Blogs

Have you ever been driving on the Schuylkill Expressway (I-76) and gotten stuck in traffic at the Conshohocken Curve? If you live in or near Philadelphia, the answer is probably yes. If you live in or near Philadelphia and are above the age of 40, I'll ask the same question a different way: Have you ever gotten stuck in traffic around the Lee Tire Curve? The bend in the highway used to be nicknamed after the old Lee Tire Factory, a landmark until the factory closed in 1980 and the building was re-purposed for office space. To learn more about the history of the Lee Tire & Rubber Company, get off the highway and drive to the Conshohocken Historical Society!

The 103rd Engineer Battalion of the Pennsylvania National Guard--nicknamed the "Dandy First"--is the oldest continuously-serving military unit in Pennsylvania, and one of fewer than ten organizations whose lineage goes back to before 1747 (as verified by the Center for Military History). Did you know that a museum dedicated to the lineage of this storied regiment is housed in the old armory building on the campus of Drexel University? I certainly had no idea until I was sent to survey their archival collection. I felt like I was the "Dandy First" person to visit!

The 75th anniversary of San Francisco's Golden Gate Bridge is on May 27, 2012, so it is fitting that this week's blog post is about the Pottstown Historical Society. Did you know that steel sections for the Golden Gate Bridge were fabricated in Pottstown? Pottstown's metal industry has a long and interesting history, and it is reflected in the archival collections at the Pottstown Historical Society.

Happy Birthday, Mr. Audubon! Today is the 227th birthday of John James Audubon, the renowned artist, naturalist, and author best known for his breathtaking work Birds of America and for the wildlife protection society that took his name. We surveyed the archives at his first home in America, John James Audubon Center at Mill Grove.