“The Not So Good Old Days”: Disease and the Struggle for Public Health in Pennsylvania

Posted by on Oct 15, 2020 in | Comments Off on “The Not So Good Old Days”: Disease and the Struggle for Public Health in Pennsylvania In 1930 A. J. Bohl was proud to work in the Pennsylvania Department of Health (DOH). After 25 years there, he wrote an article in Pennsylvania’s Health in which he recalled growing up in the 1880s, when disease and illness ravaged the state. “There wasn’t much attention paid to the communicable diseases. Everybody, as a matter of course, had measles, chicken pox, whooping cough and mumps, and...
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Editor’s Letter

Posted by on Oct 8, 2020 in | Comments Off on Editor’s Letter As part of our mission “to introduce readers to Pennsylvania’s rich culture and historic legacy,” we at Pennsylvania Heritage seek to connect the commonwealth’s past with what Pennsylvania is today or what it is anticipated to become in the future. In this effort, we strive to publish stories on a variety of subjects, some of which have been overlooked or underrepresented in history, that relate...
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“A Veritable Stone Wall of Death”

Posted by on Nov 28, 2013 in | Comments Off on “A Veritable Stone Wall of Death” “Flee for your life; do not look back or stop anywhere in the valley; flee to the hills, lest you be consumed.” The Lord’s angels commanding Lot to leave the city of Sodom. Genesis 19:17   It was a beautiful, sunny day-a welcome respite from a September of rain and hard frosts that had swollen the Sinnemahoning Creek and its tributary Freeman Run to unusually high levels....
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The Watering of Philadelphia

Posted by on Nov 25, 2013 in | Comments Off on The Watering of Philadelphia In the glory days of the early republic, the Fairmount Water Works was one Philadelphia’s most famous landmarks: a marvel of engineering, scenic beauty, stylish design, and civic mindedness. It was built for the most practical of purposes – to provide a clean and plentiful supply of that most essential elixir: fresh water. Today, Philadelphian’s are blessed with one of the best...
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