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Washington Square (Philadelphia)
Washington Square, originally designated in 1682 as Southeast Square, is a open-space park in Center City, Philadelphia, The southeast quadrant and one of the five original planned squares laid out on the city grid by William Penn's surveyor, Thomas Holme. It is part of both the Washington Square West and Society Hill neighborhoods. In 2005, the National Park Service took over ownership and management of Washington Square, through an easement from the City of Philadelphia. It is now part of Independence National Historical Park. History By the early 18th century the square started being used as a burial ground. Originally divided into triangles by two creeks, the northwestern portion was the potter's field, and the southeastern section was for the burial of Catholics. The joining of the creeks created a fishing pond, and the grounds were commonly used for grazing by neighbors' cows. In 1776, it became the final resting place for Washington's fallen soldiers. Long mass ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Walnut Street (Philadelphia)
Walnut Street is located in Center City, Philadelphia, Center City Philadelphia and extends to the Delaware River waterfront and West Philadelphia. Walnut Street has been characterized as "the city's premier shopping district" by ''The Philadelphia Inquirer''. A portion of the street commonly called Rittenhouse Square, Rittenhouse Row was ranked 12th in 2005 by ''Women's Wear Daily'' among its list of the most expensive retail streets in North America, with rents of $90 per square foot. The street is home to several "upscale dining, retail and cultural" establishments. In 2013, rents rose to an average of $107 a foot, a growth of 34% over 2012 and the largest percentage growth of any retail corridor in the country. Route description Walnut Street is most known for Rittenhouse Square Park and its luxury goods, upscale shopping district in the high-end neighborhood of the same name. The majority of designer clothing, designer and fast fashion stores located on Walnut Street ar ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
1793 Philadelphia Yellow Fever Epidemic
During the 1793 yellow fever epidemic in Philadelphia, 5,000 or more people were listed in the register of deaths between August 1st and November 9th. The vast majority of them died of yellow fever, making the epidemic in the city of 50,000 people one of the most severe in United States history. By the end of September, 20,000 people had fled the city, including congressional and executive officials of the federal government. Most did not return until after the epidemic had abated in late November. The mortality rate peaked in October before frost finally killed the mosquitoes and brought an end to the outbreak. Doctors tried a variety of treatments but knew neither the origin of the fever nor that the disease was transmitted by mosquitoes (this information was not verified until the late 19th century). The mayor and a committee of two dozen organized a fever hospital at Bush Hill and other crisis measures. The assistance of the Free African Society was requested by the city an ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Apollo 14
Apollo 14 (January 31February 9, 1971) was the eighth crewed mission in the United States Apollo program, the third to Moon landing, land on the Moon, and the first to land in the Geology of the Moon#Highlands, lunar highlands. It was the last of the "List of Apollo missions#Alphabetical mission types, H missions", landings at specific sites of scientific interest on the Moon for two-day stays with two lunar extravehicular activities (EVAs or moonwalks). The mission was originally scheduled for 1970, but was postponed because of the investigation following the failure of Apollo 13 to reach the Moon's surface, and the need for modifications to the spacecraft as a result. Commander Alan Shepard, Command Module Pilot Stuart Roosa, and Lunar Module Pilot Edgar Mitchell launched on their nine-day mission on Sunday, January 31, 1971, at 4:03:02 p.m. Eastern Time Zone, EST. En route to the lunar landing, the crew overcame malfunctions that might have resulted in a second consecu ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Stuart Roosa
Stuart Allen Roosa (August 16, 1933 – December 12, 1994) was an American aeronautical engineer, smokejumper, United States Air Force pilot, test pilot, and NASA astronaut, who was the Command Module Pilot for the Apollo 14 mission. The mission lasted from January 31 to February 9, 1971, and was the third mission to land astronauts ( Alan Shepard and Edgar Mitchell) on the Moon. While Shepard and Mitchell spent two days on the lunar surface, Roosa conducted experiments from orbit in the Command Module ''Kitty Hawk''. He was one of 24 men to travel to the Moon, which he orbited 34 times. Biography Early life and education Roosa was born on August 16, 1933, in Durango, Colorado, to parents Dewey Roosa (1903–1988) and Lorine Roosa (; 1908–1993) and grew up in Claremore, Oklahoma. He attended Justus Grade School and Claremore High School in Claremore, Oklahoma, from which he graduated in 1951. Thereafter, he studied at Oklahoma State University and the University of Ar ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sycamore
Sycamore is a name which has been applied to several types of trees, but with somewhat similar leaf forms. The name derives from the Ancient Greek () meaning . Species of otherwise unrelated trees known as sycamore: * ''Acer pseudoplatanus'', a species of maple native to central Europe and southwestern Asia * ''Ficus sycomorus'', the sycamore (or sycomore) of the Bible; a species of fig, also called the sycamore fig or fig-mulberry, native to the Middle East and eastern Africa * '' Platanus orientalis'', chinar tree (Old World sycamore) * Some North American members of the genus ''Platanus ''Platanus'' ( ) is a genus consisting of a small number of tree species native to the Northern Hemisphere. They are the sole living members of the family Platanaceae. All mature members of ''Platanus'' are tall, reaching in height. The type ...'', including ** '' Platanus occidentalis'', the American sycamore ** '' Platanus racemosa'', the California sycamore or western sycamore ** '' ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bicentennial Moon Tree
__NOTOC__ A bicentennial or bicentenary is the two-hundredth anniversary of a part, or the celebrations thereof. It may refer to: Europe * French Revolution bicentennial, commemorating the 200th anniversary of 14 July 1789 uprising, celebrated in 1989 * Bicentennial of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, 2013–2015 United States * Columbia University Bicentennial, the 200th anniversary of the founding of Columbia University, celebrated in 1954 * George Washington Bicentennial, commemorating the 200th birthday of the United States' first president, celebrated in 1932 * United States Bicentennial, the 200th anniversary of the adoption of the Declaration of Independence, celebrated in 1976 * Abraham Lincoln Bicentennial, commemorating the 200th birthday of the United States' 16th president, celebrated in 2009 * Los Angeles Bicentennial, commemorating the 200th anniversary of the founding of Los Angeles by Spanish settlers, celebrated from 1980-1981 Latin America *Argentina Bicent ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
George Washington (Houdon)
''George Washington'' is a statue by the French sculptor Jean-Antoine Houdon from the late 18th century. Based on a life mask and other measurements of George Washington taken by Houdon, it is considered one of the most accurate depictions of the subject. The original sculpture is located in the rotunda of the Virginia State Capitol in Richmond, Virginia, and it has been copied extensively, with one copy standing in the United States Capitol Rotunda. The date given for the sculpture varies. It was commissioned by the Virginia General Assembly in 1784, begun in 1785, signed "1788", completed in 1791 or 1792, and delivered in 1796. Description The original statue is carved from Carrara marble, weighing 18 tons. It depicts a standing life-sized Washington. In his right hand is a cane, his left arm rests on a fasces on which is slung his cape and sword, and at the back is a plow. He is shown wearing his military uniform, as Washington wished to be depicted in contemporary attir ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Jean Antoine Houdon
Jean-Antoine, chevalier Houdon (; 20 March 1741 – 15 July 1828) was a French neoclassical sculptor. Houdon is famous for his portrait busts and statues of philosophers, inventors and political figures of the Enlightenment. Houdon's subjects included Denis Diderot (1771), Benjamin Franklin (1778-1809), Jean-Jacques Rousseau (1778), Voltaire (1781), Molière (1781), George Washington (1785–1788), Thomas Jefferson (1789), Louis XVI (1790), Robert Fulton (1803–04), and Napoléon Bonaparte (1806). Biography Houdon was born in Versailles, on 20 March 1741. In 1752, he entered the Académie royale de peinture et de sculpture, where he studied with René-Michel Slodtz, Jean-Baptiste Lemoyne, and Jean-Baptiste Pigalle. From 1761 to 1764, he studied at the École royale des élèves protégés. Houdon won the Prix de Rome in 1761, but was not greatly influenced by ancient and Renaissance art in Rome. His stay in the city is marked by two characteristic and important productions ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
American Revolutionary War
The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was the armed conflict that comprised the final eight years of the broader American Revolution, in which American Patriot (American Revolution), Patriot forces organized as the Continental Army and commanded by George Washington defeated the British Army during the American Revolutionary War, British Army. The conflict was fought in North America, the Caribbean, and the Atlantic Ocean. The war's outcome seemed uncertain for most of the war. However, Washington and the Continental Army's decisive victory in the Siege of Yorktown in 1781 led King George III and the Kingdom of Great Britain to negotiate an end to the war in the Treaty of Paris (1783), Treaty of Paris two years later, in 1783, in which the British monarchy acknowledged the independence of the Thirteen Colonies, leading to the establishment of the United States as an independent and ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Washington Grays Monument
''Washington Grays Monument'', also known as the Pennsylvania Volunteer, is a bronze statue by John A. Wilson. The monument represents the Washington Grays who served in the 17th, 21st and 49th Pennsylvania Militia during the American Civil War. In 1925, almost 20 years after the sculpture was made, renowned sculptor and art historian Lorado Taft wrote, "No American sculpture has surpassed the compelling power which John A. Wilson put into his steady, motionless 'Pennsylvania Volunteer'." Joseph Wilson built the base of the monument which was unveiled on April 19, 1872. Over 35 years later John Wilson sculpted the bronze statue, which was dedicated on April 18, 1908 at Washington Square, and rededicated June 14, 1991 at its present location in front of the Union League of Philadelphia, 140 South Broad Street, in Center City, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The sculpture is positioned adjacent to the sculpture 1st Regiment Infantry National Guard of Philadelphia. History On ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
American Civil War
The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of America, Confederacy ("the South"), which was formed in 1861 by U.S. state, states that had Secession in the United States, seceded from the Union. The Origins of the American Civil War, central conflict leading to war was a dispute over whether Slavery in the United States, slavery should be permitted to expand into the western territories, leading to more slave states, or be prohibited from doing so, which many believed would place slavery on a course of ultimate extinction. Timeline of events leading to the American Civil War, Decades of controversy over slavery came to a head when Abraham Lincoln, who opposed slavery's expansion, won the 1860 presidential election. Seven Southern slave states responded to Lincoln's victory by seceding f ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
