Mayfair History
A frequently asked question for the Officers and Board members of the Mayfair Community Development Corporation (MCDC) is “What are the boundaries of Mayfair?” While spirited debate and friendly disagreement about neighborhood boundaries is a never-resolved issue, we have attempted to incorporate the best details of tradition, neighboring community organizations, and city census tract data to fashion our “official” Mayfair boundaries.) That said, the boundaries that the MCDC utilizes as of this writing are as follows:
Our “core” area is from Frankford Avenue to Roosevelt Boulevard, Robbins Avenue to Sheffield Avenue, and Frankford Avenue to the river between Cottman and Sheffield Avenues. We extend our “service” area from Frankford Avenue to Roosevelt Boulevard and Harbison Avenue to Rhawn Street.
Mayfair is one of the youngest communities in Northeast Philadelphia having been incorporated in the 1930’s. Mayfair was “born” in the area between two great communities that have been in existence since the 17th century, Holmesburg and Tacony. Holmesburg was originally the home of a Swedish settlement in the early 17th century, and due to its prime location and beautiful surroundings the community became home to successful businessmen and aristocrats. The area became a magnet for industrial development and established several large industrial businesses. Eventually the “town” took the name of the Holme family, Thomas Holme and his son John owned a significant amount of the land and businesses in the community. In the 1830’s Philadelphia-born actor Edwin Forrest opened his home for aged actors. These actors would regularly hold shows for the local residents. This home was on a large parcel of land and the boundaries were roughly, Torresdale Avenue to Frankford Avenue and Wellington Street to Hartel Street.
In the late 17th century Tacony developed into a farming community that soon became a favorite vacation spot for the “well to do” people who lived in the City. The Delaware River in Tacony was home to many “vacation homes” in the late 17th and early 18th century. The most significant change in Tacony was in 1872 with the coming of Henry Disston and his saw works. His original six-acre facility soon grew into a 390 acre complex which he needed to support his international company and the needs of his employees and their families. The saw works drew more businesses into the area and between 1875 and 1906 Tacony grew from 200 residents to more than 12,000.
Mayfair came to be principally in the area between these two communities in the early 1920’s. The area that is present day Mayfair was mainly farmland whose crops supported the families in the area and surrounding communities. The center of the community is the same today as it was then, only the names have changed; that is, Frankford and Cottman Avenues. Frankford Avenue was originally Bristol Pike and Cottman Avenue was originally Township Line Road. In the early days of the community, Mayfair was very dependent on its neighbors for the police services that came from Tacony and the water that came from the Holmesburg water works located near Frankford and Hartel Streets.
Many of the residents who did not own or work at a local farm were employed by the Lower Dublin Poor House, which is now the site of Lincoln High School, the Rowland Shovel Works, which is now the site of Father Judge High School, in the shops along northern Frankford Avenue, or at Holmesburg Prison. There have been several external forces that have impacted the birth and growth of Mayfair as a community, such as the Great Depression, the growth and expansion of boundaries of the City of Philadelphia, World War II and the need for homes for GI’s and their families among others, but one of the major catalysts for Mayfair's growth was the construction of the Frankford-Market El in the mid 1920”s. This, of course, meant that people could now easily travel into center city and it also meant that people could easily move to this new community. The farmland that was still the major land use in Mayfair now became very valuable. Soon major developers and speculators of the day like John McGarvey, H.W. Quick, and Benjamin Hoffman began buying up properties and building homes.
It is still uncertain how Mayfair got its name. There are two prevailing theories. One is that it was named after its original telephone exchange and another is that at a community meeting a local civic leader announced, “We may fare well if we get behind this community, so why not call it Mayfair?” While we are not sure which one of these accounts is true, the name began to take hold after the completion of the Mayfair movie house and the forming of the Mayfair Businessmen's Association.
Mayfair has undergone many changes over the years. All the farmland is now developed and there are hundreds of large row homes with off-street parking, front lawns, and tree-lined streets. We like to think of Mayfair as the “suburbs in the city”. We have some of the best public and parochial schools in the city and a dozen houses of worship representing many faiths. Mayfair is home to some of the largest and most organized youth organizations not just in the city but also in the region. Mayfair is also blessed with the largest senior population in the City of Philadelphia and also has a large population of children under age of twelve. It is truly a neighborhood with a great past, present, and future.
The Mayfair CDC has also been busy developing community and economic development opportunities. We have just celebrated our one year anniversary for a 26,000 sq foot community center which houses two full gymnasiums, a computer room, office, kitchen, and a large community room. We have developed the Mayfair Memorial Pocket Park at Frankford and Wellington Streets, we own and operate Schaaf’s Market at Rowland and St. Vincent Street, and we are currently developing the old Devon theatre into the Devon Theater of Performing Arts. The MCDC has also been on the forefront of quality of life issues in the community, we are very active in area zoning issues, we manage six cleaning machines that pick up more than 80,000 pounds of trash a year, and we have planted dozens of trees, plants, and flowers in Mayfair. With the help of our community, elected officials, volunteers, and the officers and board of the MCDC we will continue to work to Keep Mayfair-“A GREAT PLACE TO LIVE AND WORK”.
--Reese Hartey, Chairman, President ,Mayfair Community Development Corporation