- Irish ice is a creamier, thicker form of water ice. Italian ice (Water Ice)-- a frozen dessert, similar to a slushie except stiffer. Scrapple -- corn meal mush cooked up with every part (scrap) of the pig from the Pennsylvania Dutch country of Lancaster County.

Hoagies -- a sandwich made with cold cuts on an Italian roll, a localised variant of the submarine sandwich. Cheesesteaks, a kind of humble culinary masterpiece, made of cheese (usually either Cheez Wiz(tm), provolone or American) and slices of fried ribeye steak on a hoagie (Italian) roll, sometimes combined with onions or mushrooms - recent innovations include a chicken and a vegetarian variant. 1854: West Chester and Philadelphia Railroad[11] (http://courses.wcupa.edu/jones/his480/notes/rr-1.htm). 1850: relocation of Philadelphia and Columbia Railroad (later Pennsylvania Railroad main line)[10] (http://www.railsandtrails.com/PRR/BOD1948/history.html).

1839: Camden and Woodbury Railroad[9] (http://www.earlpleasants.com/search_1.asp). 1837: Philadelphia, Wilmington and Baltimore Railroad[8] (http://broadway.pennsyrr.com/Rail/Prr/Corphist/pb_w.html). 1835?: Philadelphia and Reading Railroad[7] (http://www.ushistory.org/philadelphia/special/railroad.htm). 1835: Southwark Railroad (only in downtown)[6] (http://broadway.pennsyrr.com/Rail/Prr/Corphist/pb_w.html).

1834: Camden and Amboy Railroad[5] (http://broadway.pennsyrr.com/Rail/Prr/Corphist/urrnj.html). 1834: Philadelphia and Trenton Railroad[4] (http://homepages.rootsweb.com/~wdstock/railroad.htm). 1834: Philadelphia and Columbia Railroad (later Pennsylvania Railroad main line)[3] (http://www.columbiahistoric.com/RAILROAD.HTM). 1834: Delaware and Schuylkill Railroad (only in downtown)[2] (http://www.ushistory.org/philadelphia/special/railroad.htm).

1832: Philadelphia, Germantown and Norristown Railroad[1] (http://www.ushistory.org/philadelphia/special/railroad.htm).