Northwest Philadelphia - Demographics and Culture

Demographics and Culture

Northwest Philadelphia has substantial African American, Irish-American, Italian-American, German-American, and British American (English American/Scottish American) populations, but its culture is varied, and only smaller neighborhoods within it can be said to be known for one ethnicity predominating.

Compared with other sections of Philadelphia, a substantial portion of the Northwest retains a more suburban feel, particularly Chestnut Hill, West Mount Airy, parts of East Falls, East Mount Airy and Germantown, and Upper Roxborough. For example, in East Falls one will find large Tudor homes and big modern ranch homes on sizable properties only blocks from more humble townhouses and rowhouses. Upper Roxborough boasts post-World War II suburban housing developments, while Lower Roxborough consists mostly of rowhouses and urban twin houses, apartments over storefronts, etc. There are also blocks of large Victorian homes peppered among the rowhouses. The mix of development is interesting for its contrasts; whereas in some spots, the buildings and street grid have existed for three centuries, other spots nearby were farmland until after World War II, and have infrastructure that is very recently developed and suburb-like. To travel from Germantown to Manayunk to Upper Roxborough is somewhat like traveling along a development timeline, from 18th-century farmhouses to 19th-century rowhomes to 20th-century shopping centers. Besides time, the other noticeable axis along which one can travel is socioeconomic. From an enclave of working-class Germantown rowhomes to the wealthy estates of Chestnut Hill, both may have been built in the period of 1880-1920, but the time period is all that they share. Northwest Philadelphia has a population of 64,515.

• Non-Hispanic Black: 32,451 (50.3%)
• Non-Hispanic White: 26,322 (40.8%)
• Hispanic or Latino: 3,870 (6.0%)
• Asian: 903 (1.4%)
• Mixed or Other: 645 (1.0%)
• Native American 322 (0.5%)