Strawberry Mansion

Strawberry Mansion is a North Philadelphia neighborhood that has seen better days but can still pride itself on being a tight knit community. Sitting next to Fairmount Park, the area was once home to some of the wealthiest families in the 19th Century many of whom were Jewish.

Strawberry Mansion takes its name from a restaurant located in Fairmont Park that was famous for its Strawberry and Cream deserts. Also nearby is Lemon Hill Mansion. The famous Robin Hood Dell East sits inside the park and is a site of popular summer concerts. There is a large stable of horses which provide instruction for the kids and tennis courts for the adults.

Generally, the boundaries are considered to be 29th and 33rd Streets, Lehigh Avenue and Oxford Street.

The John Coltrane House is located on 33rd Street and in a landmark on the National Historical Register. It is owned and maintained by his “Cousin Mary.”

It is a primarily African American working class community. Property values have drop by 39 percent since 2005 in accordance with a survey by the Philadelphia Inquirer. Transportation is good and there is clear access to major roads such as 33rd Street which carries you west into University City.

It is only a matter of time before the gentrification occurring in neighboring Brewerytown will make its way to Strawberry Mansion.

Strawberry Mansion is a neighborhood located in the North section of Philadelphia. It is bound by Lehigh Avenue to the north, Oxford Street to the south, 29th Street to the east and 33rd Street to the west.
The neighborhood is largely African American but more and more Hispanics and Asian Americans are moving there due to its affordable housing prices. The general median home sale price in Strawberry Mansion is $48,000.
Strawberry Mansion suffers from a high crime rate, but gentrification has been taking place in the western and southern sides of the neighborhood. There is still a significant amount of clean-up that needs to be done including rebuilding dilapidated houses and abandoned lots.
Parts of Strawberry Mansion are filthy and are overrun by stray cats and garbage in the streets. There is a lot of potential in this neighborhood because it does offer some great shopping and nightlife opportunity as well as easy access to Interstate 76. It’s neighbor, Brewerytown, has seen beautification and an increase in housing prices over the last several years, so Strawberry Mansion is right on the border of becoming the next big thing in Philadelphia.
If you are drawn to diamonds in the rough, check this neighborhood out.