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The Fortunate Ones
3/2/11

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The recently published historic novel, The Fortunate Ones, describes the difficult life of blind and visually impaired people who lived and worked in 18th-century Philadelphia without the use of Braille or today’s technology. In a lecture given at HSP on March 2, 2011, author Frederick W. Noesner discusses his novel. Mr. Noesner was born with malignant tumors of the retina that totally destroyed his sight during early childhood.

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Poetics and Politics: The Life of Frances Harper
2/23/11

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February marks the 100th anniversary of the death of Frances Ellen Watkins Harper, one of the best known African American poets of the 19th century and a staunch abolitionist. This discussion recorded at HSP on February 23, 2011, examines the poetics and politics of  Harper's life.

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Tasting Freedom
10/6/10

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Octavius Valentine Catto was a teacher, activist, and orator, as well as second baseman on Philadelphia’s best black baseball team. The nation lost a civil rights pioneer when Catto was murdered at an election-day race riot in 1871. In this lecture recorded at HSP on October 6, 2010, Daniel Biddle and Murray Dubin, authors of the recently published book Tasting Freedom from Temple University Press, discuss the life of this charismatic black leader.

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From Puerto Rico to Philadelphia
9/30/10

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Hear Dr. Victor Vazquez Hernandez speak about the Latinization of Philadelphia at the Historical Society of Pennsylvania's Hispanic Heritage Month event. Dr. Vazquez Hernandez is an associate professor of history at Miami Dade College and co-editor of The Puerto Rican Diaspora: Historical Perspectives.

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The Search for Nature's Design
9/15/10

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Hear the thoughts and voice of early naturalist William Bartram through the newly published book William Bartram, The Search for Nature’s Design. This book from the University of Georgia Press contains transcripts of many of Bartram’s manuscripts collected from more than 100 libraries and archives, including the Historical Society of Pennsylvania. In a lecture recorded at HSP on September 15, 2010, contributors to the book discuss the special role of manuscripts as tools for historical understanding and writing.

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