History
The Sad, Seemingly Inevitable History of Blaming Pandemics on “Others”
This isn’t David Barnes’s first time at the pandemic rodeo. An associate professor of medicine and public health at Penn, he’s the author of, among […]
A Brief History of Philly’s Vegan Takeover
Memo to all the haters: Philly’s greenwashing was a long time coming. (No joke: Benjamin Franklin was writing about tofu all the way back in […]
Can South Philly Hold On to What’s Always Made It Unique?
In the late summer of 1981, very much against my Catholic mother’s wishes, I had just moved into a rowhouse at 17th and Naudain — […]
Quiz: How Well Do You Know South Philly?
How well do you know the South’s quirky neighborhood trivia and traditions? Let’s find out.
A Brief Timeline of South Philly Through the Ages
40,000 BCE– 10,000 BCE Paleolithic peoples enter North America. The Lenape settle territory along the Delaware Watershed. Buffalo roam. 1631 Dutch settlers establish a foothold […]
Independence National Park Is an Embarrassing Mess. Why Doesn’t Anyone Care?
“Get in the pen.” That’s the first strange thing you’ll hear when you take a tour of Independence Hall, the birthplace of American liberty. I’ve […]
This Lesser-Known Liberty Bell Played a Big Role in Pa. Women’s Suffrage
Monday marks the 100th anniversary of women’s suffrage in Pennsylvania — the day when the state voted to ratify the newly passed 19th Amendment. Women […]
How King of Prussia, Camden, and 23 Other Philly-Area Towns Got Their Names
Everybody knows that Pennsylvania is named for William Penn and Philadelphia is named for Philip the Great. (Wait, it’s not?) But how about Lionville? Honey Brook? […]
10 Things You Might Not Know About Root Beer Magnate Charles Hires
Okay, sure, there’s Coca Cola — but 10 years before there was, Philadelphia druggist Charles E. Hires introduced his all-natural Hires Root Beer to the […]
When the Sky Was the Limit: A Flashback to Philly’s First World’s Fair
The first episode of Sam Katz’s documentary series, Philadelphia: The Great Experiment, aired in April 2011 — seven years ago! On Thursday night, you can […]
Pulitzer/Oprah-Approved Writer Colson Whitehead Speaks for Free at UPenn
After years as toiling away as a “beloved but kinda underappreciated” Genius-granted author, Colson Whitehead reached superstar status last year with the best-selling The Underground […]
Villanova Professor Sues CIA Over … Bay of Pigs?!
Villanova political science professor David Barrett knows more than most about the Central Intelligence Agency. The university boasts that Barrett is actually “one of the […]
Philly Firm Picked to Renovate the Alamo
Remember the Alamo? The old Texas mission is historic, but the area surrounding it feels less so — overgrown with hotels and office buildings. Now a […]
11 Things You Might Not Know About Leap Year
Happy February 29th, also known as “leap day” — a lunar event created by humans to compensate for the fact that the earth doesn’t orbit […]
Ardmore Collector Has Previously Unseen Letter From Amelia Earhart
A previously unseen letter written in 1933 by groundbreaking aviator Amelia Earhart has been acquired by Ardmore-based Raab Collection, which recently purchased the document from a private […]