Germantown: Church and City

Schools? Check. Historic sites? Check. Barber shops? Check. Churches? Double check.

Germantown seems to be a neighborhood with a lot to offer. There is no shortage of schools ranging from the prestigious Germantown Friends School to the much smaller Imani Education Charter School. Little-known historic sites, such as the Deshler-Morris House and Grumblethorpe, abound along the cobblestone corridor of Germantown Avenue.

Like any good urban neighborhood, food is easy to find and easier to take home. You can take in breakfast at a Halal deli, lunch at a Caribbean jerk hut and bring home dinner from the corner fish market. The commercial corridor also offers plenty of barber shop and hair salon options that often do double duty with another business. Want a tattoo with that shave? No problem.

And then there is the tie that binds any good community – religion. Germantown has no shortage of churches from all walks. It offers places to worship for Methodists, Baptists, Lutherans, Christians, Episcopalians, Muslims and just in case you do not fit into one of those categories they even have the United House of Prayer for All People.

So, hop off the train the next time it passes through Wayne Junction and get a feel for one of Philly’s neighborhoods with a little bit of history and a whole lot of spirituality.

By Kyle Bagenstose and Darla Synnestvedt
Group 11, Germantown