Oxford Circle is a neighborhood in the lower

Northeast The points of the compass are a set of horizontal, radially arrayed compass directions (or azimuths) used in navigation and cartography. A '' compass rose'' is primarily composed of four cardinal directions—north, east, south, and west—eac ...

section of

Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

, Pennsylvania, United States. Its namesake is the much used traffic circle at Roosevelt Boulevard and Oxford Avenue. The Oxford Circle neighborhood has traditionally included the areas up to Rhawnhurst and

Mayfair Mayfair is an area of Westminster, London, England, in the City of Westminster. It is in Central London and part of the West End. It is between Oxford Street, Regent Street, Piccadilly and Park Lane and one of the most expensive districts ...

but does not really have a fixed boundary, other than in publications about Philadelphia which are of a public relations or informational nature. Oxford Circle is also the colloquial name for the nearby Summerdale neighborhood, which is located west of Roosevelt Boulevard, opposite the city's Frankford section. However, Summerdale is, for the most part, a different neighborhood than the one that is discussed in this article.

Geography/topography

Physical boundaries are: Roosevelt Boulevard on the southeast, Oxford Avenue on the west, Devereaux Avenue on the northeast, and Cheltenham Avenue to the south. Oxford Circle's boundaries (including Castor Gardens) seem to have a general basis in the course of three creeks which were part of the landscape long before the development of the neighborhood. Most of Oxford Circle lies between these creeks. To the northwest was the Wissinoming Creek running from above Castor Avenue along Tyson Avenue and on towards Mayfair. To the east is the Pennypack Creek and to the southeast is the Tacony Creek (which is called "Tookany" north of the city and flows into Frankford Creek). As late as 1928, a branch of the Tacony called the Little Tacony Creek still flowed from Castor Avenue past Levick Street and Large Street and on to Roosevelt Boulevard. This Little Tacony Creek connected into the main Tacony Creek which flows into the

Delaware River The Delaware River is a major river in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States and is the longest free-flowing (undammed) river in the Eastern United States. From the meeting of its branches in Hancock, New York, the river flows for a ...

near the site of today's Betsy Ross Bridge.

History

Oxford Circle, along with Castor Gardens, Mayfair, and Tacony, was originally part of Oxford Township and was one of the early suburbs of Philadelphia. The area, which included waterways such as the Tacony Creek and Wissinoming Creek, had been mostly utilized for farming up until the time that the land was sold off to developers just prior to

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. Most of the brick and stone row houses which characterize this neighborhood today were built by the Hyman Korman Company starting in the early 1940s and continuing into the 1950s. During that time and in the 1960s and 1970s Oxford Circle was a relatively prosperous white middle-class neighborhood (see

White flight The white flight, also known as white exodus, is the sudden or gradual large-scale migration of white people from areas becoming more racially or ethnoculturally diverse. Starting in the 1950s and 1960s, the terms became popular in the Racism ...

). Rising crime rates have dramatically changed the neighborhood since the late 1990s to early 2000s. Today's Oxford Circle is inhabited by a diverse population, including Caucasian,

Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

Koreans Koreans are an East Asian ethnic group native to the Korean Peninsula. The majority of Koreans live in the two Korean sovereign states of North and South Korea, which are collectively referred to as Korea. As of 2021, an estimated 7.3 m ...

Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...

s (mostly Puerto Ricans, Dominicans, and Brazilians),

West Indian A West Indian is a native or inhabitant of the West Indies (the Antilles and the Lucayan Archipelago). According to the ''Oxford English Dictionary'' (''OED''), the term ''West Indian'' in 1597 described the indigenous inhabitants of the West In ...

s (mostly Haitians), and

African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...

s. Oxford Circle is about 31% Black, 25% White, 32% Hispanic, and 11% Asian. The Laura H. Carnell School, named for educator Laura H. Carnell, was added to the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

in 1988.

Demographics

According to the US Census of 2000 for the area of 19149. The demographics are as follows.
Source
U.S. Census Bureau, Summary File 1 (SF 1) and Summary File 3 (SF 3)

Government

Oxford Circle is now predominantly represented in the state house by Jared Solomon. Others who represent parts of it in the legislature are Kevin Boyle and James Clay. In the state senate, it is represented by Christine Tartaglione and John P. Sabatina Jr. Its city council members are

Cherelle Parker Cherelle Lesley Parker (born September 9, 1972) is an American politician who has served as the 100th mayor of Philadelphia since 2024. She is the first woman to hold the office. Parker served in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives from 20 ...

, Bobby Henon and Maria Quinones-Sanchez.

Structures and landmarks

* Old Trinity Church *Tarken Playground *Max Myers Playground * Northeast High School *Spruance, Carnell, Solis-Cohen, and Moore Elementary Schools * Fels Senior High School *Castor Ave. (shopping district) * Bushrod Library *Oxford Circle (traffic circle) *Saint Martin of Tours Roman Catholic Church

Public libraries

Free Library of Philadelphia The Free Library of Philadelphia is the public library system that serves the city of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It is the 16th-largest public library system in the United States. The Free Library of Philadelphia is a non-Mayoral agency of the ...

operates the Bushrod Branch at 6304 Castor Avenue at Stirling Street.Bushrod Branch
" ''

''. Retrieved on November 6, 2008.

References

{{NEPhila Neighborhoods in Philadelphia Jewish-American history Jews and Judaism in Philadelphia Northeast Philadelphia