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.
Sunrise in Philadelphia
On a crisp September day, the delegates to the Constitutional Convention gathered to sign the document they’d hammered out over the long, hot summer of 1787, flaws and all. An excerpt from Plain, Honest Men by History Professor Richard Beeman. Plus: An interview with the author.
Taking the Skeleton out of Jewish History’s Closet
Examining “Jews, commerce, and culture”
The Vital Thread of Tom Sugrue
In The Origins of the Urban Crisis and now Sweet Land of Liberty, Penn historian Thomas Sugrue has shattered the conventional narrative about the struggle for Civil Rights in this country. The new book was published on the same day a black man was elected president; still, says Sugrue, “We’ve got a lot of overcoming to do.”
Lincoln’s American Dream
In 1858, tumbling financial markets prompt a religious revival, the government launches a “diversionary crusade,” and a new leader finds his voice.
Northern Exposure
From research assistant to co-editor in just seven years
Franklin and the Iroquois Foundations of the Constitution
What the Founders learned from those who were here first
Mitt Man
Albert “Doc” Bushong D1882
Stuff of Legend
An exhibition at the National Constitution Center celebrates the multifarious personae of Penn’s Founder with objects ranging from the Constitution of the United States to a pair of cufflinks.
Franklin’s Imprint
Celebrating Franklin as printer
Remembering the President’s House, Slaves and All
Edward Lawler Jr. C’80
The Immeasurable Curiosity of Edward Peters
A colleague calls Peters, the Henry Charles Lea Professor of History, “one of the great medievalists of his generation.” His own assessment: “I’m like cheap paint—I cover a lot, but not very well.”
Unspoiled by Fame
Mike Rutstein C’86
Speaking Out Against War
Faculty “teach-in” and students march against war on Iraq
Probing Plagiarism
Childers and other history faculty on plagiarism in the field
Shadow Selves
Look at Me. A novel of dangerous depths.
Nazi Terror. Evil’s work-a-day world.
The Last Album: Lives in Memory
A new book of photographs recovered from Auschwitz—family portraits, birthday parties, wedding pictures, days at the beach—recalls the lives shattered by the Holocaust.
Man of Letters
Alfred Butts created the blockbuster word game known as Scrabble during the Depression. A new book examines the meticulous word-tinker, the evolution of the game, and the effect it had on America.
Admission Denied
Naomi Nakano had already experienced discrimination at Penn when she was restricted to the basement of Houston Hall because she was a woman—then she found herself at the center of a storm of protest over the University’s wartime policy of excluding Japanese Americans from admission.
Rebirth on the River
When the Fairmount Water Works was born in the 19th century, its cutting-edge technology and pleasing gardens drew hordes of tourists. Penn alumni working on a $26 million restoration and environmental-education project at the site hope to create a new life for this half-forgotten landmark that helped a city grow.
Worth Saluting
Martha Settle Putney Gr’55
Crowns and Confidences
Thomas Evans was the trusted friend of royalty and a secret diplomat with an eye for beauty. Such are the rewards of dentistry.