The Greater Philadelphia Roundtable: Tourism has become increasingly important to Greater Philadelphia’s economy, generating in one year 36 million visitors and $8 billion in economic impact, while supporting 83,000 jobs. In this discussion, take a look behind the campaigns that promote Philadelphia to the region, the nation, and the world. The discussion will be moderated by Charlene Mires of the Mid-Atlantic Regional Center for the Humanities at Rutgers-Camden with panelists including Richardson Dilworth of Drexel University, Meryl Levitz of the Greater Philadelphia Tourism Marketing Corporation, and Bob Skiba of the Association of Philadelphia Tour Guides. Program co-sponsors include the Greater Philadelphia Tourism Marketing Corporation.

Location: Independence Visitor Center, 6th and Market Sts., Philadelphia

The Greater Philadelphia Roundtable: Philadelphia’s strong tradition of neighborhood distinctiveness has lasting power and deep roots.  In this culmination of the series, we look at the foundations of community experience. How do neighborhood ties unite and sometimes divide us? Across neighborhood boundaries, how do we form the common bonds of civic life?  This panel will be moderated by Carolyn Adams of Temple University with panelists including Linn Washington of Temple University, Domenic Vitiello of the University of Pennsylvania, and Thoai Nguyen of SEAMAAC, and Louis Massiah of Scribe Video.  Program co-sponsors include the Philadelphia History Museum and SEAMAAC.

Location: Philadelphia History Museum at the Atwater Kent

Explore the many neighborhoods of Philadelphia and the diversity of people who have lived and worked in the City through artifacts and documents.  This workshop is presented by the Education Consortium of The Encyclopedia of Greater Philadelphia, including the Historical Society of Pennsylvania, the Philadelphia History Museum, the National Constitution Center, the National Archives in Philadelphia, and Independence National Historical Park. Watch this space for registration details.

Location: Philadelphia History Museum at the Atwater Kent, 15 S. Seventh St., Philadelphia

The Fredric M. Miller Memorial Lecture on Public History

Reflecting on a 40-year career teaching and writing, Encyclopedia of Greater Philadelphia co-editor and Rutgers historian Howard Gillette will address the ways history can and should be employed as a central tool in renewing civil well-being and advancing social justice.

The annual Miller Lecture on public history honors Fredric M. Miller, whose curatorship of the Urban Archives at Temple University and dedication to the archives profession created resources of enduring value for scholars and the public, especially in Philadelphia and Washington, D.C.  Howard  Gillette is Professor of History at Rutgers University in Camden and a founding director of the Mid-Atlantic Regional Center for the Humanities (MARCH).  This year’s lecture marks his retirement  from the faculty at Rutgers-Camden.

For more information and to register for this event, which is free and open to the public, visit the web site http://miller2011.eventbrite.com.  Rutgers-Camden is easily reached by public transportation, and limited parking will be available on campus.

Location: Rutgers-Camden, Campus Center

The Green Country Town

William Penn envisioned Philadelphia as a “green country town” with large, spacious lots stretching from the Delaware River to the Schuylkill. From this foundation, how did the city evolve and how have public spaces shaped our history? This panel was moderated by Drew Becher of the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society with panelists including Inga Saffron of the Philadelphia Inquirer, Eugenie Birch of the University of Pennsylvania, and Pete Hoskins of Laurel Hill Cemetery.

The Greater Philadelphia Roundtable is a partnership of The Encyclopedia of Greater Philadelphia and the Historical Society of Pennsylvania, presented in cooperation with numerous civic partners.  This program has been supported in part by the Pennsylvania Humanities Council and the National Endowment for the Humanities’ We the People initiative on American history.

Series co-sponsors:  Young Involved Philadelphia, WHYY, the Friends of Independence, the City of Philadelphia Mural Arts Program, the Greater Philadelphia Tourism Marketing Corporation, Philadelphia Media Network, Philadelphia History Museum at the Atwater Kent, Neighborhood Interfaith Movement, Mid-Atlantic Regional Center for the Humanities.

Program co-sponsors: Pennsylvania Horticultural Society, Friends of Laurel Hill Cemetery, and the Academy of Natural Sciences.

Location: Pennsylvania Horticultural Society, 100 N. 20th St., Philadelphia

The Greater Philadelphia Roundtable: “Athens of America” and “Athens of the Western World” emerged in the early 1800s as references to Philadelphia’s dominance in arts and culture. This discussion focused on Philadelphia as a cultural center, especially in the visual arts. This panel was moderated by Kim Sajet of the Historical Society of Pennsylvania with panelists Alexandra Kirtley of the Philadelphia Museum of Art, Carmen Febo San Miguel of Taller Puertorriqueno, and David Brownlee of the University of Pennsylvania. Program co-sponsors included the Philadelphia Museum of Art and Taller Puertorriqueno.

Read the summary of this discussion.

The Greater Philadelphia Roundtable is a partnership of The Encyclopedia of Greater Philadelphia and the Historical Society of Pennsylvania, presented in cooperation with numerous civic partners. This program has been supported in part by the Pennsylvania Humanities Council and the National Endowment for the Humanities’ We the People initiative on American history.

Series co-sponsors: Young Involved Philadelphia, the Friends of Independence, WHYY, the City of Philadelphia Mural Arts Program, the Greater Philadelphia Tourism Marketing Corporation, Philadelphia Media Network, Philadelphia History Museum at the Atwater Kent, Neighborhood Interfaith Movement, Mid-Atlantic Regional Center for the Humanities.

Location: Philadelphia Museum of Art

The Encyclopedia team has organized two sessions for the Mid-Atlantic Popular/American Culture Conference, which meets in Philadelphia Nov. 3-5.:

• Who Do We Think We Are? Philadelphia’s Civic Identity, Friday, Nov. 4, 10:30-11:45 a.m. (note time change!), featuring three of the Encyclopedia’s theme essayists: Chris Satullo, “City of Brotherly Love”; Walter Licht, “Workshop of the World”; and Richardson Dilworth, “Philadelphia, the Place That Loves You Back.”
• Help Plan the Popular Culture Contents for The Encyclopedia of Greater Philadelphia, Friday, Nov. 4, 12 noon to 1:15 p.m. (note time change!). The Encyclopedia editors will invite this gathering of popular culture experts to help shape the table of contents for this area of the project.

Please note that a registration fee is required to attend this conference, which features many sessions on Philadelphia topics.  For information and to register, go to http://www.mapaca.net/confer/conferHome.html.

Location: Radisson Warwick Hotel, 220 S. 17th Street, Philadelphia

In the 1800s Philadelphia became an industrial powerhouse.  Learn more about its industries and the people who worked in them and consider new ways to introduce the topics to students.   The program will include an opportunity to get up close with rarely exhibited artifacts and documents from consortia partnering organizations and to discuss with peers creative and relevant means of including industrialization in your curriculum.

Building upon the Phrasing Philadelphia Roundtable series, the workshop is sponsored by The Encyclopedia of Greater  Philadelphia in partnership with the Historical Society of Pennsylvania  and colleague institutions the Philadelphia History Museum at the Atwater Kent, National Constitution Center, National Archives at Philadelphia, and Independence National Historical Park.  The workshop is open to teachers and pre-service students; three credits of ACT 48 will be provided.  Workshop participants also will receive a CD with a bibliography, images of documents and artifacts used in the workshop, and links to related resources.  Workshop is free but limited to 40 participants.  Light refreshments will be served.

To register, visit the Historical Society of Pennsylvania calendar of events,  http://www.hsp.org/node/2311.

Location: Historical Society of Pennsylvania, 1300 Locust Street, Philadelphia

The Greater Philadelphia Roundtable: In The Shame of the Cities (1904), journalist Lincoln Steffens famously dubbed Philadelphia “corrupt and contented.” How and why did Philadelphia gain this reputation, and how have scandals come to light? This program featured a discussion among panelists oward Gillette of Rutgers-Camden, David Thornburgh of the Fels Institute of Government, and Monica Yant Kinney of The Philadelphia Inquirer. Philadelphia Media Network hosted the program at its headquarters at 400 N. Broad Street with co-sponsors including the Fels Institute of Government.

The Greater Philadelphia Roundtable is a partnership of The Encyclopedia of Greater Philadelphia and the Historical Society of Pennsylvania, presented in cooperation with numerous civic partners. This program has been supported in part by the Pennsylvania Humanities Council and the National Endowment for the Humanities’ We the People initiative on American history.

Series co-sponsors: Young Involved Philadelphia, the Friends of Independence, WHYY, the City of Philadelphia Mural Arts Program, the Greater Philadelphia Tourism Marketing Corporation, Philadelphia Media Network, Philadelphia History Museum at the Atwater Kent, Neighborhood Interfaith Movement, Mid-Atlantic Regional Center for the Humanities.

Location: Philadelphia Media Network Headquarters, Community Room, 400 N. Broad Street, Philadelphia

Philadelphians have claimed the title “City of Firsts” for achievements such as the first hospital in America and the first municipal water system. This discussion focuses on innovation, especially in science and technology. Moderated by Babak Ashrafi of the Philadelphia Area Center for History of Science with panelists including Michael Zuckerman of the University of Pennsylvania; Steven Peitzman of the Drexel University College of Medicine; and Grover Silcox of WLVT PBS39. Program co-sponsors include the Philadelphia Area Center for History of Science, the Franklin Institute, and the Academy of Natural Sciences.

The program will take place in the Harcourt Room.  Enter through the Business Entrance on 20th Street (to the right of the main front steps).  Validated parking will be available at the discounted rate of $6.  The parking entrance is on 21st Street between Race and Winter Streets.

The Greater Philadelphia Roundtable is a partnership of The Encyclopedia of Greater Philadelphia and the Historical Society of Pennsylvania, presented in cooperation with numerous civic partners. This program has been supported in part by the Pennsylvania Humanities Council and the National Endowment for the Humanities’ We the People initiative on American history.

Series co-sponsors: Young Involved Philadelphia, the Friends of Independence, WHYY, the City of Philadelphia Mural Arts Program, the Greater Philadelphia Tourism Marketing Corporation, Philadelphia Media Network, Philadelphia History Museum at the Atwater Kent, Neighborhood Interfaith Movement, Mid-Atlantic Regional Center for the Humanities.

Location: Franklin Institute, 222 N. 20th St., Philadelphia