EXPLORE RITTENHOUSE SQUARE

Rittenhouse Square is one of the five original open-space parks planned by William Penn and his surveyor Thomas Holme during the late 17th century in central Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The park cuts off 19th Street at Walnut Street and also at a half block above Manning Street. Its boundaries are 18th Street to the East, Walnut St. to the north, Rittenhouse Square West (a north-south boundary street), and Rittenhouse Square South (an east-west boundary street), making the park approximately two short blocks on each side. Originally called Southwest Square, Rittenhouse Square was renamed in 1825 after David Rittenhouse, a descendant of the first paper-maker in Philadelphia.

In the early nineteenth century, as the city grew steadily from the Delaware River to the Schuylkill River, it became obvious that Rittenhouse Square would become a highly desirable address. James Harper, a merchant and brick manufacturer who had recently retired from the United States Congress, was the first person to build on the square, buying most of the north frontage, erecting a stately townhouse for himself at 1811 Walnut Street (c. 1840). Having thus set the patrician residential tone that would subsequently define the Square, he divided the rest of the land into generously proportioned building lots and sold them. Sold after the congressman’s death, the Harper house became the home of the exclusive Rittenhouse Club, which added the present facade in c. 1901.

The beauty of the Park is due largely to the efforts of Friends of Rittenhouse Square, a public-private partnership with Philadelphia Parks & Recreation. Landscaping, lighting, restoration of fountains and fencing—even the installation and stocking of doggie-bag dispensers—are all projects of the Friends of Rittenhouse Square. During 2013, the 100th anniversary of architect Paul Cret’s redesign of the Square, the Friends of Rittenhouse Square are working to raise record funds for a lighting and preservation initiative. New security cameras have cut down on vandalism, park rangers have helped calm behavior in the Square, and damaged balustrades and stonework are undergoing extensive restoration.

Arts and culture

The Rittenhouse neighborhood is also home to many cultural institutions, including the Curtis Institute of Music, the Ethical Society, the Philadelphia Art Alliance, the Rosenbach Museum & Library, and the Civil War and Underground Railroad Museum.

The Square is home to many works of public art. Among them is a bas-relief bust of J. William White done by R. Tait McKenzie.

Education

Residents are in the Albert M. Greenfield School catchment area for grades kindergarten through eighth and South Philadelphia High School for high school.

The University of the Arts and Peirce College are both in the Rittenhouse Square neighborhood. The Free Library of Philadelphia operates the Philadelphia City Institute on the first floor and lower level of an apartment complex at 1905 Locust Street.

Transportation

Rittenhouse Square is accessible via several forms of public transportation.

All SEPTA Regional Rail lines stop at Suburban Station, about six blocks north and east of the Square. The PATCO Speedline, a rapid transit system connecting Philadelphia and Southern New Jersey stops at 16th St. & Locust St., 2 blocks east of the Square. The SEPTA 9, 12, 21, and 42 buses westbound run along Walnut Street. The 17 runs northbound along 20th Street and southbound along 19th Street and Rittenhouse Square West and the 2 runs northbound along 16th Street and southbound along 17th Street. The SEPTA Subway-Surface Trolley Lines have a station at 19th and Market streets, two blocks north of the Square. The Walnut-Locust station on the Broad Street Subway is four blocks east. Two taxi stands are to be found on the west side of the Square, accessible 24 hours a day.

Courtesy of Wikipedia

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