Philly needs a history trail | Morning Newsletter
🏀76ers’ season ends
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Got a lot of good reading recommendations for you today. First is columnist Stephanie Farr’s case for a way to help tourists understand Philly’s history better.
Sadly, the 76ers lost to the Knicks last night ending their way-too-short 2024 playoff appearance in front of a home crowd. As the goddaughter of someone who played for the Knicks, watching this close series night after night at home in Philly has been ... emotional. Our columnist David Murphy called the game “epic” with lopsided officiating that favored the Knicks.
And this one’s so fascinating. What really went on inside the jury deliberations that led to a mistrial last week in Johnny Doc’s extortion trial? A juror spoke with reporters Jeremy Roebuck and Oona Goodin-Smith to give a glimpse inside the jury’s private discussions, where all but one of the jurors were ready to acquit. You just can’t get access like this anywhere but The Philadelphia Inquirer.
— Ashley Hoffman (@_AshleyHoffman, morningnewsletter@inquirer.com)
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Never thought I’d say it, but we’re talking about something Boston does better than us today. It’s Beantown’s very excellent Freedom Trail that snakes around 16 historic sites that led columnist Stephanie Farr to pen this call to action after her visit:
“Philadelphia needs to make it easier for tourists to experience our history and our people, so outsiders can understand why we love it here, and we can bask in their envy,” columnist Stephanie Farr writes. She’s crowdsourcing ideas for names for a trail of our own that include a Bruce Springsteen reference if you have any ideas.
Along Boston’s Freedom Trail, Farr meets all manner of characters including but not limited to a man spinning around on a contraption he dubbed the “Peace Wave Generator” and a woman playing a long glass “armonica,” which Ben Franklin invented. Shout out to that guy. Speaking of Franklin, a run-in at Wawa with a reenactor of the double-spectacled innovator is one of the many reasons Farr is so high on Philly.
“I love Philly, probably to a degree that’s unhealthy, because it will break your heart in many ways, many times. Yet it remains my favorite U.S. city because of the experiences, people, and history that surround us here,” she writes.
With America’s 250th birthday and the World Cup coming up soon, Farr makes the case that now more than ever, we need a trail of Philly’s own.
What you should know today
Inside the jury deliberations of Johnny Doc’s extortion case, one lone holdout stood her ground grinding the panel’s discussions to a standstill and eventually forcing a mistrial in the case, according to a member of the jury we spoke with.
A Pennsylvania nurse who administered lethal or potentially lethal doses of insulin was sentenced to life in prison.
The body of a 70-year-old kayaker who went missing Monday after he started a fishing trip in the Schuylkill in Upper Merion Township was found Thursday night.
Despite an amazing comeback from a 22-point first-quarter deficit, the Sixers came up short Thursday night in the do-or-die Game 6 of the first-round playoff series against the Knicks, ending their season to the dismay of fans at the Wells Fargo Center.
There’s a new hub offering a step-by-step guide to becoming a teacher in Pennsylvania.
Ala Stanford and Howard Reid propose a three-pronged approach to address health-care disparities.
The heartwarming encounters of a man who deigned to wear a Pittsburgh Pirates hat around Philly might surprise you.
What is divestment and why are Penn students demanding it?
Welcome back to Curious Philly Friday. We’ll feature both new and timeless stories from our forum for readers to ask about the city’s quirks.
This week, we’re resurfacing an explainer from 2019 on how Philadelphia’s tree-named streets — Spruce, Pine, Walnut, etc. — got that way.
Was it planned? Coincidental? The story with all the history and a plan on a scroll can serve as an icebreaker that can make or break how your social life goes this weekend. Reading it, I also learned about the differences between hardwood and softwood. Here’s the full explanation.
Have your own burning question about Philadelphia, its local oddities, or how the region works? Submit it here and you might find the answer featured in this space.
🧠 Trivia time
Who composed music for Ben Franklin’s armonica invention?
A) Schubert
B) Beethoven
C) Both Mozart and Beethoven
D) Mozart
Think you know? Check your answer.
🧩 Unscramble the anagram
A baller who played for the 76ers.
Hint: The nickname rhymes with kelly green.
ABBY JOELYNN LEARJET
Email us if you know the answer. We’ll select a reader at random to shout out here. Cheers to Charlene M. Wiltshire who correctly guessed Thursday’s answer: Art Institutes.
Photo of the day
Enjoy your weekend. Today, I’ll have the pleasure of speaking about The Inquirer’s inbox journalism on a panel with expert Dan Oshinsky at the Newsletter Conference. And Saturday I finally try Vetri. Apparently, the spot has still got it, per Monsieur LaBan. Thanks for the recommendation in Thursday’s newsletter, Julie! Then Sunday, I’m headed to the Greek Isles. Tell us your fun weekend plans!
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