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Historical Society of Pennsylvania

@historicalpa

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Philadelphia's Library of American History. #MakeHistoryYours

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Some darn big machines at the National Museum of Industrial History on the south side of Bethlehem, PA.

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From the Underground to the Playground—Dream. Believe. Never Quit. 🏀✨
I am so deeply moved and incredibly honored to share this feature from The Philadelphia Inquirer. Seeing our recent celebration of women’s sports highlighted like this fills my heart with so much gratitude.
For me, women’s sports has always been more than just a game—it is a social movement. And this moment isn’t just about looking forward to the exciting future of hoops expansion here in Philly; it’s about drawing a direct line of inspiration from the ancestors who paved the way for our freedom and empowerment.
Discovering my own history as the great-great-grandniece of William Still, the Father of the Underground Railroad, completely shifted my world. Our ancestors fought monumental battles for physical freedom. Today, the historic rise, recognition, and fight for equity in women’s sports represents another massive wave of empowerment. History is alive, it is deeply connected, and we have a responsibility to protect and share these stories.
I want to extend my deepest, most heartfelt thanks to everyone who stood with me and joined this beautiful conversation: Brenda VanLengen, the Philadelphia Sisters Sports Group, Philly Youth Basketball, and the Historical Society of Pennsylvania. Together, we are preserving our history, keeping our records safe, and showing the next generation of young girls and athletes exactly what is possible.
The journey continues, my book Still Family is on the way, and the truth will be told. To anyone out there fighting for their passion: Keep dreaming, keep believing, and never quit.
You can read the full feature over on The Philadelphia Inquirer website! 🔗https://www.inquirer.com/wnba/wnba-expansion-philly-womens-sports-history-20261016.html
#WilliamStill #UndergroundRailroad #FromTheUndergroundToThePlayground #DreamBelieveNeverQuit #WomensSportsHistory PhillyHoops StillFamilyLegacy WomenEmpowerment WNBAPhilly ValerieStill

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From NBRPA Legends Girl Chat to More Than A Game: Connections & Community in Women’s Sports, was great seeing East Philly Legend @valeriestill1 at @historicalpa.

@thephiladelphiasisters’ @ashley.lunkenheimer moderated a captivating conversation with Val & @brendavanlengentv. The knowledge, the lore, the accolades!

Things my mind still can’t get over:
🏆 West Chester University won the first-ever collegiate women’s basketball championship in 1969
❌ Women’s basketball was banned in states & school systems across the country in the 1920s after a successful 30 years of play
🏀 “Women’s basketball is a social movement.” - Val
💡 “Play cannot be denied.” - Johan Huizinga
⛹️‍♀️ @ifnotforthem is a docuseries that tells the stories of the forgotten pioneers who forged collegiate women’s basketball. Contact them about opportunities to fund post-production or provide a distribution platform.

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Thanks @historicalpa for cataloging my work.

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George Croghan was a prominent fur trader on the Pennsylvanian frontier in the 1700s. Hear more of his story in this @pennsylvaniacablenetwork interview, or check out the new edition of 📕 By Great Rivers: Lives on the Appalachian Frontier. 🔗 LINKS for Both in BIO! #pahistory #americanhistory #history #historybooks #pennsylvania

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How do the stories we inherit shape the paths we choose? 🏀

This Wednesday, we’re joining WNBA Hall of Famer Valerie Still and ESPN women’s basketball analyst Brenda VanLengen at the Historical Society of Pennsylvania for “More Than a Game: Connections and Community in Women’s Sports.”

Valerie, a direct descendant of William Still, the Father of the Underground Railroad, will share how her family’s legacy shaped her career. Then we’ll dig into the history, impact, and community of women’s athletics, and we want to hear your story too.

Arrive early for a display of historic materials on women’s sports in Philadelphia, plus resources from Philly Youth Basketball and the Philadelphia Sports Hall of Fame.

📅 Wed, Oct 14 | 6:30–8 PM
📍 HSP, 1300 Locust St
🎟️ $10 Register ahead; link in bio.

#ThePhiladelphiaSisters #WomenInSports #PhillySports #WomensHistory #WNBA

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Looking for an #NHD topic that combines innovation and the ✨best city✨ ever, Philadelphia?

On this #TopicTuesday, why not consider Benjamin Franklin? Founding Father, diplomat, inventor, postmaster, printer…the list goes on! Franklin led a long, complicated, and fascinating life that is ripe with innovation (and influence, and impact, and change)!

From inoculation to electricity to education, Franklin is a great place to start brainstorming topics! The Historical Society of Pennsylvania has one of the largest collections of books owned by Benjamin Franklin, where you can explore Franklin’s own writings, as well as the people and ideas that shaped him.

And for #NHDPhilly 2027, we are happy to announce a new special prize category! This monetary prize will be awarded to the project (in both the Junior and Senior Divisions) that best explores Benjamin Franklin’s contributions to and legacy of innovation.

Looking for more sources on Franklin? Philly has got you covered! Check out The Revolutionary City (therevolutionarycity.org) for incredible Benjamin Franklin resources from NHD Philly partners like @amphilsociety, @foundershallmuseum, @amrevmuseum, @kislakcenter, and more!

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The Susquehanna Boom could hold up to one million logs at a time over its seven mile length. "The Williamsport Boom" (Ep23) of the history podcast Pennsylmania has dropped! The origin story of North Central PA told through the lumber industry and the conservation efforts that followed. Available now on Spotify, YouTube, Apple Podcasts, and directly on our website

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Good investment shows up in the places people use every day. Nearly $3.54m in Local Share Account grants are coming to our community for parks, arts organizations, recreation centers, historic institutions, and public spaces. These dollars strengthen the infrastructure that makes our neighborhoods work.

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The most recent @guildofbookworkers Journal has my article on the contemporary canvas bindings of the 1689 Philadelphia imprint of The Presbyterian and Independent Visible Churches in New-England. This is the first essay to come out of my research using the Prince Collection @bplboston which was a library formed in American by the 1760s and is still basically intact.

The canvas bindings were made by the printer of the book, William Bradford (also a bookbinder), who was unable to find enough leather to bind the edition. Big thanks to the @therosenbach as they have the only other copy of the book known in a contemporary binding and were very helpful when I went to look at it - see image four for that volume. All of the staff at Boston Public Library have been so amazing to me in my research on the Prince Collection and I want to thank @thebookishcook for taking some great images of the BPL copies. The book conservation staff @thehuntingtonlibrary were kind enough to look at their copy since I was unable to make it there, @martynagryko looked at the Princeton copy for me, staff @historicalpa allowed me to look at their copy and the staff at The State Library of Pennsylvania looked at their copy for me. I also had assistance from James Green @librarycompany and @_thelostms @americanantiquarian

I think this is a perfect post for #publishersbindingthursday as I make the case in the article that this should be considered a publishers binding.
#bookbinding #bookbindingresearch

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You ever watch a video on Instagram like maybe I’ll go there one day, and than find yourself making the detour to go to the place? I’ve been watching Nate’s silly goose store videos for a while, so when my mom mentioned wanting to go to Pennsylvania for her birthday…… I found a way to visit Jim Thorpe and make quite a few stops from all of @thesillygoosegiftshop videos. And of course picked up my very own silly goose to take home with me
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📍38 Broadway, Jim Thorpe, PA 18229
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#thesillygoose #jimthorpe #pennsylvania #thesillygoosejimthorpe #jimthorpepennsylvania

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