Posts in “history” (143)
Blog Articles
As March draws to a close, we near the end of Women’s History Month. Here at the Free Library, we’ve celebrated this important observance in many ways: with the story of Mary Church… continue reading Stream a Film by a Woman to Celebrate Women's History Month
By written by Clare F. March 27, 2020
"Even if I believed that women should be denied the right of suffrage, wild horses could not drag such an admission from my pen or my lips, for this reason: precisely the same arguments used… continue reading Women's History Month 2020: Stories We Know, Stories We'll Discover
By written by Kalela W. March 3, 2020
On Thursday, February 20 , David W. Young will appear at Parkway Central Library to discuss his book, Battles of Germantown: Effective Public History in America . Many Philadelphia residents… continue reading What is "Public History", Anyway?
By written by Nina C. February 19, 2020
From the mid-1930s to the early 1940s, artists working for the Federal Art Project’s Poster Division of the Works Progress Administration (WPA, later renamed Work Projects Administration)… continue reading Spotlight on Special Collections: WPA Posters in the Print and Picture Collection
By written by Laura S. December 2, 2019
While reading There There — Tommy Orange ’s award-winning novel and the 2020 One Book, One Philadelphia featured selection—I was repeatedly struck by how many references Orange… continue reading #OneBookWednesday | Some History and Terms from There There
By written by Clare F. November 13, 2019
History is endlessly fascinating to me; twentieth-century history in particular is full of triumphs and dark chapters. Sometimes it takes some distance to get perspective on events of… continue reading It's All Just a Little Bit of History Repeating Itself Again
By written by Rachel F. July 23, 2019
Parkway Central Library Senior Services will commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Coretta Scott King Awards for excellence in African American children’s literature with a five-part… continue reading Conversations in Color: The Coretta Scott King Awards Celebrate 50 Years of Excellence
By written by Lisa-Jane E. May 29, 2019 2
It's no secret... the Free Library is thrilled to partner with Philadelphia's beloved film screening series, The Secret Cinema , now in its 27th year. In celebration of our current… continue reading The Secret Cinema Presents: Philadelphia: The Changing City
By written by Laura S. March 19, 2019
Long ago, Philadelphians had the opportunity to escape the congestion of the city by ferrying to two islands in the middle of the Delaware River, across from what is now Penn’s Landing.… continue reading An Island Retreat Off the Shores of Philadelphia
By written by Megan M. January 22, 2019
The current exhibition in the Rare Book Department ’s Dietrich Gallery, entitled Philadelphia - The Changing City , offers a look at centuries’ worth of local transformations… continue reading Philadelphia - The Cycling City | Part 1: Paving the Way
By written by Alina J. January 18, 2019
As long as there has been war, there’s been writing about war, whether in poetry or prose, exploring not only its glory and valor but its brutality and cost. "The Great War"… continue reading The Poets of WW1
By written by Alex B. January 10, 2019
The late and great Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell once sang, "Ain’t nothing like the real thing baby." These words hold true for how to best experience our material culture. People… continue reading Take History in the Palm of Your Hand with this New Series from the Free Library's Special Collections
By written by Joe S. January 7, 2019 1
Update: The Free Library’s At These Crossroads exhibition was honored as an Adobe Government Creativity Awards finalist in the ‘Multichannel Campaign – Museum of Park… continue reading At These Crossroads: The Legacies of Frederick Douglass and W.E.B. Du Bois Exhibition
By written by Administrator December 20, 2018 3
![L.A.W. Local Cycling Map, 1897, Map [recto]](https://libwww.freelibrary.biz/images/blog/FLPBlog/orig/changingcity-cycling.jpg)
Come and learn about Philadelphia's exciting, dynamic, and often forgotten history with a free guided tour of the Philadelphia: The Changing City exhibition. The tour will be led by… continue reading Free Tours of Philadelphia: The Changing City Exhibition
By written by Joe S. November 5, 2018
October 10 marks the opening of an exhibition that analyzes Philadelphia's growth across more than three centuries, presenting more than 80 rare and revelatory prints, photographs,… continue reading Philadelphia: The Changing City - An Exhibition from Special Collections
By written by Janine P. October 9, 2018
In a world of "fake news" and "alternate truths", the importance of critical thinking is more important than ever. Educators and librarians have replaced old-school teaching… continue reading Back to School, but Not Old School: Information and Primary Source Literacy
By written by Joe S. September 12, 2018
This year's National Skyscraper Day falls on Labor Day, as good a day as any to fully appreciate the architectural marvels, engineering efforts, and skilled labor that make up our cities. If… continue reading 9 Things You Should Know About Philadelphia Skyscrapers
By written by Shahadah A. August 31, 2018 2
Unless you've turned off all avenues of media and have been hiding under a proverbial rock (and really, no judgement here!), you may have noticed Russia has been in the news a bit recently...… continue reading Conspiracy? Intrigue? Collusion? Read Some Russian History and Fantasy!
By written by Rachel F. July 18, 2018 3
The Centaur Book Shop was opened on 1224 Chancellor Street in Philadelphia by Harold Mason. Initial funding was partially supplied by John Frederick Lewis, the Philadelphia bibliophile and… continue reading Philadelphia's Centaur Book Shop and Press, 1921-1942
By written by Alina J. June 22, 2018 3
In our ongoing series of historical posts about Philadelphia neighborhoods, today we bring you our neighbors to the northwest, Germantown... Germantown was the first permanent German… continue reading A History Minute: 11 Things You Should Know About Germantown
By written by Administrator June 5, 2018 6