Port Richmond is a neighborhood in the River Wards section of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It is notable for its extremely large Polish immigrant and Polish American community. The neighborhood is also home to a large Irish American community and sizable German and Italian communities as represented in the various churches and organizations. In more recent years, a sizable Albanian community has moved in. The Richmond Zip Code is 19134 and 19125. The neighborhood is bounded by the Castor Avenue to the northeast, Somerset Street to the southwest, the Delaware River to the southeast, and Trenton Avenue/the railroad to the northwest. While there is some dispute about the western boundary of the neighborhood, some people stating either Aramingo Avenue or Frankford Avenue, general consensus among residents on either side of Trenton Avenue or the railroad is that those east of it claim Port Richmond and those west of it claim Kensington. While some have referred to Port Richmond as Richmond, there is an area named Richmond, not colloquially used often, that refers to the most northeast section of the neighborhood. Adjacent neighborhoods are Bridesburg to the northeast, Juniata to the north, Harrowgate and Kensington to the west, Fishtown and Olde Richmond to the southwest. History Colonial and coal eras In colonial times, most of today's Port Richmond was owned by Anthony Palmer, the founder of Philadelphia's Kensington neighborhood. Palmer put together various parcels of land starting around 1704. He named the estate he built "Hope Farm," and in 1729 sold this estate to William Ball. Palmer then purchased the old Fairman Mansion estate which bordered on the south of "Hope Farm" and built his town of Kensington. Over time some manufacturing began at the southern end of "Hope Farm" and this area became known as Balltown. There were glass and textile concerns located there during the later part of the 18th century. During the 1800s, with the advent of the steam engine aboard ships, Port Richmond was a major terminus for colliers who received coal from the Reading Railroad facility at the port, and transported it to steam ships at other locations. Colliers, as well as other merchant and military ships, continued to visit Port Richmond for coal until after World War I when coal-burning steam engines on ships were replaced by more modern oil and diesel engines. Early 20th century Port Richmond, at the beginning of the century, was a working-class