I hope everyone’s Memorial Day Weekend is going well. I was up and out early yesterday to get the 7:17 train out of Moynihan Station for Philadelphia. I was there before 9:00 and got a coffee and croissant in the Old City waiting for the Betsy Ross House to open at 10:00. The more and more I visit Philadelphia the more I enjoy it. I pivoted to this era just five years ago. One of the maxims of his is: “Go there.” I made sure to walk the perimeter of Christ Church, which is where I took the photograph you see above. Philadelphia, or at least Historic Philadelphia, is much like Gettysburg in that people are visiting from across the country and world. Being the Chatty Cathy I am, I always strike up conversations with those around me. A family from Virginia, two women from California visiting the East Coast on a history road trip, and a visitor in the Museum of the American Revolution whose ancestor had served in Vermont’s Green Mountain Boys are just some of the figures I met along the way. I texted a relative with some photos and mentioned a close, late family member of ours who lived outside Philadelphia for much of her life. This person was a public school teacher for decades and took her classes to Independence Hall and the environs many times over the years.
I didn’t go in, but the line for Liberty Bell was long, which was great to see. I was especially moved by the archeological site that is now President’s House. To be there for part of Memorial Day Weekend was even more meaningful. When I got home in the early evening I texted a friend who is a retired NPS ranger here in the city and asked if he knew any of the backstory regarding that project. He did, and gave me a few insights. The memory of the Revolutionary War is fascinating and surprisingly understudied. I struck up a conversation with two of the extraordinary staff at the MOAR about the historiography of Philadelphia at the local level. They recommended a few titles, but we came to the consensus that the corpus of scholarship on Philadelphia itself is surprisingly thin.
Wherever you are, go get a little history on this weekend that kicks off the unofficial start of summer.
The Strawfoot 
You noted the lack of writings about Philadelphia. I recently completed Aaron Sullivan’s The Disaffected, and highly recommend it. It discussed the British occupation of Philadelphia. I also love heading there on a day’s trip (usually by bus which leave you only a few blocks from the historic district). MOAR is an amazing gem.
Lynne, thanks for the recommendation. I’ll look into it. Yesterday I ordered a copy of George W. Boudreau’s “Independence: A Guide to Historic Philadelphia,” which should arrive tomorrow. Yes, the MOAR is a true gem. The people there recommended a used bookstore around the corner from the museum near Christ Church called The Book Trader. I did not have time to visit it, but intend to when I return later in the summer.
So now that I have sung MOAR’s praises, I’ll share my one “issue” with it: in the Battle of Brooklyn “room”, the wall and floor maps show the current Governors Island, which as a tour guide there, shocked me that they would get it so wrong. 😦
Wow. I didn’t notice that.
The story of the Battle of Brooklyn is surprisingly undertold. I’m hoping to rectify that during the upcoming 250th.
You volunteer as a guide at MOAR?