Kensington for Dummies, Part II.

We're back to clear up your Confused-by-Kensington-itis. We discovered the ever-confouding West Kensington in Part I and now we're going to finish up with Kensingtons both Old and New.

Below West Kensington, you'll venture into Old Kensington, which borders Northern Liberties and is commonly referred to as Northern Liberties by those who are afflicted with Confused-by-Kensington-itis. We're all guilty of this at times -- Northern Liberties clicks with people who are new to the area and is closer to Center City. If we say "Old Kensington", sometimes it's harder to get people interested!

But Old Kensington is one of the coolest fringe neighborhoods in Philadelphia, and if you take a walk over there, you'll see why. Home to Crane Arts Center, some of the best taquerias in the city, and with more of an industrial vibe - it truly feels like it's on the brink of something big.  The borders for Old Kensington are N. 6th to Front Street, and Girard Avenue to Cecil B. Moore Avenue. It covers just about 2 miles and is almost a square.

East Kensington (also referred to as "New") is what's left - East of Frankford Avenue to Memphis Street from Lehigh Avenue to York Street. It's a much smaller area and this is where the term Port Fishington comes up, because it's bordered so closely by Port Richmond and Fishtown. At 1.5 miles, East Kensington is tiny, another reason it often gets overlooked and misnomered to death. We could argue about it all night, but if you go east of Memphis, you're in Fishtown, and if you wander a little further north past Lehigh Avenue, you're on Port Richmond land.

And remember - You can always go ahead and ask your grandfather who grew up in Kensington. Whatever he says is probably true!

Now that you're in the know, pick a section of Kensington and go check it out for yourself! If you're looking for something cool to do, you can catch up on our Kensington posts for more ideas.

Related:

Kensington for Dummies, Part I.