Question of the Week
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Question of the Week
11/20/17
Author pglennon@hsp.org
If the name “Samuel S. Fels” rings any bells, there’s good reason for it. He was a well-known philanthropist in Philadelphia during the early to mid 20th century who gave to numerous civic, scientific, cultural, and educational causes.
Fels came into much of his wealth through manufacturing one particular product. Can you guess what it is?
Answer: Soap
Topics : 20th century
Comments: 1
11/6/17
Author pglennon@hsp.org
In 1813, members of the Philadelphia Yearly Meeting of Friends established the Asylum for the Relief of Persons Deprived of the Use of Their Reason. They built a new hospital on a 52-acre farm in the city’s Frankford section, which was opened to patients in May 1817.
This hospital still exists today, but is known by a different name. What is it called?
Answer: Friends Hospital
Topics : 19th century
Comments: 0
11/1/17
Author pglennon@hsp.org
In 1812, the city of Harrisburg was named Pennsylvania’s state capital. Five years later, the state would have its first elected governor to lead from this new capital.
Can you guess this governor's name?
Answer: William Findlay
Topics : 19th century
Comments: 0
10/25/17
Author pglennon@hsp.org
If you’re searching for a haunted locale to visit this Halloween, you might try “John Wister’s Big House” located in Germantown.
This stately home dating to 1744 is also known by another name. Can you guess what it is?
A) Cliveden
B) Sweetbriar
C) Grumblethorpe
D) Andalusia
Answer:
C) Grumblethorpe
Topics : Philadelphia
Comments: 0
10/18/17
Author pglennon@hsp.org
The Zoological Society of Philadelphia incorporated March 21, 1859, but the property known as the Philadelphia Zoo did not open until July 1, 1874.
What was the primary reason for the delay?
Answer: The Civil War
Topics : Philadelphia
Comments: 0
10/10/17
Author pglennon@hsp.org
In the fall of 1933, a series of riots occurred at Eastern State Penitentiary.
What brought about the riots?
Answer: Overcrowding
Eastern State Penitentiary opened in Philadelphia in 1829 on Fairmount Avenue between 21st and 22nd streets. It was built on a raised site that had been a cherry tree orchard, and as such, the prison was also known as “Cherry Hill.”
Topics : 20th century
Comments: 0
10/3/17
Author pglennon@hsp.org
True or False?
In the early 1900s, three local women artists, Violet Oakley, Jesse Willcox Smith, and Elizabeth Shippen Green became known collectively as the “Lilies of the Main Line.”
Answer: FALSE
Topics : 20th century
Comments: 0
9/25/17
Author pglennon@hsp.org
Philadelphia’s Tomb of the Unknown Revolutionary War Soldier, in Washington Square, is marked by a monument that was designed by architect G. Edwin Brumbaugh in mid-20th century.
Topics : American Revolution
Comments: 0
9/12/17
Author pglennon@hsp.org
Philadelphia’s Declaration House is the spot where Thomas Jefferson first drafted the Declaration of Independence in June 1776.
This house is known by another name. Can you guess what it is?
Answer: The Graff House
Jacob Graff, a Philadelphia brick mason, built a residence in 1775 at the corner of 7th and Market Streets.
Topics : American Revolution
Comments: 0
9/6/17
Author pglennon@hsp.org
Philadelphian William Henry Fry (1811-1864) is recognized as the first American composer of grand or “serious” opera.
Can you guess the name of his first operatic work?
a) Leonora
b) Lucinda
c) Louisa
d) Lavinia
Answer:
a) Leonora
William Henry Fry (1813-1864) was born in Philadelphia to William and Anne (nee Fleeson) Fry. William Fry was the publisher of the city’s National Gazette in Philadelphia. Fry grew up in a household that appreciated the arts.
Topics : 19th century
Comments: 0
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Memory Stream
Look for these history stories every Sunday in the Philadelphia Inquirer. The stories, called Memory Stream, are published in the Currents section of the newspaper.