Category: Uncategorized

There was no shortage of bad advice in colonial times, particularly when it came to medical care. Medical cures in the colonial era often seem hard to stomach for modern readers. Listed below are three cringeworthy cures from the 17th and 18th century. 

1. Stomach ache? Eat some lead! One Mrs. Joseph Meader was assured by her local physician that swallowing leaded bullets would relieve the pain in her gut. Some doctors believed the heavy lead from bullets could expel intestinal blockages. According to a letter from 1724, this treatment reportedly worked, but the account is highly suspicious. With no medical schools or public hospitals, it was difficult for colonists to distinguish qualified medical professionals from charlatans.

2. Keep your eyes peeled! Given the gruesome treatment prescribed to Mrs. Meader it’s no wonder many colonists took medical care into their own hands. One popular theory relied on little more than a person’s eyes to guide medical practice. Sympathetic medicine was the idea that a plant’s outward appearance could signal its medical use. Given their resemblance to the human skull, walnuts were considered a cure for cranial ailments while saffron was given to a patient sallow with jaundice.

3. When in doubt, drain some blood! Galenic or humoral medicine was in direct contrast to sympathetic medicine. Followers of this ancient theory believed the body was divided into four humors, each defined by a quality: hot, cold, wet, and dry. All illnesses allegedly resulted from an imbalance in these humors. According to Galenic medicine, the warm and searing pain of a fresh burn could be contracted with “snow water”, aka melted ice. While this may seem like good advice, galenic medicine also recommended blood letting to relieve the body of excess heat and inflammation. 

For more fun facts, keep reading our blog.

Sources:

 Gifford , George E. “Botanic Remedies in Colonial Massachusetts, 1620–1820.” Medicine in Colonial Massachusetts 1620-1820 , 1980. https://www.colonialsociety.org/node/1215.

Markham, Gervase. The English Housewife. Edited by Micheal R. Best. McGill-Queen’s University Press, 1986.

Shryock, Richard Harrison. Eighteenth Century Medicine in America. Worcester.: American Antiquarian Society, 1950.

I can’t tell you how many times a visitor has said to me, “I remember coming here when I was in fourth grade!” And you know what? It never gets old! Every time I hear that statement I am reminded of how much we here at Pennsbury Manor have to celebrate during National Teachers Week. Behind every student who ever came to Pennsbury Manor on a field trip is a teacher who worked to make that memory possible.

Every spring, our buildings and grounds come to life with the hustle and bustle of school tours. This is a yearly occurrence that dates back to Pennsbury Manor’s early days as a museum. And while our educational programs have changed and evolved over the last seventy-five years, one thing remains the same – the passion and dedication of the teachers who bring their students here each year. As the Education Program Coordinator, it is my great pleasure to talk with our teachers and help them plan their fieldtrips. Along the way, I find out what it is about our program that brings them back each year.

Elementary school teachers are tasked with teaching state history to our youngest Pennsylvanians in a fun, interactive way. That is what brings Heather Ryan, a fourth grade teacher at Oxford Valley Elementary School, to Pennsbury Manor each spring. On our annual William Penn Day, Heather’s students learn about the founding of our Commonwealth while participating in hands-on activities and living history demonstrations at their own pace. They can even catch a glimpse of Governor Penn himself! Heather says, “Pennsbury Manor is an amazing opportunity to bring history to life! Every year our fourth graders love this field trip. The interactive experiences provide an open window into the world of William Penn. Our students always express excitement when they hear and see everything they have learned about colonial life and William Penn. In addition, it is a great all inclusive trip that is easily coordinated! We plan to continue our field trips to Pennsbury Manor for many years!”

But the story we tell is also meaningful to those students who live beyond our state borders. Dr. Ed Kennedy, Principal of Seely Place School, brings his students to Pennsbury Manor all the way from Scarsdale, New York as part of a three night trip to Philadelphia: “We have been taking our fifth grade students to Pennsbury Manor for the last fifteen years because the staff is able to present interactive sessions that are informative, meaningful, and fun. During the day long visit the children learn about colonial life and how different it was from present day comforts.” Dr. Kennedy’s students participate in our “By-the-Day” program, meaning they are the only school group on site that day. This enables them to customize their schedule. During their program, the students learn about William Penn and his legacy, but they also catch a glimpse of the world in which he lived by participating in activities on colonial medicine, cooking, and daily chores.

It is always a delight to talk with teachers who have been coming here for years. But it is also exciting to witness teachers experience Pennsbury Manor with their students for the first time. I saw that excitement in the eyes of Betsy Rizza, Erik Hove, and Margie Gibson, third grade teachers from Princeton Day School in New Jersey. The third grade team, who brought their students to Pennsbury Manor for the first time last fall, sent in this poetic contribution:

“Crackling fire, the aroma of the bubbling soup
The chores to be done in the worker’s cottage
and the garden. The animals to meet.
The winding wooden staircase in the Manor House
The river flowing by ~
The Delaware has seen it all.  

Our third graders returned to school with a real sense of this part of William Penn’s world. We were amazed by the discussions that followed our field trip and their wonderful “point of view” journal entries! Our teachers and parents learned as much as our children.

William Penn should know that Pennsbury Manor is in the good hands of caring, committed and knowledgeable educators, thanks to the Pennsbury Manor team. So helpful in the planning stages and so welcoming when we arrived. We look forward to our return next fall!”

As I write this post, I think about you, the reader, and your relationship to Pennsbury Manor. You might be one of those visitors who fell in love with history on a fourth grade fieldtrip. You could be a parent or guardian whose child excitedly told you about his recent experience writing with a quill pen. Finally, I hope some of you are teachers, the ones who strive to give your students the best educational experience, whether it is in the classroom or on a fieldtrip. To the teachers, we say thank you and Happy Teacher Appreciation Week!

If you have memories of Pennsbury Manor as a student or a teacher, tell us! We want to hear about your fieldtrip memories.

Danielle Lehr
Education Program Coordinator

This week we honor our volunteers; an integral part of Pennsbury Manor. Volunteers have had a tremendous impact on the site from the moment this program was first started. Our program currently consists of approximately 190 volunteers with diverse backgrounds and interests. We have history buffs, retirees, families, interns, people who love crafts, and many more! As volunteer programs go, we have a unique program where we offer volunteers a custom experience. They choose their schedule and what activities they want to pursue to help at a site that tells a very important story in our nation’s history. The average total number of hours put in by volunteers over the past few years is around 13,500 hours a year! The Pennsbury Manor programs that visitors love do not happen without our volunteers. We are truly grateful to have such a dedicated and passionate group! In honor of Volunteer Week, our volunteers were asked to write a little something about their volunteer experience at Pennsbury and why they volunteer.

A large portion of our program is made up of retried teachers. Many of whom brought their classes here for field trips in the past. One such former-teacher is Bonnie Post: “Growing up in the Gettysburg area helped shape my love of history. As a teacher for over 30 years working with 3rd and 4th grade students helping them to learn what it was like to live in this area over 300 years ago, led me to schedule many field trips to Pennsbury Manor for them to have a “hands on” experience. Always impressed with the educational experience and the professionalism of the tour guides on site, I knew that when I retired, this was something that I would love to do.

This is the start of my 3rd year of volunteering as a tour guide for many school groups that have chosen to visit the site to learn more about Pennsylvania history and William Penn’s colony that helped shape who we are today. I have enjoyed working with the staff at Pennsbury and have always felt welcome and appreciated for the time I spend there. It is important to me to continue to be involved in the many programs and events that have been a part of Pennsbury Manor for many years. Thank you all for being such a supportive group of colleagues and friends!”

Visitors being able to have a “hands on” experience is important to Pennsbury Manor. Many of those experiences are only available to the public because of our volunteer craftspeople. Sundays at Pennsbury and all of our big events rely and focus on our craftspeople. They are a specialized bunch who research, teach, demonstrate, and produce things for visitors to see and even try for themselves. Apprentice beer brewer, Walter Brosz, makes the brewing process of back in Penn’s time relative to visitors today: “While not a new volunteer to Pennsbury, I am relatively new in volunteering for beer brewing. What is important for me is the historical focus in what we do. Our demonstrations are done in the style that beer was made in the 17th Century. There is a focus to base brewing on original 17th Century recipes, descriptions of beer at that time, and specific beer done at Pennsbury in Penn’s time. At a time when local micro-breweries are popular, we offer to our visitors a unique historic insight and learning opportunity.”

Apprentice blacksmith Bob Whalen talked about his experience as a Smithy: “I’m a volunteer at Pennsbury because I love History. I think I always have, and this is why I majored in History at University. Although my career took a different path I am now able to pursue my passion in retirement. The pre-Industrial Revolution Blacksmith was the center of every American community and as such had a big influence on society. The blacksmiths hard work and artistry is evident in all aspects of early American life.  To understand how people lived and worked back then helps if this role is explored and understood. Imparting this information to visitors and watching their eyes light up with understanding is wonderful. Learning to work with iron (steel) and making all sorts of useful and interesting tools and other objects is also a big part of the attraction of blacksmithing. Working with the more experienced smiths has been a great experience filled with camaraderie and mutual interest. Although still only an apprentice blacksmith with two years of training, I enjoy my time and learning experiences at The Pennsbury Manor Smithy and have scheduled workshops out of state this summer to improve my blacksmithing skills and abilities.”

Long time volunteer Karleen Miller has been volunteering at Pennsbury Manor since 1981! Karleen is a member of Pennsbury’s Sewing Group, who make all of the clothing you see the interpreters wearing from scratch! They are a talented group who heavily research and spend countless hours at home and on site sewing, mending, and washing the clothing: “I enjoy being at Pennsbury and learning all the things that have happened since I was there the last. Since I have problems with walking, sewing is one of the few things I am still able to help with. The sewers are a great group of people who I enjoy spending time with. Many are much better at sewing than I am and have produced some very fine pieces of period clothing to be used by our guides.  I mostly mend the period clothing or make leucet cord, to be used as a draw cord in a number of items.”

Another member of the Sewers is Carol Cooper, who began volunteering because of her granddaughter: “My granddaughter, Emma Fleming, volunteered while in high school as a tour guide. During the summer she was a counselor and last summer as an intern. While guiding she heard about the sewing circle and knowing that I love to sew, asked me to join. I was hooked. I enjoy the women who show up on Saturday and share ideas, settle the problems of the world and especially because I learn something every month. I look forward to knitting the fingerless gloves, as I am also a compulsive knitter.”

One of the projects this year for the Sewers is making more fingerless gloves for our volunteers to use during Holly Nights, a candlelit nighttime program held on the first Thursday and Friday of December to kick-off the holiday season. The program features our craftspeople, music, Mummer’s Play, and much more! They will be knitting the gloves using the wool produced by our sheep. We hold two Sheep Shearing programs in May. At those programs, you can see volunteers processing the wool in its multiple stages. Andrea Scherer and her daughter Ann are part of Spinning Group:

“Volunteering at Pennsbury Manor has been a true joy for both me and my daughter. It was her interest in wool spinning that brought us to Pennsbury Manor, so I’m more following her lead than her following mine. We both love helping to care for the animals and have learned a lot about their use on the farm during the late 17^th Century. Volunteering at is great way for children and adults to spend time together and learn about and participate in our community.”

Another mother-daughter duo who volunteer their time during Roleplay Sundays are Cheryl Neas and her daughter Toni Mohn. Cheryl talks about their experience as members of our Living History Theater, who perform short shows on various topics and events that happened in Penn’s colony. Some of the more popular programs are The (Witch) Trial of Margaret Mattson performed at Trick-or-Treats at the Manor in October and The Mummer’s Play performed at Holly Nights.

“I have been volunteering in the roleplay living history program since late 2002, soon after I moved to Bucks County. I had moved here when I got married after living closer to Philadelphia; the volunteer activities I had there were getting tougher to fit in from the longer distance and after a visit to Pennsbury Manor I was interested in spending time here. The roleplay program appealed to me because the evening and weekend times fit my schedule and because, unlike answering phones or filing, it involved work unique to Pennsbury and taught me a lot about local history, and was different enough from my day job in public policy that it would stay fun and not feel too much like work. Since I completed volunteer training in October, my first activity was Holly Nights. I was supposed to make my debut with a small part but the person playing Hannah Penn was running late and since my assigned part was one the play could do without I got switched to Hannah Penn, even though I had to read off the script!

A few years later I had my daughter, which necessitated rearranging my personal time but

after a few months’ “maternity leave” I was happy to come back to Pennsbury. And a few years after THAT, she decided to come with me. Though we joke that her first roleplay appearance was in a program in which I played a pregnant Mary Lofty, this picture is her first official appearance as Letitia Penn, age four in 1682  (with me as Gulielma Penn) on Charter Day 2009. (We had to change the script a bit because four-year-old Toni, beginning to read, objected to Letitia saying “I can’t read a book! I’m only four years old!”) Over the years we have tracked down characters of the appropriate age as she grows, but the most fun for her is Holly Nights. The other picture is last year during Holly Nights, her third as the Ghost of Captain Kidd.”

Our last volunteer story to share comes from Jo-Anne Wilson who does help in multiple

ways. Many of our volunteers, like Jo-Anne, don’t just like to do one thing, and like to try all of what Pennsbury Manor has to offer volunteers: “I was encouraged to be a volunteer by another volunteer when I went to the opening ceremony of the wonderful historical exhibit at Pennsbury Manor. I really love Pennsbury Manor and enjoy being a volunteer. One of the fun things to do is to hand out candy to children for Halloween at Tricks & Treats at the Manor. But I especially like dressing up in Period Clothing for Sheep Shearing Day and Holly Nights. I admire Governor Penn so much for his Holy Experiment and his being a real “Friend” to the Native Americans. Helping Pennsbury’s Gardener with planting seeds in the Kitchen Garden was my first desire to help as a volunteer as well as explaining to the

school children the plants that were grown and their uses in the 17th Century. Whether hosting in the Worker’s Cottage or doing laundry, all my experiences were good ones. Even got my hubby and my little (preschool) grandson to volunteer that first time in the Garden—my grandson could explain all of what I spoke about to his parents once home. My younger granddaughter, Amberlyn, also wants to help with the horse and farm animals one day.”

Thank you to the volunteers who have shared their stories and thank you to all of Pennsbury Manor’s volunteers for everything that you do! You are true “Friends” to the site. Happy Volunteer Week!

By: Dani Gress
Volunteer Coordinator

On March 13, Pennsbury Manor will be hosting Charter Day, a free event open to the public celebrating the 335^th Anniversary of the Pennsylvania Charter. The free event allows visitors to tour the Manor House, observe 17th century craft demonstrations and stroll the forty-three acre site. Many visitors have enjoyed the Charter Day events for years, but aren’t necessarily sure what they are celebrating. On March 4, 1681 the Charter was presented to William Penn, making him the proprietary authority over a tract of land, now known as Pennsylvania. I’m sure you have some questions. Why would the King give William the Charter? What did William do with his newly acquired land? Read on to become a Pennsylvania Charter expert!

The story of the Pennsylvania Charter began on June 24, 1680 when William Penn approached King Charles II requesting land in the new world. The only available plot of land was located, “west of New Jersey, north of Maryland, south of New York.” The area was a tract of land that England had conquered from the Dutch in 1664. On March 4, 1681 William Penn was given the Charter, effectively becoming the proprietary figure of Pennsylvania. This land was in high value, so it is interesting it was gifted to Penn. There are a few positive motives for the King giving Penn the Charter, one being King Charles II’s desire to expand the English empire. Another theory is that the King was interested in sending those “fanatics,” as in the Quakers far, far away to Pennsylvania. Another known reason is William Penn’s father Admiral Sir William Penn was owed a great debt from the King. Penn was required to annually pay the kingdom one-fifth of all the state’s silver and gold, and two beaver skins. Yes, you read that correctly beaver skins. Penn was not given absolute power of the colony; the colonists had to abide by Parliament trade laws and all developed laws were to be sent to the Privy Council within 5 years. Within these perimeters Penn strived to create the religious utopia he dreamed of.

The physical appearance of the Charter itself is just as stunning as the story behind it. The physical Pennsylvania Charter consists of four pages of parchment that measured about 20”x 24”. On the first page, in the top left corner was a portrait of King Charles II. The pages were boarded with the shields of France, Wales, Scotland, and Ireland, which were all lands conquered by England. The pages were bound with a silken cord.  The Charter also had a seal, known as a skippet, which dangled. The Charter was given to the State of Pennsylvania in 1812 by the Penn family. It was exhibited until 1984 when it was removed because of its fragile state. The parchment paper is incredibly fragile because the Charter was actually written on animal skin. The parchment does not absorb the ink, so it sits on the surface and flakes. The Charter is no longer whole, the skippet and silk cord were lost after it was gifted to Pennsylvania. Also, the Charter was trimmed in 1830, so it would fit into its exhibit case. You may be asking yourself; seriously, Pennsylvania cut and lost part of the Pennsylvania Charter? The answer is yes, yes they did, but in their defense exhibit and collecting were very different then. The Pennsylvania Charter was the first step in the formation of the State of Pennsylvania. So this year, we should rejoice in the fact that Pennsylvania is a state with some help from the Charter.

Sarah Biehl
Museum Assistant

I’m Kelly and I’m a summer intern here at Pennsbury Manor. Over the course of my three months here I’ve become a blacksmith’s apprentice, brushed a two thousand pound bull and spent a large portion of my days dressed as a 17^th century Quaker women. While some may consider these experiences wild, the craziest part of my internship was my summer research project.

It started off as a normal day; I had spent several hours doing research for my project on the blacksmiths here at Pennsbury. I sat down for lunch and made small talk with one of the other volunteers who preceded to tell me the most outrageous story I had ever heard. Apparently back in 1686, John Smith one of the blacksmith’s indenture at Pennsbury Manor, wanted to leave his indenture two months early, however James Harrison, the steward of Pennsbury would not let him go. Their disagreement escalated into a brawl that ended with Smith wounding Harrison and fleeing Pennsbury. Smith was gone for several days, but returned in the middle of the night with a cannon. He planted that cannon on Bile Island in the middle of the Delaware River and aimed it right at the Manor House, all to seek revenge on James Harrison.

I had been researching for a few days at this point and this was the first I had heard of any cannon, so naturally I had to find the primary source documentation. I thought it would be easy enough to find, it’s not every day that a disgruntled employee threatens his boss with a cannon. If this happened, surely there is some primary source documentation to prove it. What I thought would only take thirty minutes would end up taking several weeks, consuming all my free time at Pennsbury. I started my search at the first logical place, the bound copies of the William Penn papers that are kept in the Museum Library. I looked under every search term I could think of: Harrison, Smith, Cannon, but to my surprise nothing yielded results. I realized Smith’s actions must have resulted in some sort of discipline, so I checked all Quaker Meeting minutes from that date, and once again I found nothing! Having consulted every source I could think of, I was now convinced that I was the victim of some practical joke.

I was venting my frustration to another intern and telling him I wasn’t convinced that this letter was even real. To my surprise, he led me to my next clue. He told me that a reference to that letter could be found in the footnote on an obscure page of a larger guide book. I checked the footnotes and found that there was a letter that referenced cannon, and that this letter was dated September 17, 1686. The reason why I had not found it in the William Penn papers was because his archive was too vast to be contained in four bound volumes; the full archives were available on microfilm. I dusted off the microfilm reader, and after about twenty minutes of trying to figure out how it worked, I began combing through decades worth of letters. Much to my dismay there was no letter dated September 17, 1686. The following week I had some down time in between tours, and decided to try my luck with the microfiche again. All of the slides seemed to blend together, when suddenly something caught my eye. The transcribed copy of the letter I had just finished reading was dated 7 (September) 1686. THE QUACKERS HAD A DIFFERENT CALANDER! If September was considered the 7^th month, that means that the 9^th month was November. I quickly scrolled over to the records from November of 1686 and I saw the word I had spent about a month looking for: Cannon.

After reading through the letter a few times, I’d concluded that the original story I had been told was a bit exaggerated. There was no physical altercation, James Harrison went to Burlington for a few days and John Smith took his absence as an opportunity to go AWOL. He did come back a few days later with a cannon, but he did not put in on Bile Island, he put it off to the side of the Manor House. Hearing of the cannon, James Harrison returned to Pennsbury and found that John Smith had been staying with a friend, William Bile, the man from whom Bile Island is named. Smith confessed and was sentenced to jail, he completed the final two months of his indenture after his jail time was up.

I consider this search the craziest thing I’ve done during my internship at Pennsbury. I knew when I applied for the internship that I wasn’t signing up for a typical intern job like getting coffee and filing papers. I at least knew to expect the unexpected. When it came to this letter, I had no expectations. I had no idea where my next clue would lead me. I had no idea if this letter was even real until I actually found it. Though frustrating at times, my little cannon adventure was a great introduction to the world of historical research. Every other time I’ve taken on a research project, my primary sources have come from a database. The difficulty was in crafting the information from that document into a broader argument. This time around the difficulty was physically locating my source among the hundreds of documents we have here at Pennsbury Manor. Whether I was searching for the cannon letter, or even telling people about what I consider the most interesting part of internship, this summer has showed me that the wildest tales are found in the most unlikely places.

Kelly White, Intern Summer 2015

There are a lot of great things to see at Pennsbury Manor. There is the Worker’s Cottage, the Kitchen House, and the animals at the stable. There is one attraction that is off the beaten path. To the left of the Manor House down by the river is a cemetery. There are several little tombstones with nothing but the initials of their first and last names and their year of birth and death carved onto them. Unfortunately, William Penn is not among those buried here at Pennsbury, he is buried in England. Two of the people buried here, James Harrison and his son in law Phineas Pemberton, where trusted  friends of William Penn. They had very prominent roles in Penn’s life at Pennsbury Manor. James Harrison and Phineas Pemberton immigrated to North America together in 1682. Pemberton also brought over with him his wife Pheobe and their children Abigail and Joseph. William Penn relied very heavily on James Harrison. Penn granted Harrison five thousand acres of land before Harrison even left England. He used that later on to acquire land in Upper Makefield, Newtown, and Wrightstown. Penn appointed him to Proprietary’s Commissioner of Property and the agent to manage his personal affairs. In 1685, Harrison became one of the three provincial judges. Unfortunately, he did not hold these positions long as he died in 1687. Pemberton was also very important to William Penn. Phineas Pemberton was the first Clerk of the Bucks County Courts and he held that position until his death. William Penn thought very highly of Pemberton. So much so that after his death Penn wrote, “I will mourn for poor Phineas Pemberton, the ablest, as well as one of the best men in the province.” Phineas and Pheobe had nine children in all and several of them are also buried here at Pennsbury. Phineas would go on to outlive Pheobe, who died in 1696. Phineas lived for another six years dying in 1702. So next time you stop by for a visit to Pennsbury Manor, make sure you take a walk over to the cemetery!

Billy Lovering, Intern 2015

As the 4^th of July holiday approaches, we remember The Liberty Bell one of America’s most iconic symbols. It has served as a constant reminder of freedom for centuries. Abolitionists, civil rights advocates, Native Americans, immigrants, and war protesters have all used a Liberty Bell as a symbol for their causes. Originally the bell was simply known as the State House Bell, it wasn’t called the Liberty Bell until the 1830s when the abolitionists began calling it that. The abolitionists used the bell as their symbol because of the words inscribed on it from Leviticus 25:10, “Proclaim Throughout All the Land unto All the Inhabitants thereof.” The verse is referring to the “Jubilee”, or instructions to the Israelites to return property and free slaves every 50 years.

The Bell resides in Philadelphia at 6^th & Market Street. The Liberty Bell is one of many nationally recognized sites in Philadelphia. The Bell was originally placed in the tower of Independence Hall. Independence Hall is of course iconic for being the building where the signing of the Declaration of Independence took place. The Document was declaring American independence from Great Britain. That is the reason why the Bell has become so iconic. It is part of the birthplace of American Independence. Many people don’t know without William Penn this bell may not have ever existed. The bell was cast in 1751 to commemorate the 50^th Anniversary of Pennsylvania’s Charter of Privileges. The Charter granted religious freedoms, procedures for a democratic government, and fair treatment of criminals. Penn’s frame of government was very different from other colonies in North America at the time. It guaranteed freedom of speech and freedom from cruel and unusual punishment. Penn had a 15 year absence from Pennsylvania and during that time many different governments were proposed but they all ultimately failed. When he returned in 1699 the assembly came up with a new frame of government. This frame of government became the Charter of Privileges. In the Charter of Privileges the provincial assembly would be the legislative authority. It would be self governing, have the ability to elect its own officers, form its own committees, propose and vote on legislation, and impeach government officials. The government would also be a representative government with members from each county being elected from the province. Penn was afraid of what the masses would do with large amounts of democratic power so he trusted small groups of elites to govern society. This relates back into the Liberty Bell because of Penn’s progressive thinking inspired the bell which made the bell the perfect symbol for all the progressive thinkers in history. It is this kind of forward thinking that inspired the bell to go from the State House bell to the Liberty bell and it may have never existed without William Penn.

Billy Lovering, Intern 2015

While this may raise an eyebrow today, in the 1600’s it was not uncommon for people to drink beer with every meal. It is often mentioned that even children would drink beer, and while this is true, the strength of the beer that they drank would not have been on par with what adults were drinking. It wasn’t alcoholic enough for them to become intoxicated, but provided them with necessary calories. In those days, polluted water in England caused such a distrust of water in general that the water in newly-colonized America wasn’t trusted either.

According to Penn’s own letters, there was a Brew House here at Pennsbury Manor, and he wrote that they made beer, cider, and perry (a pear cider), all with an alcohol content. While we don’t know how much they brewed here, it probably was a fair amount and was mostly for the workers. Penn also bought beer from brewers in Philadelphia, which would have been for his table and to serve to guests.

Today, the recreated Pennsbury Manor, has a Brew Room inside the Kitchen House where we demonstrate the 17^th century beer brewing process. Each month April through October we offer a beer brewing demonstration and focus on a different type of beer. Come out and watch as they discuss what they have brewin’. Make sure you wander into the Kitchen Garden to see our own hops plants growing along the Hops Wall. Check out the Calendar of Events for details.

On June 20^th from 4 – 8 pm we will be holding our 3^rd Annual Brews & Bites. Come out and Tap Into History and spend the day along the river at the 43-acre country estate. Enjoy beer, food, music, a 17th century beer brewing demonstration, and meet our own William Penn. For details please visit our website.

Just like today, there were many different theories on how to raise children properly. Some of their ideas seem outrageous by today’s standards. From birth the midwife would shape the babies’ head to smooth it out and the infant would be fully swaddled, for a time, to insure their limbs grew in straight. Babies were also considered savage creatures that must be civilized, so crawling like an animal was not allowed. Instead, they would learn first to stand upright, often using the popular “standing stool,” and then how to walk.

By Amanda Rockwood, Intern

Every dog lover knows just how much our canine friends are part of our daily lives, and the 17^th century was no different!

Animals have been included in paintings and drawings throughout history. Our research at Pennsbury involves looking at these images of the world that William Penn knew, concentrating on the years from 1670 to 1710. As we explore these images, our intern Jessica made a fun discovery.  She noticed the appearance of a certain dog again and again in many different paintings!   

In the past when monarchs have favored a specific type of dog, that breed would suddenly become the most fashionable pets and were kept by many aristocratic families. Look in the paintings featured here and see if you can find the same type of dog in each:

Upon further research, we’ve discovered the dog we found to be a Dutch Partridge Dog, which is a type of spaniel breed. Artists often used symbolic backgrounds, objects, and animals in art as clues to the identity and personality of the individual or idea being depicted.  For example, squirrels were symbols of obedience and dogs represent faithfulness.

So next time you visit a museum or historic site, take a closer look at the paintings and see if you can spot the animals and guess what they symbolize! 

By Jessica McClaire, Intern