Frankford Community Blog | Local News, Events, Community Resources
The surprises of a Christmas stocking are the perfect analogy for the fruits of historical research. Retired archivist and history librarian Gail McCormick shares memories of Christmas past discovered in her research on Frankford’s Swedenborgian Church and families – many of whom are founding members of The Historical Society of Frankford.
A great presentation with high quality production values.
The regularly scheduled program of the Historical Society of Frankford for October 11, 2022 will feature a review of the history of the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania, the Court’s contemporary work, and the role of state supreme courts generally in our federalist system, This program commemorates the tricentennial of the Supreme Court that occurred on May 22, 2022. The speakers are attorney Chip Becker of Kline & Specter, P.C. and Debbie Gross, Executive Director of Pennsylvanians for Modern Courts.
The meeting is open to the public at the Society building at 1507 Orthodox Street at 7:30 PM. In addition it will be live streamed on their Facebook page and available on YouTube live.
The program of the Historical Society of Frankford for September 13, 2022, will be presented by Alex Palma, Assistant Curator at the Carpenters Company of Philadelphia. The topic is “The History of the Carpenters Company and the Built Environment in Philadelphia.” The Carpenters Company, founded in 1770, is itself one of the most historic sites in the City. It’s members shaped the local built environment, including in Frankford, and also helped to shape the development of skilled trades locally.
The meeting is open to the public at the Society building at 1507 Orthodox Street at 7:30 PM. In addition it will be live streamed on their Facebook page and available on YouTube live.
The April program of the Historical Society of Frankford will be a celebration of the centennial of the Ferko String Band.
The meeting will be presented with a live audience, with masking and social distancing, and will also be shared remotely by way of YouTube and Facebook. That’s at 7:30 pm at the Society, 1507 Orthodox Street, on April 12. There is no charge, though contributions are welcome.
Ferko Captain Anthony Calenza will lead a group of veteran string band performers for a quick trot through the distinguished record of one of the most celebrated Mummer string bands. A moment of delight during a troublesome time.
The Historical Society of Frankford (HSoF) will present its September program, live-streamed on Facebook and YouTube, at 7:30 pm on September 14, 2021.
John Buffington will discuss some of the current activities at HSoF, and then read a paper, “The History of the Dummy Car,” by Thomas Creighton, first delivered to the Society on January 28, 1916. Dummy cars were self-propelled, powered by steam engines, and they replaced horse-drawn street cars for transportation between Frankford and Philadelphia in 1863. They served that purpose until they were replaced by electric trolleys in 1893. Thomas Creighton had first-hand recollections of the dummy cars in operation, and also collected stories from the operators.
This program will remain available as a video on both Facebook and YouTube indefinitely.
