Philadelphians know the 9th Street Market by instinct. You feel it first: the clang of delivery gates, the perfume of herbs, the chorus of greetings that carry from awning to awning. What many of us don’t know is how many lives and lineages are stitched into those blocks. The OUR MARKET PROJECT’S walking tours turn a familiar errand route into a living archive.
Led by neighbors who grew up on these sidewalks, the tours invite you to see the market the way insiders do. Your guide is not reciting trivia; they are translating a place. “The tours widen the narrative of Ninth Street,” says Michelle Angela Ortiz, Our Market’s project director and lead artist. “Visitors learn deeper histories of resilience in the midst of displacement and social inequalities, and they leave with a stronger sense of the community and how to support small businesses.”
Art is your breadcrumb trail. Our Market has refreshed produce stands with original designs that honor family stories. Backlit panels glow at dusk with pattern and portrait. Murals act like open-air heirlooms. Ortiz explains that this visible change grows from collaboration with the people who work the street. “We revitalize vendor stands free of cost as a way of investing in the market,” she says. “Those conversations with vendors translate directly into the design, so people can see the transformative power of art and community.”
The project gathers oral histories, preserves them, and then places them back where they belong: out in public where anyone can encounter them. You hear about the pushcarts of a century ago and the new businesses shaping today’s mix. You’re reminded that markets are more than transactions. They are a social safety net, a first step for newcomers, a place where love gets expressed as a well-filled shopping bag.
The spirit is local, but the significance is national. With support from Philadelphia250, Our Market Tours are part of the city’s lead-up to the nation’s 250th anniversary next year. Ortiz sees Ninth Street as the right setting to think about American history in the present tense. “Public art builds bridges and creates awareness of the value of immigrant communities,” she says. “In a climate that can feel hostile to newcomers, it is crucial to honor the contributions of immigrants in our city and our country.”
There is a tech assist if you want it. A free digital tour app overlays historic images and first-hand stories as you walk, like a pocket museum that knows the block map by heart. Tours are offered in English, Spanish, and Vietnamese so more of the neighborhood’s stories can be heard in the languages that shaped them.
Ready to see your market with fresh eyes? Our Market Tours run on an ongoing basis. Check the project website for current dates, download the app, and join a walk guided by the community. Then stay for groceries, a snack, and a conversation. That is the point.
LEARN MORE AT OURMARKETPROJECT.COM.
