The Roots of Bird Conservation in Penn’s Woods

Posted by on Apr 17, 2026 in | Comments Off on The Roots of Bird Conservation in Penn’s Woods   Native naturalists and immigrant ornithologists who began their celebrated careers in Penn’s Woods played a pivotal role in establishing America’s enduring romance with the continent’s fabled feathered tribes. Their fieldwork and studies also helped assemble and strengthen the natural science from which bird conservation emerged in the United States. Birdsong, species diversity and the...
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Susanna Wright: Poet and Polymath on the Susquehanna

Posted by on Apr 17, 2026 in | Comments Off on Susanna Wright: Poet and Polymath on the Susquehanna   No right has man his equal to control, Since, all agree, there is no sex in soul; Weak woman, thus in agreement grown strong, Shakes off the yoke her parents wore too long. Those lines of poetry, written in a rigidly paternalistic 18th-century America, establish Susanna Wright (1697–1784) as one of America’s early supporters of women’s equality. More subtly, the poem, entitled “To Eliza...
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German Founders: The Muhlenberg Family and the War for Independence

Posted by on Apr 17, 2026 in | Comments Off on German Founders: The Muhlenberg Family and the War for Independence On July 2, 1776, Philadelphians were living on a razor’s edge. At the State House, the Continental Congress gathered to decide the colonists’ collective fate. Lutheran pastor Henry Muhlenberg (1711–87) recorded in his diary, “It is said that the Continental Congress resolved to declare the thirteen united colonies free and independent.” Two days later, on July 4, he wrote, “Today the Continental...
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Forgotten Founder: Thomas Paine and American Independence

Posted by on Apr 17, 2026 in | Comments Off on Forgotten Founder: Thomas Paine and American Independence Philadelphia was the largest, wealthiest and most cosmopolitan city in all the colonies on the eve of the American Revolution. As the major commercial hub for British North America, the city’s economy was based on trade and commerce and bolstered by shipbuilding, textiles and other industries. Philadelphia was also a hub for political activism, with town meetings and pamphlets disseminating...
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Clayton-Frick Art Museum

Posted by on Apr 17, 2026 in | Comments Off on Clayton-Frick Art Museum   In 1882, Henry Clay Frick (1849–1919), the wealthy industrialist famed for his patronage of the arts and violent opposition to organized labor, purchased an Italianate-style house on Pittsburgh’s “Millionaire’s Row.” He christened the property “Clayton” and hired prominent Pittsburgh architect Frederick J. Osterling (1865–1934) to expand the building, converting it into a grand French...
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Sarah Mary Benjamin, Heroine of Yorktown

Posted by on Apr 17, 2026 in | Comments Off on Sarah Mary Benjamin, Heroine of Yorktown Histories of the American Revolution have traditionally focused on famous leaders and soldiers. Far less has been said about the everyday people, especially women, whose lives and labor shaped the struggle for independence. One such woman was Sarah Mary (Mathews Osborn) Benjamin. Sometimes compared to “Molly Pitcher,” Sarah left vivid accounts of her time accompanying her husband, Aaron Osborn,...
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Pennsylvania’s Bicentennial Time Capsule

Posted by on Apr 17, 2026 in | Comments Off on Pennsylvania’s Bicentennial Time Capsule In 1976, Reynolds Metals Co. created 56 aluminum time capsules as a gift to the United States. These identical capsules were given to the governors of the 50 states, as well as four territories, the National Archives, and the Bicentennial Wagon Train Pilgrimage. At that time, Reynolds was the world’s third largest aluminum and packaging company and the second largest in the United States. The...
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Editor’s Letter

Posted by on Apr 17, 2026 in | Comments Off on Editor’s Letter As we approach the 250th anniversary of the United States, we continue our series of articles on Pennsylvania in the American Revolution. Three features in this edition focus on individuals of the era and their contributions to the new nation. British emigrant Thomas Paine arrived in Philadelphia in November 1774 and soon began working as the editor of Pennsylvania Magazine. In January 1776, he...
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From the Executive Director

Posted by on Apr 17, 2026 in | Comments Off on From the Executive Director Over the past 40 years, technology has transformed how people connect — with one another and with information. At the Pennsylvania Historical & Museum Commission (PHMC), we’ve seen remarkable progress in using digital tools to enhance engagement with the history we steward: the documents, maps and photographs preserved in the Pennsylvania State Archives; information about historical...
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“The Power of Many Giants” at the 1876 Centennial Exposition

Posted by on Jan 14, 2026 in | Comments Off on “The Power of Many Giants” at the 1876 Centennial Exposition Amid the pageantry and grandeur of the Philadelphia Centennial Exposition’s opening ceremony, one event towered above all others. On May 10, 1876, thousands of visitors crowded into Machinery Hall to watch President Ulysses S. Grant and Emperor Dom Pedro II of Brazil climb atop a gigantic Corliss steam engine. On a platform on top of the 45-foot-tall machine, the two heads of state pulled two...
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