In 1954, Elijah Muhammad sent Malcolm X to Philadelphia to expand Temple No. 12 of the Nation of Islam. During his stay in the City of Brotherly Love, he lived in the Sharswood neighborhood at 2503 W. Oxford Street. The house is historically significant because of its association with Malcolm X, aka El-Hajj Malik El-Shabazz, a human rights activist and cultural icon whose charismatic leadership laid the foundation for the growth of Islam among African Americans in the City of Philadelphia, the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the nation.