Walnut Street is located in downtown Philadelphia and extends from the city's Delaware River

Delaware River

The Delaware River is a major river on the Atlantic coast of the United States.A Dutch expedition led by Henry Hudson in 1609 first mapped the river. The river was christened the South River in the New Netherland colony that followed, in contrast to the North River, as the Hudson River was then...

 waterfront through Center City

Center City, Philadelphia

Center City, or Downtown Philadelphia includes the central business district and central neighborhoods of the City of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. As of 2005, its population of over 88,000 made it the third most populous downtown in the United States, after New York City's and Chicago's...

 and West Philadelphia

West Philadelphia

West Philadelphia, nicknamed West Philly, is a section of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Though there is no official definition of its boundaries, it is generally considered to reach from the western shore of the Schuylkill River, to City Line Avenue to the northwest, Cobbs Creek to the southwest, and...

. Walnut Street has been characterized as "the city's premier shopping district". A portion of the street was ranked 12th in 2005 by Women's Wear Daily

Women's Wear Daily

Women's Wear Daily is a fashion-industry trade journal sometimes called "the bible of fashion." WWD delivers information and intelligence on changing trends and breaking news in the fashion, beauty and retail industries with a readership composed largely of retailers, designers, manufacturers,...

among its list of the most expensive retail streets in North America

North America

North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...

, with rents of $90 per square foot and is home to several "upscale dining, retail and cultural" establishments.

Running parallel to Walnut Street, one or two blocks to the north (depending on whether the side street Sansom Street is counted), is Chestnut Street

Chestnut Street (Philadelphia)

Chestnut Street is a major historic street in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Originally named Wynne Street because Thomas Wynne's home was there. William Penn renamed it Chestnut Street in 1684. It runs east–west from the Delaware River waterfront in downtown Philadelphia through Center City and West...

. Pennsylvania Route 3

Pennsylvania Route 3

Pennsylvania Route 3 is a state highway located in the southeastern portion of Pennsylvania. The route connects West Chester with Philadelphia. The divided highway that comprises much of its route is the West Chester Pike, built as a turnpike by the Philadelphia and West Chester Turnpike Company...

 westbound follows Walnut Street from 38th Street (U.S. Route 13

U.S. Route 13

U.S. Route 13 is a north–south U.S. highway established in 1926 that runs for from Interstate 95 just north of Fayetteville, North Carolina to the northeastern suburbs of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in Morrisville. In all, it traverses five states in the Atlantic coastal plain region,...

) to its western terminus at the Cobbs Creek Parkway.

Points of interest

It is most known for Rittenhouse Square

Rittenhouse Square

Rittenhouse Square is one of the five original open-space parks planned by William Penn and his surveyor Thomas Holme during the late 17th century in central Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The park cuts off 19th Street at Walnut Street and also at a half block above Manning Street. Its boundaries are...

 Park and its upscale shopping district in the high end neighborhood of the same name. The majority of designer

Designer clothing

Designer clothing is clothing that bears the logo of a recognizable fashion designer.The 'designer' whose name is on the label may be:* A European couturier, e.g. Chanel, Christian Dior* A European luxury goods house, e.g. Armani, Gucci, Louis Vuitton...

 and fast fashion

Fast fashion

Fast fashion is a contemporary term used by fashion retailers to acknowledge that designs move from catwalk to store in the fastest time to capture current trends in the market. This has developed from a product-driven concept based on a manufacturing model referred to as "quick response" developed...

 stores located on Walnut Street are situated on a four block stretch between Broad Street

Broad Street (Philadelphia)

Broad Street is a major arterial street in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and is nearly 13 miles long.It is Pennsylvania Route 611 along its entire length with the exception of its northernmost part between Old York Road and Pennsylvania Route 309 and the southernmost part south of Interstate 95...

 and 18th Street, which is anchored by the park on the southwest corner. This area of Walnut Street and a few blocks to the east features a variety of shops, eateries, bars, hotels, and office buildings.

The Walnut Street Theatre

Walnut Street Theatre

The Walnut Street Theatre , located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania at 825 Walnut Street, is the oldest continuously operating theatre in the English-speaking world and the oldest in the United States...

, located at 825 Walnut Street, is the oldest continuously-operating theatre in the English-speaking world.

Among the many attractions and historic sites along Walnut Street are Independence National Historical Park

Independence National Historical Park

Independence National Historical Park is a United States National Historical Park in Philadelphia that preserves several sites associated with the American Revolution and the nation's founding history. Administered by the National Park Service, the park comprises much of the downtown historic...

 and Society Hill

Society Hill, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Society Hill is a neighborhood in the Center City section of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. The neighborhood, loosely defined as bounded by Walnut, Lombard, Front and 7th Streets, contains the largest concentration of original 18th- and early 19th-century architecture of any place in...

 on the east, followed by Washington Square

Washington Square (Philadelphia)

Washington Square, originally designated in 1682 as Southeast Square, is an open-space park in Center City Philadelphia's Southeast quadrant and one of the five original planned squares laid out on the city grid by William Penn's surveyor, Thomas Holme. It is part of both the Washington Square West...

, Washington Square West

Washington Square West, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

The Gayborhood is a neighborhood in downtown, or Center City, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The neighborhood roughly corresponds to the area between 7th and Broad Streets and between Walnut and South Streets, bordering on the Independence Mall tourist area directly northeast, Market East to the...

, St. James Hotel

St. James Hotel (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania)

The St. James Hotel is an historic, 12-story hotel in Center City, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It was designed by Horace Trumbauer and was built in 1901, with an addition being constructed in 1904....

 (1226-1232), Philadelphia Stock Exchange

Philadelphia Stock Exchange

Philadelphia Stock Exchange , now known as NASDAQ OMX PHLX, is the oldest stock exchange in the United States, founded in 1790. It is now owned by NASDAQ OMX and located at 1900 Market Street, in Center City Philadelphia.-History:...

 (1419-1411), Sun Oil Building

Sun Oil Building

The Sun Oil Building is a historic building in the Center City area of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The 19-story Art Deco high-rise stands 70 meters tall...

 (1608-1610), 1616 Walnut Street Building

1616 Walnut Street Building

The 1616 Walnut Street Building or 1616 Building is a historic high-rise building in the Center City area of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.The 24-story building stands 94 meters tall....

, Rittenhouse Square

Rittenhouse Square

Rittenhouse Square is one of the five original open-space parks planned by William Penn and his surveyor Thomas Holme during the late 17th century in central Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The park cuts off 19th Street at Walnut Street and also at a half block above Manning Street. Its boundaries are...

 (also known as Center City West Commercial Historic District), Estey Hall

Estey Hall (Philadelphia)

Estey Hall, also known as the Allman Building, is a historic building at 1701 Walnut Street in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.Estey Hall is a seven-story, commercial building, designed by architects Baker and Dallet, erected by Herbert D. Allman in 1910–11...

 (1701 Walnut Street), Church of the Holy Trinity, Philadelphia

Church of the Holy Trinity, Philadelphia

Church of the Holy Trinity is an Episcopal church on Rittenhouse Square in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The first service in the church building, designed by Scottish architect John Notman, was held on March 27, 1859. The corner tower was added in 1867 and was designed by George W...

.

The Walnut Street Bridge

Walnut Street Bridge (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania)

The Walnut Lane Memorial Bridge is a prestressed concrete girder bridge in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, designed by Belgian Engineer Gustave Magnel and built by the City of Philadelphia. Completed and fully opened to traffic in 1951, this three-span bridge carries Walnut Lane over Lincoln Drive...

, completed in 1949, crosses the Schuylkill River

Schuylkill River

The Schuylkill River is a river in Pennsylvania. It is a designated Pennsylvania Scenic River.The river is about long. Its watershed of about lies entirely within the state of Pennsylvania. The source of its eastern branch is in the Appalachian Mountains at Tuscarora Springs, near Tamaqua in...

. On the west side of the river, the street crosses over the Schuylkill Expressway

Schuylkill Expressway

The Schuylkill Expressway , locally known as the Schuylkill, is a freeway through southwestern Montgomery County and the city of Philadelphia, and the easternmost segment of Interstate 76 in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania...

.

Further west, Walnut Street bisects the campus of the University of Pennsylvania

University of Pennsylvania

The University of Pennsylvania is a private, Ivy League university located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Penn is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States,Penn is the fourth-oldest using the founding dates claimed by each institution...

.