Historic
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A Relic of the Gilded Age, Historic Lynnewood Hall Will Soon be Open to the Public
Lynnewood Hall, the mansion tucked away just off Rt. 611 in Elkins Park has sat vacant for decades, but that will soon change. Last year, the Lynnewood Hall Preservation Foundation purchased the estate with plans to restore this relic of the Gilded Age. Photographer Sherman Cahal explores the mansion’s fascinating history on the Pennsylvania subreddit…
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Even Abraham Lincoln Has a Connection to Wawa. Find Out How
There honestly is an Abraham Lincoln Wawa connection and to find it, you have to learn out more about the Wood family, the folks that started Wawa, writes Dan Seitz for Mashed. From the iron foundry that was started by David Wood in 1803, to the Wawa dairy farm opened in 1902, to the convenience…
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Philadelphia Sends $150,000 to Historical Society of Pennsylvania for Research, Students to Lead the Charge
The City of Philadelphia is funding historical research into itself, as displayed when it sent $150,000 to the Historical Society of Pennsylvania, writes Peter Crimmins for WHYY. The dollar amount from the city’s 2023 budget is going toward supporting a rising generation of historical research, as 12 selected students from area colleges and universities will…
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CBS to Feature Story on Postcard That Took Over Six Decades to Arrive in Levittown
CBS News will feature a Bucks County Courier Times story on a postcard that took 64 years to arrive from Miami Beach to Levittown, writes JD Mullane for the Bucks County Courier Times. “They loved the story and wanted to do it, so (it’s) good news,” said Dave Marable, who got the postcard from his…
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Century-Old $1 Gold Collection Assembled By Legendary Philadelphia Dealer Henry Chapman Revealed
A century-old, previously unreported $1 gold coin collection assembled by Henry Chapman, a legendary Philadelphia dealer, has been revealed by New York City’s Matador Rare Coins, writes Joshua McMorrow-Hernandez for COINage Magazine. The nearly complete date set of 19th-century $1 denomination gold coins was stored in a bank vault and safe deposit boxes in Philadelphia…
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Swann Memorial Fountain in Logan Square Turns 100
Swann Memorial Fountain in Logan Square turns 100 years old this year, write Isaac Avilucea and Mike D’Onofrio for Axios. The massive fountain on the Ben Franklin Parkway was built in 1924. It was designed and built by architect Wilson Eyre Jr. and sculptor Alexander Stirling Calder. Over its now century-long history, Swann Memorial has…
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Historic Mount Vernon Cemetery in East Falls Listed for $1 Million
The historic Mount Vernon Cemetery was recently listed for sale for at least $1 million, a move alarming many preservationists, writes Kristen Mosbrucker-Garza for WHYY. While the 27-acre cemetery — founded in 1856 — currently looks more like a wildly overgrown forest, there are around 33,000 people buried there. “This has, at least in recent…
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Mount Airy’s Historic Sedgwick Theater Purchased by Quintessence Theatre Company
The historic Sedgwick Theater in Mount Airy, was recently bought by the Quintessence Theatre Company, writes Peter Crimmins for WHYY. The deal cost $2.3 million. The location of the movie theater has been the performance group’s home base for 14 years and is the centerpiece of the recently-designated Mount Airy Historic District corridor. Quintessence, the…
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Independence Seaport Museum Transfers Historic Portrait to Andalusia Estate
The Independence Seaport Museum has officially transferred ownership of a portrait from 1815 to the historic Andalusia estate in Bensalem, ending a long-standing case of mistaken identity, writes Peter Crimmins for WHYY. The painting, depicting Adèle Sigoigne, was purchased by the Seaport Museum nearly 20 years ago for $46,000. Initially, the museum believed…
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A 19th Century Philadelphia Civic Leader is an Ancestor of Pop Star Taylor Swift
Charles Carmine Antonio Baldi is one of the most prominent Pennsylvanians and Philadelphians from the 19th century. However, his connection to Taylor Swift is one of the newer developments to his prominence, writes Avi Wolfman-Arent for Billy Penn at WHYY. Baldi’s story can be referred to as a classic immigrant-success tale. Upon arriving to Philadelphia…
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Efforts Are Underway to Preserve Historic Philadelphia Documents
There are mountains of historic documents — such as legal wills and marriage licenses — decaying in the attic of Philadelphia City Hall, some of them dating back four centuries. While the haphazard storage of these local treasures is the worst nightmare of any historian, there is a glimmer of hope for a better future,…
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Kennett Underground Railroad Tour Reveals Area’s Stories of Struggle and Liberation
In acknowledgment of Juneteenth, the Kennett Underground Railroad tour on June 16 focused on the Underground Railroad and the abolition movements, writes Gabbie Burton for the Chester County Press. Through five featured stops at historic landmarks, the Kennett Underground Railroad Center revealed stories of struggle and liberation. The immersive and historical experience was led by…
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African-American Historical and Cultural Society of Bucks County Finds New Home
After some uncertainty, the African-American Historical and Cultural Society of Bucks County has found its new home, according to a staff report from Levittown Now. The organization was in a trailer on the grounds of the former Lafayette Elementary School for many years. In addition to being a home base for the AAHCSBC, the trailer…
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Battleship New Jersey to Return to Camden on June 22 as Repairs at Philadelphia Navy Yard Are Complete
Battleship New Jersey, the most decorated battleship in history, has undergone extensive work to extend its shelf life, and is set to return to its home in Camden June 22, writes Tom MacDonald for WHYY. The ship was due to some refurbishing after decades sitting in the Delaware River, and was sent to the Philadelphia…
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The First Woman in the U.S. To Open Her Own Architecture Firm Did So in Philadelphia
Minerva Parker Nichols was the first woman in America to open her own architecture practice. She, however, didn’t get nearly as much recognition for her work throughout the 1880s and early 1900s, writes Abby Connolly for MSN. Born in Illinois in 1862, Nichols grew up on a farm and was raised by her aunt and grandparents…
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Amateur Historians Working on Preserving Abandoned Black Cemetery in Westtown Township
Westtown Township is among the growing number of places across the nation where amateur historians and others are working on preserving abandoned and neglected Black cemeteries, write Gail Guterl and Stephen Lyons for The Philadelphia Inquirer. The township has a half-acre cemetery on a suburban road that is currently unrecognizable as a burial ground. But…
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This Year Marks the 125th Anniversary of W.E.B. Du Bois’ ‘The Philadelphia Negro’ Study
In 1899, sociologist and civil rights activist W.E.B. DuBois published “The Philadelphia Negro: A Social Study,” which examines the social conditions of thousands of Black Philadelphians living in what was then called the Seventh Ward, which today overlaps with present-day Society Hill. Fast forward 125 years, and it still offers valuable lessions about why many…
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Philadelphia Nonprofit Houses the Largest Publicly Accessible Archive of South Asian American Stories
When Samip Mallick was growing up in Michigan, he didn’t often see his community, heritage, and identity reflected. Striving to do something about it, he co-founded the South Asian American Digital Archive (SAADA) in 2008, which is now the largest publicly accessible archive of the community with over 5,300 stories, writes Tim Jimenez for KYW…
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