William Henry Hodges
William Henry Hodges was born In Philadelphia on 10/1/1834. On 7/8/1879 he was issued a patent for the “Hodges Handy Fryer”, a deep fat French fryer with wire basket. In…
Read MoreWilliam J. McCahan
William James McCahan, was born in County Atrim in Northern Ireland to John and Peggy (Taggart) McCaughan.* William was the youngest of seven children. He was a descendent of distinguished…
Read MoreGeorge Ewell
In March of 1871, the National Association of Professional Base Ball Players was established. Baseball would have its first league made up of professional clubs with an established method of…
Read MoreMatthew Semple
Matthew was born to Matthew and Hannah Jackson Semple in May of 1813. The senior Matthew came to America in 1798 and for years operated a shipping business in Philadelphia.…
Read MoreThomas T. Tasker
Thomas T. Tasker, Sr. was born in Yorkshire, England of humble beginnings and grew throughout his life to be a very wealthy man, greatly respected by the cities of Philadelphia…
Read MoreJearum Atkins
Jearum Atkins is not a household name like that of Thomas Edison and Henry Ford. However, he was responsible for important, incremental improvements in engineering technology during the Industrial Revolution.…
Read MoreJohn Welde
In 1884, John Welde, a German immigrant, established a brewery in Philadelphia on the corner of Broad and Christian Streets. A year later, he formed a partnership with John Thomas,…
Read MoreRobert S. Menamin
Robert S. Menamin was born in County Tyrone, Ireland and immigrated to America with his parents when he was 3 years old. His family first settled in Washington D.C. where…
Read MoreColonel Thomas Fitzgerald
Colonel Thomas Fitzgerald was born in New York City. He first worked as a journalist for the New Brunswick Fredeonian. He moved to Philadelphia in 1844 and worked for the…
Read MoreLewis Dubois Bassett
Lewis Dubois Bassett, a Quaker school teacher and farmer, began making Bassett’s ice cream in 1861. In 1885, he moved the operations from his New Jersey backyard to a storefront…
Read More