Fairmount

Fairmount is a neighborhood within Lower North Philadelphia. Its boundaries are north of Spring Garden Street, west of Broad Street, south of Girard Avenue and east of The Schuylkill River. Several subdivisions exist within and near these boundaries including: Spring Garden, Franklintown and Francisville. Fairmount is commonly referred to as the "Art Museum Area," for its proximity to and association with the Philadelphia Museum of Art.

Fairmount is near the Philadelphia Museum of Art, its famous “Rocky Steps” (immortalized in the 1976 Academy Award film, Rocky and its new Perelman Annex). Fairmount is located at the end of the Benjamin Franklin Parkway, a broad 1.5-mile tree- and flag-lined avenue that connects City Hall to the Philadelphia Museum of Art. This stretch is known as the “Museum District” since most of the city’s cultural attractions and museums are located here. Along the Parkway are the Rodin Museum, Philadelphia’s Central Library, the Franklin Institute of Science, the Academy of Natural Sciences and the Barnes Museum. Based upon the famous Champs-Élysées in Paris in its design and owing to its ability to hold vast numbers of people, the Benjamin Franklin Parkway is also where most of Philadelphia’s large outdoor events, parades, concerts, and races are held. Eastern State Penitentiary located on Fairmount Avenue has become another main draw for the neighborhood. Tours of this historic 1829 facility, now abandoned, are offered. It is also annually converted into a haunted house during the Halloween season and, because of its resemblance to the Bastille, it is part of Philadelphia’s Bastille Day celebration.

Fairmount is zoned to schools in the School District of Philadelphia.

source: wikipedia.org