A Philadelphia Story. Lori Litchman

      AUTHOR’S NOTE

      PHILADELPHIA IS QUITE POSSIBLY my first true love.

      I was not born here. I came to the city as a teenager when I attended a summer program at the University of Pennsylvania. I was a country bumpkin, having grown up in rural Pennsylvania. The city wooed me instantly with its immediacy of services and amenities, but it was the character of Philadelphia that hooked me. I grew up in a hardscrabble place, and Philadelphia had that same vibe. I could feel the love and work that went into the making of the city. I was head over heels in an instant.

      I knew I had to go to college in Philadelphia. The following year, I started as a freshman at La Salle University, nestled in the Germantown section of the city. So began my decades-long love affair with Philadelphia. I truly love my city, and, as in any relationship, we have had our ups and downs. I actually wrote my MFA thesis about finding nature in Philadelphia, a feat that is easy to do, given the foundation of the city as William Penn’s “greene countrie towne.”

      When offered the opportunity to write about Philadelphia’s founders and famous families and their contributions to the city, I jumped at the chance. My research method included using what I already knew about Philadelphia and adding to that by spending a year researching and learning more. This book is not an academic text, nor is it your typical history book. I like to think of it as history for the modern reader: You can read it from start to finish, or you can flip around throughout to read short bits. It is a series of snapshots about the founders and families and how those people contributed to the firsts that helped make Philadelphia the city that it has become. And it is arranged thematically rather than chronologically, looking at how the city was shaped through areas like health, law, music, sports, and other facets of society.

      I spent countless hours researching everything I could about the city and its people. Inevitably, I had to leave things out, else the book would end up a tome. Nevertheless, this is a work of nonfiction. Everything is real and fact-based.

      As a resident of the city for decades, I’m keenly aware that Philadelphia is not without its problems—no major city is. However, I have consciously chosen not to emphasize political scandals, corruption, or other negative pieces of Philadelphia’s history. You can find plenty about those things on your own. Rather, this book is meant to be a love story, because in times of love, the city has shone brightly. And as the city undergoes a renaissance, it’s a great time to be a Philadelphian and to visit the birthplace of our nation. I hope that you find Philadelphia as charming as I do—and that you fall in love with her, too.

      —Lori Litchman

      CONTENTS