Borough of West Philadelphia

This map gives a sense of how the area was developing by mid-century.  The number of wharves along the Schuylkill River suggest the volume of commerce carried by the river.  Damming of the river at Fairmount not only helped answer the City's need for fresh water, but made the river more navigable upstream.  Canals allowed river traffic to get around the dam and the Market Street bridge.  Nevertheless, the West bank of the river has few wharves.  While the streets of Mantua, Hamilton and even some of Powelton have been laid out, many blocks have few or no buildings on them. In fact the concentrations of population are mostly around in commercial and industrial as settings such as Greenville, Maylandville, and Roseville.