Franklin Square

Franklin Square — a 1682 square that became the historic district’s family playground

Seven and a half acres wedged between Old City, Chinatown and Callowhill, and like Rittenhouse it is formally a square rather than a park: one of the five public squares William Penn set aside in his 1682 plan and Thomas Holme drew in 1683. It began as the North East Publick Square and was renamed for Benjamin Franklin in 1825. The distinction matters for a second reason too. Franklin Square is city land under Philadelphia Parks and Recreation, operated under agreement by the nonprofit Historic Philadelphia, Inc., and it is not National Park Service ground — even though the federal Independence National Historical Park district begins a few minutes’ walk away and includes Washington Square, the only one of Penn’s five squares under NPS management.

Highlights

• The 1838 fountain — the oldest surviving fountain of Penn’s five squares, originally supplied with Schuylkill water pumped from the Fairmount Water Works, and now the centerpiece of a choreographed water and light show that runs from spring into late autumn.
• The Parx Liberty Carousel — unveiled with the square’s 2006 rebirth and built by the Philadelphia Toboggan Company, the carousel maker founded in this city in 1904, with about thirty hand-carved basswood figures in the Philadelphia style including an eagle, a sea dragon, a lion, an elephant and a seal, plus chariots for riders who need them.
• Philly Mini Golf — eighteen holes shaped as Philadelphia landmarks and the only miniature golf course in Center City, a genuinely odd thing to find inside a seventeenth-century town plan.
• The 2006 restoration — Historic Philadelphia, Inc. reopened the square on 31 July 2006 after a state-funded rebuild that brought back the fountain, the lawns and the paths after decades of neglect.
• The rebuilt play areas — a Franklin-themed climbing tower, a zip line, a bike and scooter loop, musical play elements, a water mister and a small amphitheater, part of a major reconstruction begun in 2025 and timed for the nation’s 250th anniversary year.
• The reopened PATCO station — Franklin Square Station returned to service on 3 April 2025, the first trains to stop there since 1979, in a modernization that kept the original 1930s tilework and added a living roof and bird-safe glass.

What’s inside

For a square of Penn’s era this one is unusually programmed. The classic diagonal geometry survives, but almost every quadrant now carries an attraction, which is why families treat it as a destination rather than a shortcut.

• The central fountain basin — stone dating to 1838, with modern pumps and lighting choreographed to music on a seasonal schedule.
• The carousel pavilion — standing on the footprint of an earlier Victorian-era carousel that operated in the square in the early twentieth century.
• The mini golf course — laid out around scale models of the city’s best-known buildings and structures.
• Two play areas — rebuilt in the current program with climbing, sliding, musical and water-play elements and new restrooms alongside.
• Lawns and garden beds — the quiet half of the square, heavily used by Chinatown residents for morning exercise and by office workers at lunch.
• Food service — a burger stand operates seasonally in the square, a rarity among Penn’s squares, which historically had no concessions at all.

What to do and who it’s for

• Families with children under twelve — carousel, mini golf, playgrounds and a fountain in one enclosed block make this the most child-focused public space in the historic district.
• Visitors doing the historic sights — it is the natural decompression stop between Independence-area museums, and the only one of the nearby squares where children are actively catered to.
• Chinatown neighbors — the square functions as the neighborhood’s green space, with regular tai chi sessions and daily use that has nothing to do with tourism.
• Festival-goers — the Chinese Lantern Festival transforms the square in early summer with large illuminated silk sculptures, and a winter light display plays on Franklin’s association with electricity.
• Commuters — the reopened PATCO station puts the square directly on the New Jersey rail link, which is why so many riders now cross it twice a day.
• History-minded walkers — a burial ground, a Revolutionary powder magazine, a militia drill field and a cattle market have all occupied this same ground.

Getting there and practicalities

The square sits at the meeting of Old City, Chinatown and Callowhill, at the foot of the Benjamin Franklin Bridge approach and immediately south of the sunken expressway. PATCO’s Franklin Square Station reopened in April 2025 and is the closest rail access; 8th Street Station links the Market-Frankford Line, signed as SEPTA Metro L, with PATCO one stop away, and SEPTA Metro B is a short walk west. There is no admission to the square itself, though the carousel and the mini golf course are ticketed attractions with their own seasons and hours. The square generally keeps daytime and evening hours rather than staying open around the clock, and the fountain show and attractions run on a spring-to-autumn calendar with a separate winter program. Allow an hour for a walk-through, two or three if you have children and intend to ride, putt and stay for the fountain.

When to visit

Spring is when the square wakes up: the fountain is switched back on, the carousel starts turning daily, and the beds around the basin come into flower against the brick and stone. Summer belongs to the Chinese Lantern Festival, when oversized illuminated silk figures fill the lawns after dark and the square becomes the busiest evening space in the historic district, with the bridge lit overhead. Autumn is the most comfortable time to actually use the place — the crowds thin, the fountain still runs into late October, and the low sun works beautifully on the 1838 stonework. Winter closes the water down and hands the square over to a holiday light program that leans on Franklin’s electrical experiments; the bare trees also expose the square’s underlying geometry, unchanged in outline since Holme drew it.

Worth knowing

Penn’s 1682 plan set aside five squares, and this one spent nearly two centuries as anything but a pleasure ground. From 1741 to 1835 part of it served as the burial ground of the German Reformed congregation, and thousands of interments are believed to remain beneath the surface. During the Revolution the ground held a powder magazine; during the War of 1812 militia drilled here; at other points it functioned as pasture and cattle market. The fountain arrived in 1838, fed by Schuylkill water from the Fairmount Water Works, and is now the oldest fountain surviving in any of Penn’s five squares. The name changed in 1825, when the city rechristened the North East Publick Square for Benjamin Franklin, who had died in 1790 and is buried a short walk away. The twentieth century was hard on the square. The Benjamin Franklin Bridge, opened in 1926 with Paul Philippe Cret as consulting architect and Ralph Modjeski as chief engineer, dropped its approach along the eastern flank; a sunken cross-town expressway was later cut along the northern edge; and the PATCO station beneath the square closed in 1979. By the 1990s it was the least used of the five squares. The turnaround came in 2006, when Historic Philadelphia, Inc. completed a state-funded restoration and reopened the square on 31 July with the fountain working, a new carousel built by the Philadelphia Toboggan Company on the site of a Victorian predecessor, and a mini golf course modeled on city landmarks. The transit link returned on 3 April 2025, when PATCO trains stopped at Franklin Square Station for the first time in forty-six years, the modernization preserving the station’s original 1930s tile and adding a green roof. A further rebuild of the play areas began in 2025, aimed at the semiquincentennial year of 2026 — worth checking current status before a visit, since sections may still be fenced.

Visitor tips

• Check the season before you plan around the fountain, carousel or mini golf. All three run on a spring-to-autumn calendar and the winter program is a different experience entirely.
• Arrive by PATCO if you are coming from New Jersey — the station sits at the square itself and saves a long walk from the Center City subway stops.
• Combine it with Chinatown rather than only with the historic sights. The square’s eastern and western neighbors are completely different cities, and the square is the seam between them.

Questions and answers

Is Franklin Square part of Independence National Historical Park? No. It is city-owned land under Philadelphia Parks and Recreation, managed under agreement by the nonprofit Historic Philadelphia, Inc. Of Penn’s five original squares, only Washington Square lies inside the national historical park and is run by the National Park Service.

Is it a park or a square? A square. It is one of the five public squares in William Penn’s 1682 plan, laid out by Thomas Holme, and was originally called the North East Publick Square before the 1825 renaming for Franklin.

How old is the fountain? It dates from 1838 and is the oldest surviving fountain among Penn’s five squares. It was originally supplied with river water pumped from the Fairmount Water Works upstream.

Who built the carousel? The Philadelphia Toboggan Company, a carousel manufacturer founded in Philadelphia in 1904. The machine was unveiled with the square’s 2006 restoration and stands where a Victorian-era carousel once operated.

Is there really a burial ground under the square? Yes. The German Reformed congregation used part of the site as its burial ground between 1741 and 1835, and archaeological work indicates a great many interments remain in place.

Do the attractions cost anything? Entry to the square is open to everyone, but the carousel and the mini golf course are ticketed attractions run by the square’s nonprofit steward, with seasonal opening dates.

How do I get here by train? Franklin Square Station on the PATCO line reopened on 3 April 2025 and stops at the square. 8th Street Station connects the Market-Frankford Line, signed Metro L, and the Broad Street Line, signed Metro B, is a short walk west.

Is construction still going on? A major rebuild of the play areas and restrooms began in 2025 and was scheduled around the 2026 semiquincentennial. Check the steward’s current notices before visiting with children, as individual areas open in stages.