Crescentville, Philadelphia
Its history dates back before the Civil War as an affluent area once home to many mansions and estates, as well as a few farms.The main artery is Rising Sun Avenue, which was originally a toll road known as the Kensington & Oxford Turnpike.The area was largely undeveloped until the 1920s, when northward expansion of the city limits took hold and "modern" row housing was built over former farmland.The lower end of Crescentville was home to many industries up until the late 1970s and early 1980s which employed many of the local residents.In 1978, the ESB, Inc. factory was mostly demolished (a few of the original buildings are still standing) to make way for Rising Sun Plaza, a shopping center home to over two dozen stores.When thoughts were given to use of the land, it was decided to build a single recreation center to serve both Crescentville and the neighboring Lawndale Community, hence the name LAWN-CREST came to be.Located on the far NW Corner of this plot of ground is the Engine 64 Firehouse and Police Station building, built in 1924.