Capitol Building for the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania

Posted by on Nov 25, 2013 in | Comments Off on Capitol Building for the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania The Athenaeum of Philadelphia acquires thousands of architectural drawings and hundreds of rare books and trade catalogues each year. Recent acquisitions include drawings from Charles Barry’s Italianate Travellers’ Club in London, reputedly a source for architect John Notman’s design of the Athenaeum; high-style Victorian period designs by Philadelphia architects Edward Collins...
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Currents

Posted by on Nov 25, 2013 in | Comments Off on Currents Railroading with Rau The Pennsylvania Railroad Company (PRR) was not yet a half-century old when it commissioned William H. Rau (1855-1920) to tackle the enormous task of photographically documenting its extensive rail lines. So extraordinarily successful was the Pennsy that by the time Rau commenced his work in 1891, the railroad was the largest corporation in the country and claimed more than...
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Shorts

Posted by on Nov 25, 2013 in | Comments Off on Shorts On Thursday, October 17 [2002], Robert Pow­ell, president of the Historical Society of Carbondale, will present a talk entitled “The Delaware and Hudson Canal Com­pany’s Gravity Railroad” at the National Canal Museum in Easton. His lecture explores the construction, operation, and development of one of the country’s pioneer railroads – a major artery for the...
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The Value of Pennsylvania History

Posted by on Nov 25, 2013 in | Comments Off on The Value of Pennsylvania History George W. Bush won the presidential election of 2000 because the fifty states cast more electoral votes for him, even though more people actually voted for his opponent, Albert A. Gore Jr. The election reminded Americans about a curious institution called the Electoral College, and an equally peculiar system known as federalism in which each state conducts elections according to distinct laws...
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Executive Director’s Message

Posted by on Nov 25, 2013 in | Comments Off on Executive Director’s Message On March 10, 2003, the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission (PHMC) was privileged to dedicate a state historical marker commemorating the one hundredth anniversary of the creation of the Pennsylvania State Archives. Congratulations are due to all those individuals -­ both past and present – responsible for establishing and maintaining this outstanding institution. The Pennsylvania...
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Ware Prison Drawing at Pennsylvania State Archives

Posted by on Nov 25, 2013 in | Comments Off on Ware Prison Drawing at Pennsylvania State Archives One of the more unusual governmental records safeguarded by the Pennsylvania State Archives, observing its centennial in 2003, is a statistical record kept between 1893 and 1896 by inmate number 5932 at Philadelphia’s Eastern State Penitentiary. The ledger was elaborately embellished with calligraphy, vignettes, and drawings – many of them crime-related – by Sidney Ware, an...
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Bookshelf

Posted by on Nov 20, 2013 in | Comments Off on Bookshelf Historic Landmarks of Philadelphia by Roger W. Moss, with photographs by Tom Crane published by the University of Pennsylvania Press, 2008; 339 pages, cloth, $34.95 A stunning pictorial celebration of Philadelphia’s architectural treasures, Historic Landmarks of Philadelphia breaks new ground in a heartfelt appreciation of the historic built environment by going far beyond being merely a...
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