Discovered—But Not Captured
Erica Armstrong Dunbar C’94 wrote about Ona Judge’s escape from slavery.
Dedication
Lorene Cary C’78 G’78 on a glorious day in the nation’s capital.
Building Blocks
A talk with the authors of Becoming Penn, which traces the University’s development over the tumultuous half-century from the Cold War to the Millennium.
The Link
As the nation’s first medical school celebrates its 250th anniversary, a look back at how generations of students, faculty, and alumni have served their country, delivered the finest patient care, and advanced medical research and education here in Philadelphia and around the world.
Unconditional Pavlov
Daniel Todes spent 25 years researching and writing his epochal biography of Ivan Pavlov. The result is a science historian’s answer to Tolstoy, Turgenev, and Dr. Zhivago.
Wounded Warriors and the Legacy of WWI
Medical historian Beth Linker on war and the limits of rehabilitation.
A Penn Historian Looks Back at a Long Career
Historian Richard Beeman on his four decades at Penn
Flawed Founder
James Wilson signed the Declaration of Independence and was a key architect of the US Constitution, helped found Penn Law School, and served as one of the first justices of the Supreme Court. He was also a reckless land-speculator—jailed more than once for debt—who died a fugitive.
Penn Fights the Civil War
As soldiers on the battlefield or doctors in military hospitals, Penn alumni and faculty played remarkable roles in the nation’s bloodiest conflict—serving both North and South.
Making Scents of the Past: The History of Cleanliness
History professor Kathleen Brown on what it means to be clean.
Creating a New Museum for a Venerable History
Gwen Goodman Ed’56 led the NMAJH to Independence Mall.
Bones Beneath the Tracks
In the summer of 1832, 57 Irish laborers died suddenly while building the first railroad in Pennsylvania. Alumnus Bill Watson and a host of other Penn people have been trying to find out what really happened. And they’re getting close.
Paternity Test
Between Thomas Jefferson and Benjamin Franklin, which Founding Father did the most—by far—to promote and shape the future of public education in America? (Hint: He also published a periodical with the same name as this one.)
The First Day of Peace
World War II ended on September 2, 1945. For two alumni, something strange happened next.
The History Buffer
Stephen Fried says we have Fred Harvey to thank for retail chains, Western tourism, and our model of exemplary customer service. He also suggests that his just-published book about the man and the “railroad hospitality empire” he embodied represents a new nonfiction genre: history buffed.
Darwinism Comes To Penn
A century-and-a-half after the November 1859 publication of On the Origin of Species, a Penn microbiologist looks back at how Darwin’s ideas were received by some of the University’s leading thinkers.