Kensington, Philadelphia
Kensington is a neighborhood in Philadelphia that belongs to Lower Northeast. As with all neighborhoods in the city, the lack of any official designation means the boundaries of the area vary between sources over time and are disputed among locals. Kensington, as most long-term residents view it, refers generally to the area consisting of Kensington, East (or Lower) Kensington, West Kensington, and Harrowgate. The adjacent Fairhill and Norris Square neighborhoods are more separate but may be included in Kensington; Fishtown and South (Olde) Kensington were historically included. The most conservative boundaries of the neighborhood, shown in the map below, are Front Street and 5th Street to the west, the Amtrak train tracks to the North, Trenton Avenue, the Trenton Avenue train tracks, and Frankford Avenue to the east, and Cecil B. Moore Avenue to the south.
Kensington | |
|---|---|
Neighborhood of Philadelphia | |
Beatty's Mills Factory Building, a historic textile mill that is now the Coral Street Arts House, which provides artists with low-income housing | |
| Country | United States |
| State | Pennsylvania |
| County | Philadelphia |
| City | Philadelphia |
| Area code(s) | 215, 267, and 445 |
Kensington is a primarily low income and working class area, and it experienced increasing poverty after the loss of its industries in the 1960s during deindustrialization. Disinvestment and general neglect has led to high abandonment in some sections of the neighborhood, catalyzing several grassroots actions from its residents.
Kensington is home to a large population of Hispanic Americans, mainly Puerto Ricans and Dominicans, as well as African Americans and Irish Americans. Communities of Polish Americans and Asian Americans also make up the neighborhood. Additionally, there is a large population of homeless individuals. The neighborhood also recently has seen a large influx of primarily white young urban professionals and gentrification, particularly in Fishtown – which is no longer considered to be Kensington – and in Olde Kensington, Norris Square, and East Kensington.
Kensington is historically known for its large working class Irish Catholic community and was the site of the Philadelphia nativist riots in the 19th century. It was also the birthplace of the K&A Gang, currently known as the Northeast Philly Irish Mob, an Irish American organized crime network.