page_title: Kensington, Philadelphia
section_title: History
hierarchical_section_title: Kensington, Philadelphia / History
caption_attribution_description: Playground in Philadelphia neighborhood of Kensington. Note vacant factories in background.
context_page_description: Kensington is a neighborhood in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Its placement within the broader division of sections of Philadelphia is debated, but it is often considered as a dividing line between or belonging to both the Lower Northeast section of Philadelphia and North Philadelphia. It is generally considered part of the Philadelphia River Wards. Modern Kensington is larger than the former Kensington District, and unlike Kensington District it does not include Fishtown. As with all neighborhoods in Philadelphia, the lack of any official designation means the boundaries of the area vary between sources and over time.
  Traditionally, Kensington is known for its large working class Irish Catholic community. Kensington was the location of the Philadelphia Nativist Riots in the 19th century. Kensington is also the birthplace of the K&A Gang, an Irish American organized crime network. Originally, Kensington was also home to a large, and largely invisible, English American community. For example, the five Episcopal parishes in the neighborhood were founded by 19th century immigrants from England.
context_section_description: Kensington was founded by Anthony Palmer in the early 1730s. Using proceeds from the sale of the Hope Farm estate (present day Port Richmond), which included three slaves named Abraham, Hannibal, and Phillis, Palmer purchased what was called the Fairman Estate, located along the Delaware River in the Northern Liberties Township (area just north of the City of Philadelphia on the Delaware River) The entire estate consisted of 191.5 acres of land, much smaller than the Kensington we know of today. Palmer was an English merchant, who came to Philadelphia at least by 1704, from Barbados.  The town of Kensington was named for the area in London known as Kensington, which was recently established as the residency of the British crown.
  Palmer laid out his town and sold parcels to many of the shipwrights and shipbuilders who were outgrowing their riverfront lots in today's Old City neighborhood, Southwark, and Society Hill areas. He also sold to recent German fishermen immigrants. The original area of Kensington is now more commonly called "Fishtown" mainly because of the shad fishing that was one of the dominant businesses in Kensington in the 18th and 19th centuries. Anthony Palmer was active in local government and was a member of the Pennsylvania colony's council. As head of council, Palmer became the acting Provincial Governor of Pennsylvania in 1747 and 1748. Palmer died in 1749 and is buried in Christ Church Burial Grounds in Old City section of Philadelphia.
  Kensington has traditionally been known as one of the great working class centers of Philadelphia. Initially, employment focused around the nearby waterfront, and the activities of fishermen and ship- and boat-builders. In the early 19th century, Kensington transitioned to iron and steel manufacture, and became home to a variety of factories, potteries, and machine works. By the mid-19th century, Kensington became one of the leading centers of the textile industry, particularly in carpet manufacture. McNeil Laboratories began with the purchase of a pharmacy in the area in 1879 by the company's namesake.  In 1903 Mother Jones organized a "Children's Crusade" of children from the local mills and mines to protest against child labor.  They marched from Kensington to Oyster Bay, New York, carrying banners demanding "We want to go to School and not the mines!"
  Deindustrialization eventually took its hold on the neighborhood in the 1950s, leading to a significant population loss, high unemployment, economic decline, and the abandoning of  homes in the neighborhood. However, some sections of the neighborhood have been revitalized in recent years, especially those near Frankford Avenue, Kensington's neighbor south of Lehigh Avenue, and Fishtown, an area of Kensington where many shad fisheries were located, another traditionally working-class neighborhood which has seen rents increase. While most of the large manufacturers have left, the area has many small shops and large renovated factories and warehouses for newer artisans to set up shop.
caption: Playground in the neighborhood of Kensington, Philadelphia. Note the factories in the background, one of which has been recently converted into the Coral Street Arts House, low-income housing for artists.
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