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{{Use American English|date = February 2019}}
The '''Act of Consolidation''', passed on ], ], in the City of ], ], in the ] consolidated all remaining ], ], and ] within the ], disolving their govermental structures and bringing all municipal authority within the County under the auspices of the City government. Additionally, any other ] were included in this consolidation.
{{Use mdy dates|date = February 2019}}
{{Short description|1854 Pennsylvania law}}{{missing|remaining county/city commissioners' duties and whether they were later consolidated into the Philadelphia City Council|date=October 2014}}
] prior to consolidation]]
The '''Act of Consolidation''', more formally known as the '''act of February 2, 1854''' (P.L. 21, No. 16), is legislation of the ] that created the ] of ], expanding the city's territory to the entirety of ] and dissolving the other municipal authorities in the county.


The law was enacted by the General Assembly and approved February 2, 1854, by ]. This act consolidated all remaining ], ]s, and ] within the ], dissolving their governmental structures and bringing all municipal authority within the county under the auspices of the Philadelphia government. Additionally, any ]s were included in the consolidation. The consolidation was drafted to help combat lawlessness that the many local governments could not handle separately and to bring in much-needed tax revenue for the State.
The following is a list of municipal authorities which were consolidated into the City of Philadelphia:


===Boroughs=== ==History==
In early 1854, the city of ]'s boundaries extended east and west between the ] and ]s and north and south between ] and ] streets, representing the present-day ] section of Philadelphia. The rest of ] contained thirteen ], six ] and nine ]s. Philadelphia City's recent influx of immigrants spilled over into the rest of Philadelphia County, surging the area's population.<ref name="history359">{{cite book |last=Brookes |first=Karin |author2=John Gattuso |author3=Lou Harry |author4=Edward Jardim |author5=Donald Kraybill |author6=Susan Lewis |author7=Dave Nelson |author8=Carol Turkington |editor=Zoë Ross |title=Insight Guides: Philadelphia and Surroundings |edition=Second Edition (Updated) |year=2005 |publisher=APA Publications |isbn=1-58573-026-2 |page= |url-access=registration |url=https://archive.org/details/insightguidephil00zoer/page/359 }}</ref> In 1840, Philadelphia's population was 93,665 and the rest of the county was 164,372; by 1850 the populations were 121,376 and 287,385 respectively.<ref name="history349">''Philadelphia: A 300-Year History'', page 349</ref>
*Aramingo
*Bridesburg
*Frankford
*Manayunk
*Whitehall


One of the major reasons put forth for the consolidation of the city was the county's inability to govern.<ref name="history368">''Philadelphia: A 300-Year History'', page 368</ref> Law enforcement found it difficult to enforce the peace. A person could break the law in Philadelphia City and quickly cross the border and escape punishment. Districts outside Philadelphia could not control their criminal elements and at the same time refused to let Philadelphia get involved. An example of how poorly law enforcement agencies worked together was in May, 1844 when an ] erupted in ]. The ] was the only police officer available in Kensington at the time and when Philadelphia's ] was called they hesitated because they hadn't been reimbursed for past calls. By the time the militia arrived, the riot was out of control. Attempts to improve the issue included an 1845 law that required several of the surrounding districts to maintain adequate law enforcement and an 1850 act that gave Philadelphia law enforcement the authority to police seven surrounding districts.<ref name="history359" /> As a result, the act also achieved one of its intended roles: Expand and strengthen the jurisdiction of the ].
===Townships===
*Blockley
*Bristol
*Byberry
*Delaware
*Kingsessing
*Lower Dublin
*Moreland
*Oxford
*Passyunk
*Penn
*Roxborough


The other major reason for consolidation was that Philadelphia's actual population center was not in Philadelphia, but north of ].
===Districts===
*Kensington
*Northern Liberties
*Penn
*Richmond
*Southwark
*Spring Garden


Between 1844 and 1854, Philadelphia's population grew by 29.5 percent. Places like ] grew by 111.5 percent, and the ] section of Philadelphia grew by 109.5 percent. This population shift was draining the city of much-needed tax revenue for police and fire departments, water, sewage, and other city improvements.<ref
===Municipal Authorities with Multiple Government Formats===
name="history360">''Philadelphia: A 300-Year History'', page 360</ref>
*Germantown, Borough of; Township of

*Moyamensing, Township of; District of
===Consolidation===
*West Philadelphia, Borough of; District of
There had been several unsuccessful proposals at consolidation before 1854. The main opposition of consolidation came from the ]. The Whigs usually dominated Philadelphia City elections while the outlying districts were dominated by the ] and the Whigs feared they would lose power within the city.<ref name="history359" /> With support from all the city's major newspapers, and the end of the Whig party's existence around that time,<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/what-can-collapse-whig-party-tell-us-about-todays-politics-180958729/ | title=What Can the Collapse of the Whig Party Tell Us About Today's Politics? }}</ref> the consolidation overcame opposition and the issue was brought to the Pennsylvania General Assembly.
*Belmont, District of

----
] brought the issue to the ] while ] and William C. Patterson brought it to the ]. A bill was produced on December 20, 1853, and by January 31, 1854, the bill had passed both houses. The bill was then brought to Governor ], who was in ]. Bigler was awoken out of bed before midnight on February 2 and signed the bill into law. The signing was rushed because several districts were considering assuming new debts for railroad loans and other projects, with the expectation that the consolidated city would pay instead.<ref name="history360" />
===Resources===

*
The Act of Consolidation, along with creating Philadelphia's modern border, gave executive power to a ] who would be elected every two years.<ref>''Philadelphia: A 300-Year History'', page 706</ref> The mayor was given substantial control of the ] and control of municipal administration and executive departments with oversight and control of the budget from the ].<ref name="history368" />
* - excerpted from the book at the ushistory.org website

----
On March 11 there was a large celebration for the consolidation. Governor Bigler, members of the legislature, and chief officers of the state visited the city for the celebration. Events included an excursion on the ], a ball at the ] and a banquet at the Sansom Street Hall the next day.<ref name="history360" />
]]]

{{Pennsylvania-geo-stub}}
Although the city and county now shared the same boundaries, a number of city and county functions remained separate. Many of these functions were overseen by "]" who were elected separately from the city council and mayor. In 1951, the state constitution was amended to allow cities and counties to fully merge, and Philadelphia voters adopted a new home rule charter that merged nearly all city and county institutions. The new charter took effect in January 1952. Although Philadelphia County has effectively been a ] since then, the county row offices{{clarification needed|date=March 2023}} still exist, though all except the Register of Wills are subject to city civil service rules.<ref> Heath, Andrew. . Encyclopedia of Greater Philadelphia.</ref>

====Districts, townships, and boroughs consolidated into Philadelphia====
The following is a list of municipal authorities which were consolidated into the modern City and County of Philadelphia.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ushistory.org/philadelphia/incorporated.html |title=Incorporated District, Boroughs, and Townships in the County of Philadelphia, 1854 |access-date=December 4, 2006 |work=Philadelphia History |publisher=ushistory.org |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070101192729/http://ushistory.org/philadelphia/incorporated.html |archive-date=1 January 2007 |url-status=dead }}</ref>
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==References==
{{Portal|Philadelphia}}
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
{{Category commons}}
*
*
*Ellet, Charles, Jr.
*Barnes, R.L.

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Latest revision as of 09:26, 1 May 2024

1854 Pennsylvania law
This article is missing information about remaining county/city commissioners' duties and whether they were later consolidated into the Philadelphia City Council. Please expand the article to include this information. Further details may exist on the talk page. (October 2014)
Map of Philadelphia County prior to consolidation

The Act of Consolidation, more formally known as the act of February 2, 1854 (P.L. 21, No. 16), is legislation of the Pennsylvania General Assembly that created the consolidated City and County of Philadelphia, expanding the city's territory to the entirety of Philadelphia County and dissolving the other municipal authorities in the county.

The law was enacted by the General Assembly and approved February 2, 1854, by Governor William Bigler. This act consolidated all remaining townships, districts, and boroughs within the County of Philadelphia, dissolving their governmental structures and bringing all municipal authority within the county under the auspices of the Philadelphia government. Additionally, any unincorporated areas were included in the consolidation. The consolidation was drafted to help combat lawlessness that the many local governments could not handle separately and to bring in much-needed tax revenue for the State.

History

In early 1854, the city of Philadelphia's boundaries extended east and west between the Delaware and Schuylkill Rivers and north and south between Vine and South streets, representing the present-day Center City section of Philadelphia. The rest of Philadelphia County contained thirteen townships, six boroughs and nine districts. Philadelphia City's recent influx of immigrants spilled over into the rest of Philadelphia County, surging the area's population. In 1840, Philadelphia's population was 93,665 and the rest of the county was 164,372; by 1850 the populations were 121,376 and 287,385 respectively.

One of the major reasons put forth for the consolidation of the city was the county's inability to govern. Law enforcement found it difficult to enforce the peace. A person could break the law in Philadelphia City and quickly cross the border and escape punishment. Districts outside Philadelphia could not control their criminal elements and at the same time refused to let Philadelphia get involved. An example of how poorly law enforcement agencies worked together was in May, 1844 when an anti-Catholic riot erupted in Kensington. The sheriff was the only police officer available in Kensington at the time and when Philadelphia's militia was called they hesitated because they hadn't been reimbursed for past calls. By the time the militia arrived, the riot was out of control. Attempts to improve the issue included an 1845 law that required several of the surrounding districts to maintain adequate law enforcement and an 1850 act that gave Philadelphia law enforcement the authority to police seven surrounding districts. As a result, the act also achieved one of its intended roles: Expand and strengthen the jurisdiction of the Philadelphia Police Department.

The other major reason for consolidation was that Philadelphia's actual population center was not in Philadelphia, but north of Vine Street.

Between 1844 and 1854, Philadelphia's population grew by 29.5 percent. Places like Spring Garden grew by 111.5 percent, and the Kensington section of Philadelphia grew by 109.5 percent. This population shift was draining the city of much-needed tax revenue for police and fire departments, water, sewage, and other city improvements.

Consolidation

There had been several unsuccessful proposals at consolidation before 1854. The main opposition of consolidation came from the Whig Party. The Whigs usually dominated Philadelphia City elections while the outlying districts were dominated by the Democrats and the Whigs feared they would lose power within the city. With support from all the city's major newspapers, and the end of the Whig party's existence around that time, the consolidation overcame opposition and the issue was brought to the Pennsylvania General Assembly.

Eli Kirk Price brought the issue to the Pennsylvania Senate while Matthias W. Baldwin and William C. Patterson brought it to the House of Representatives. A bill was produced on December 20, 1853, and by January 31, 1854, the bill had passed both houses. The bill was then brought to Governor William Bigler, who was in Erie, Pennsylvania. Bigler was awoken out of bed before midnight on February 2 and signed the bill into law. The signing was rushed because several districts were considering assuming new debts for railroad loans and other projects, with the expectation that the consolidated city would pay instead.

The Act of Consolidation, along with creating Philadelphia's modern border, gave executive power to a mayor who would be elected every two years. The mayor was given substantial control of the police department and control of municipal administration and executive departments with oversight and control of the budget from the city council.

On March 11 there was a large celebration for the consolidation. Governor Bigler, members of the legislature, and chief officers of the state visited the city for the celebration. Events included an excursion on the Delaware River, a ball at the Philadelphia Chinese Museum and a banquet at the Sansom Street Hall the next day.

Although the city and county now shared the same boundaries, a number of city and county functions remained separate. Many of these functions were overseen by "City Commissioners" who were elected separately from the city council and mayor. In 1951, the state constitution was amended to allow cities and counties to fully merge, and Philadelphia voters adopted a new home rule charter that merged nearly all city and county institutions. The new charter took effect in January 1952. Although Philadelphia County has effectively been a legal nullity since then, the county row offices still exist, though all except the Register of Wills are subject to city civil service rules.

Districts, townships, and boroughs consolidated into Philadelphia

The following is a list of municipal authorities which were consolidated into the modern City and County of Philadelphia.

References

  1. ^ Brookes, Karin; John Gattuso; Lou Harry; Edward Jardim; Donald Kraybill; Susan Lewis; Dave Nelson; Carol Turkington (2005). Zoë Ross (ed.). Insight Guides: Philadelphia and Surroundings (Second Edition (Updated) ed.). APA Publications. p. 359. ISBN 1-58573-026-2.
  2. Philadelphia: A 300-Year History, page 349
  3. ^ Philadelphia: A 300-Year History, page 368
  4. ^ Philadelphia: A 300-Year History, page 360
  5. "What Can the Collapse of the Whig Party Tell Us About Today's Politics?".
  6. Philadelphia: A 300-Year History, page 706
  7. Heath, Andrew. Philadelphia County, Pennsylvania. Encyclopedia of Greater Philadelphia.
  8. "Incorporated District, Boroughs, and Townships in the County of Philadelphia, 1854". Philadelphia History. ushistory.org. Archived from the original on January 1, 2007. Retrieved December 4, 2006.

External links

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