Anonymous:
Spoke with a woman, who declined to give her name, as she waited for her friend who was shopping in the stores on the bottom level of the Philadelphian (Fairmount and 24):
She has lived in Fairmount, even in the same house near 28th and Brown Streets, for 65 years. Her parents, who were born in the United States, had lived there before her, but her grandparents came from Ireland.
When asked about her memories of growing up, she noted that everyone as poor. All of the children walked to school at St. Francis Xavier, and her family still attends that parish. She also remembers little comer stores on each block. As she recalls, they were mostly run by Jewish store owners.
She also remembers that everyone knew each other back then. There were bigger families Her cousin has 13 kids and her uncle’s family had 16. Other families were 10 or 12, and about their children until the 1960s when drugs changed people’s perspectives on neighborhood safety.
When asked what else she noted the demographic change from all -A-lute families in the neighborhood to an increasing number of African-American families. She feels that today there in an ethnic balance, but the community has fluctuated from poor, to very poor, to affluent. The high and rising price of homes is evidence of this latest swing. She explains that she always worked and had been able to stay in the neighborhood throughout the transitions.
Finally, she explained that the biggest difference is the neighborhood’s functions from holistic and self-sustaining to a bedroom community for those who work in Center City. The large, extended families of pervious generations have been exchanged for younger people who move in to the area, but do not socialize in the neighborhood. She feels that it has been like this for the past ten or more years.
Mr. Arnold:
According to Mr. Arnold, a longtime Fairmount resident, the build up of the neighborhood was swift after the Penitentiary’s construction, between 1840 and 1890. One existing landmark of the growth from that period is the “centennial house,” a group of stone-faced houses on Fairmount Avenue across the street from the Penitentiary. They were built around the 100 year anniversary of the Declaration of Independence in 1776.
The area, as a whole, remained rural and undeveloped for many years, as noted by Mr. Arnold and Mrs. Guertney and their neighbor, Ms. Reichert, all life-long residents of Fairmount:
This was all mostly farmland until 1875- There were only homes on 26h street. Farmers would bring their goods down 2e- All the homes had gaslights and coal furnaces. Lanterns on the streets were big cast iron poles … Prior to 1936, most homes had sheds, outside toilets and running water.
Fairmount was home to several blue collar industries, including factories, breweries, and tanneries, recalls Mr. Greenly, and the primary commercial area was on Girard Avenue. Many residents recall the nearby shopping areas on Girard and Ridge Avenues, with a variety of shops owned locally by Jewish, African-American, and Italian families. The Guertneys and Ms. Reichert remember the unique merchants without formal stores as well, ranging from Amish farmers to organ-grinders.
They go on to say that only a few people had cars in the 1940s and 50s, so residents did all of their working, shopping, and socializing right in the neighborhood.
The other thing that was remembered with fondness by all of the interviewed long-time Fairmount’s residents was the presence of large families and lots of children. Mr. Fortizi, talked about two and three families living in one house, spoke of having families or relatives with 12 to 16 children. From the turn of the century, Fairmount was primarily populated by white Catholics of Irish, Italian, and Polish descent, with Irish being the vast majority, according to Mr. Greenly, a self-described member of one of Fairmount’s largest families. The area has also been mixed, remembers Fortizi, whose family has owned a store on 24h and Aspen since 1912- He notes that there were some African-American families, and the Ukrainian families moved to the neighborhood after World War 11.
The different schools could be usually identified with one or two ethnic groups. The Ukrainians built St. Nicholas. The Polish attended St. Hedwig’s. The Irish and Italians were usually enrolled at St. Francis Xavier, known as “St. Franny’s-” It was also home to many neighborhood activities. The African-Americans in the area regularly attended Fairmount’s public schools.
