“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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Kutztown Folk Festival: America’s Oldest Folklife Celebration

Posted by on Mar 13, 2020 in | Comments Off on Kutztown Folk Festival: America’s Oldest Folklife Celebration The Kutztown Folk Festival, originally called the Pennsylvania Dutch Folk Festival, is a milestone among American community celebrations. Observing 70 years in 2019, it is the first and longest-running folklife festival in the history of the United States. Although many other popular celebrations preceded the Kutztown festival, it has had a national impact as the first festival founded and...
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1918’s Deadliest Killer: The Flu Pandemic Hits Pennsylvania

Posted by on Dec 1, 2019 in | Comments Off on 1918’s Deadliest Killer: The Flu Pandemic Hits Pennsylvania I had a little bird, Its name was Enza. I opened the window, And in-flu-enza. —Children’s rhyme, 1918 The year 1918 was arguably one of the darkest in modern times and the deadliest ever recorded in human history. Much of Europe was locked in a hideous, relentless military struggle that had dragged on for three years, killing millions of soldiers and bankrupting its governments. Famine stalked...
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World War I Ambulances

Posted by on Mar 13, 2017 in | Comments Off on World War I Ambulances The face of warfare had changed by the time America entered World War I. For better or worse, the conflict was characterized by advances in technology, including air combat, chemical weaponry, and more effective firearms such as machine guns and automatic rifles. Automobiles also began supplementing horse-drawn wagons for a number of uses on the battlefront, including ambulatory medical care. In...
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Craft Brewing: Another Revolution in Pennsylvania

Posted by on Dec 13, 2016 in | Comments Off on Craft Brewing: Another Revolution in Pennsylvania The history of brewing beer in Pennsylvania has seen heights of success and pits of disaster. The commonwealth grew from colonial home-brewing roots to become a recognized industrial center, home to some of the most notable brewers in America before the disaster of Prohibition. After bouncing back with Repeal, Pennsylvania clung to its established favorites longer than any other state, savoring...
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A Personal Account of Pearl Harbor: The Journal and Scrapbook of Roland Ferron

Posted by on Sep 9, 2016 in | Comments Off on A Personal Account of Pearl Harbor: The Journal and Scrapbook of Roland Ferron The surprise and horror of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, is infamous and led to the United States’ entry into World War II the following day. As most Americans know, the U.S. naval base near Honolulu, Hawaii, was heavily damaged with more than 2,400 Americans killed and a number of naval vessels sunk or left in shambles. At nearby U.S. Army Air Corps’ Hickam Field, the...
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Shankweiler’s Hotel and Restaurant

Posted by on Sep 9, 2016 in | Comments Off on Shankweiler’s Hotel and Restaurant   Shankweiler’s Hotel and Restaurant operated on Old U.S. 22 in the village of Fogelsville, Lehigh County, just west of Allentown. As this c. 1940 postcard notes, the restaurant was well known for its delicious chicken and waffles, a meal that reflects the Pennsylvania Dutch heritage of the area. This local landmark opened in June 1934 under the management of Wilson and Daisy Shankweiler,...
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Two Decades of PA Books: An Interview with Brian Lockman

Posted by on Apr 19, 2016 in | Comments Off on Two Decades of PA Books: An Interview with Brian Lockman PA Books is a weekly television series that has been running on the Pennsylvania Cable Network (PCN) for 20 years. Brian Lockman, president and CEO of the Harrisburg-based network, has hosted the program from the beginning, interviewing authors of books related to Pennsylvania. He does 35 to 40 new interviews a year, and PCN reruns past programs frequently. A recent survey indicated that PA...
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Uncle Jerry and the Great Allentown Fair

Posted by on Jun 19, 2015 in | Comments Off on Uncle Jerry and the Great Allentown Fair Described as an “enterprising Pennsylvania Dutchman” by Governor Samuel Whitaker Pennypacker, the Honorable Jeremiah Roth (1833–1907) was best known as the father of the Great Allentown Fair. Though he was not a founding member of the fair, “Uncle Jerry,” as most people affectionately called him, worked tirelessly during the 23 years he was at its helm to ensure its success and promote its...
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Editor’s Letter

Posted by on Jun 19, 2015 in | Comments Off on Editor’s Letter Summer is a good time to connect with the past in Pennsylvania. The state features an abundance of museums, memorials and historic structures – including the sites on the Pennsylvania Trails of History – that are especially active in the summer, presenting and commemorating our history. Festivals and special events across the commonwealth also link us to our heritage with food,...
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