History

Stuff of Legend

01 Jan 2006

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

02 Mar 2004

Celebrating Franklin as printer

Remembering the President’s House, Slaves and All

01 Mar 2004

Edward Lawler Jr. C’80

The Immeasurable Curiosity of Edward Peters

02 May 2003

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.”

Speaking Out Against War

01 Jan 2003

Faculty “teach-in” and students march against war on Iraq

Probing Plagiarism

01 May 2002

Childers and other history faculty on plagiarism in the field

Shadow Selves

01 Jan 2002

Look at Me. A novel of dangerous depths. Nazi Terror. Evil’s work-a-day world.

The Last Album: Lives in Memory

02 Nov 2001

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

01 Sep 2001

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.

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

02 Jan 2000

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.