Overbrook Park, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Encyclopedia
Overbrook Park is a neighborhood in the West Philadelphia
section of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
, United States
. It was founded in the 1940s on the site of a former farm, offering new housing for returning GI
s and their families. Today, Overbrook Park's population is predominantly black, originally it was largely Jewish.
(a tributary of Cobbs Creek
) and park land on a third side, and a golf course on the fourth side. The main artery is Haverford Avenue which goes into Penn Wynne across City Line Avenue where it becomes Haverford Road. Haverford Avenue and 75th Street connect it to Lansdowne Avenue on the Overbrook side. Haverford Avenue, 76th Street, and 77th Street connect it to City Line Avenue on the Penn Wynne side. The neighborhood spans for approximately four city blocks west to east along City Avenue, and approximately ten smaller blocks north to south on either side of 76th Street. There is a K-12 public school named after Robert Eneas Lamberton
, a former Republican mayor of Philadelphia. It is located at 75th and Woodbine.
and a Conservative
synagogue
. Most of the Jews have moved across City Line Avenue (U.S. 1
) into neighboring Penn Wynne
in Lower Merion Township. The Jewish community of both sides of the border are considered to be one unit and are connected by an eruv
, a wire attached to the telephone and electric poles which allows religious Jews to carry things on Shabbat
.
The Orthodox Congregation Beth Hamedrosh was founded in the late 1950s as a branch of Beth Hamedrosh HaGadol in West Philadelphia. The congregation moved to Penn Wynne in May 2007, after having purchased the site in 2000. The Building that housed Beth Hamedrosh is now Temple Kefarym, a Black Hebrew congregation.
The Conservative Congregation Beth T'fillah, originally called Overbrook Park Synagogue founded in 1948, closed down in the Fall of 2006 and merged with Adath Israel in Merion
, Lower Merion Township due to a lack of sufficient membership. The building that housed Beth T'fillah is now Overbrook Park Church of Christ.
In 1990, Overbrook Park had some 7,200 residents, mostly of Jewish, Italian and Irish origins. During the mid-1990s, whites
began to move out of Overbrook Park and the neighborhood started to become majority black. By 2000, the neighborhood's population had become nearly 60% black.
Despite the demographic change, there still are several kosher establishments in Overbrook Park, among them a kosher fish and produce store, a kosher bagel store, a kosher pizzeria, and a kosher bakery.
Overbrook Park is the birthplace of actor Seth Green
.
West Philadelphia
West Philadelphia, nicknamed West Philly, is a section of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Though there is no official definition of its boundaries, it is generally considered to reach from the western shore of the Schuylkill River, to City Line Avenue to the northwest, Cobbs Creek to the southwest, and...
section of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. It was founded in the 1940s on the site of a former farm, offering new housing for returning GI
GI
GI , Gi or gi may refer to:In science and measurement:* Galvanized iron, iron that has been electrochemically rustproofed with zinc* Gastrointestinal, a division of the human anatomy in medicine...
s and their families. Today, Overbrook Park's population is predominantly black, originally it was largely Jewish.
Boundaries
Overbrook Park is bounded by Overbrook on one side, Penn Wynne on another side, Indian CreekIndian Creek (Cobbs Creek)
Indian Creek is a tributary of Cobbs Creek in the Philadelphia area of Pennsylvania in the United States.Indian Creek has two branches that have their sources in Wynnewood, Montgomery County. The West Branch flows through the neighborhood of Penn Wynne and the East Branch flows through the Green...
(a tributary of Cobbs Creek
Cobbs Creek
Cobbs Creek is an tributary of Darby Creek in Delaware County, Pennsylvania in the United States. It forms an approximate border between Montgomery County and Delaware County. After Cobbs Creek passes underneath Township Line Road , it forms the border between Philadelphia County and Delaware County...
) and park land on a third side, and a golf course on the fourth side. The main artery is Haverford Avenue which goes into Penn Wynne across City Line Avenue where it becomes Haverford Road. Haverford Avenue and 75th Street connect it to Lansdowne Avenue on the Overbrook side. Haverford Avenue, 76th Street, and 77th Street connect it to City Line Avenue on the Penn Wynne side. The neighborhood spans for approximately four city blocks west to east along City Avenue, and approximately ten smaller blocks north to south on either side of 76th Street. There is a K-12 public school named after Robert Eneas Lamberton
Robert Eneas Lamberton
Robert Eneas Lamberton was a U.S. Republican politician who served as mayor of Philadelphia from 1940 to 1941....
, a former Republican mayor of Philadelphia. It is located at 75th and Woodbine.
Population
Overbrook Park used to have a large Jewish population. There was an OrthodoxOrthodox Judaism
Orthodox Judaism , is the approach to Judaism which adheres to the traditional interpretation and application of the laws and ethics of the Torah as legislated in the Talmudic texts by the Sanhedrin and subsequently developed and applied by the later authorities known as the Gaonim, Rishonim, and...
and a Conservative
Conservative Judaism
Conservative Judaism is a modern stream of Judaism that arose out of intellectual currents in Germany in the mid-19th century and took institutional form in the United States in the early 1900s.Conservative Judaism has its roots in the school of thought known as Positive-Historical Judaism,...
synagogue
Synagogue
A synagogue is a Jewish house of prayer. This use of the Greek term synagogue originates in the Septuagint where it sometimes translates the Hebrew word for assembly, kahal...
. Most of the Jews have moved across City Line Avenue (U.S. 1
U.S. Route 1 in Pennsylvania
U.S. Route 1 is a major north–south U.S. Highway, extending from the Florida Keys in the south to the Canadian border in the north. In the U.S. state of Pennsylvania, US 1 runs for from the Maryland state line near Oxford to the New Jersey state line near Trenton.-Maryland to Interstate...
) into neighboring Penn Wynne
Penn Wynne, Pennsylvania
Penn Wynne is a census-designated place in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is part of Lower Merion Township, and the mailing address is Wynnewood, Pennsylvania. The population was 5,697 at the 2010 census. It is mainly a residential area...
in Lower Merion Township. The Jewish community of both sides of the border are considered to be one unit and are connected by an eruv
Eruv
An Eruv is a ritual enclosure around most Orthodox Jewish and Conservative Jewish homes or communities. In such communities, an Eruv is seen to enable the carrying of objects out of doors on the Jewish Sabbath that would otherwise be forbidden by Torah law...
, a wire attached to the telephone and electric poles which allows religious Jews to carry things on Shabbat
Shabbat
Shabbat is the seventh day of the Jewish week and a day of rest in Judaism. Shabbat is observed from a few minutes before sunset on Friday evening until a few minutes after when one would expect to be able to see three stars in the sky on Saturday night. The exact times, therefore, differ from...
.
The Orthodox Congregation Beth Hamedrosh was founded in the late 1950s as a branch of Beth Hamedrosh HaGadol in West Philadelphia. The congregation moved to Penn Wynne in May 2007, after having purchased the site in 2000. The Building that housed Beth Hamedrosh is now Temple Kefarym, a Black Hebrew congregation.
The Conservative Congregation Beth T'fillah, originally called Overbrook Park Synagogue founded in 1948, closed down in the Fall of 2006 and merged with Adath Israel in Merion
Merion, Pennsylvania
Merion Station is an unincorporated community in Lower Merion Township, Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is contiguous to Philadelphia and is also bordered by Wynnewood, Narberth, and Bala Cynwyd...
, Lower Merion Township due to a lack of sufficient membership. The building that housed Beth T'fillah is now Overbrook Park Church of Christ.
In 1990, Overbrook Park had some 7,200 residents, mostly of Jewish, Italian and Irish origins. During the mid-1990s, whites
White American
White Americans are people of the United States who are considered or consider themselves White. The United States Census Bureau defines White people as those "having origins in any of the original peoples of Europe, the Middle East, or North Africa...
began to move out of Overbrook Park and the neighborhood started to become majority black. By 2000, the neighborhood's population had become nearly 60% black.
Despite the demographic change, there still are several kosher establishments in Overbrook Park, among them a kosher fish and produce store, a kosher bagel store, a kosher pizzeria, and a kosher bakery.
Overbrook Park is the birthplace of actor Seth Green
Seth Green
Seth Benjamin Green is an American actor, comedian, voice actor, and television producer. He is well known for his role as Daniel "Oz" Osbourne in Buffy the Vampire Slayer, as Dr. Evil's son Scott in the Austin Powers series of comedy films, Mitch Miller in That '70s Show, and the voice of Chris...
.