Pennsylvania Trivia & Tidbits - Page 5

Looking for Pennsylvania trivia? Try our list Pennsylvania little know facts, tidbits and trivia.

Clockmaker, surveyor and astronomer David Rittenhouse also was the first director of the fledgling U.S. Mint, a post he was appointed to by President George Washington in 1792. The old "Southwest Square" in Philadelphia was renamed Rittenhouse Square in 1825 in his honor.

first appeared: 7/16/2006

In 1794, residents of western Pennsylvania played a major role in the "Whiskey Rebellion," in which citizens responded violently to a tariff imposed by the federal government on alcoholic spirits. The uprising prompted President George Washington to call in 12,950 militiamen to suppress the rioting.

first appeared: 7/2/2006

The scowling face of "Mr. Yuk," found on the labels of toxic substances, was created at the Poison Center at Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh in 1971. Research indicated that the skull and crossbones previously used to identify poisons had little meaning to children, who equated the symbol with pirates and adventure.

first appeared: 6/25/2006

Travelers can view murals, read about history and see artistically painted gas pumps on the 200-Mile Roadside Museum, where exhibits have been installed in Westmoreland, Somerset, Bedford (pop. 49,984), Fulton (pop. 14,261), Franklin and Adams counties on or near the Lincoln Highway (U.S. Route 30).

first appeared: 6/4/2006

Artist Stuart Davis (1894-1964), born in Philadelphia, was 19 when he first exhibited a handful of watercolor paintings at New York's Armory Show. Davis is said to be one of the few 20th-century American painters who worked in multiple artistic styles.

first appeared: 5/21/2006

The Mill at Anselma in Chester County began operating again in May 2004 after 40 years of idleness. Built in 1747, the grist mill is one of the nation's only remaining Colonial-era mills and demonstrates the impact of changing technology on the milling industry over the course of three centuries.

first appeared: 5/14/2006

The U.S. Army's famed 28th Infantry Division of Pennsylvania was officially established in 1879. Some of the state division's units can trace their histories to 1747, when Benjamin Franklin organized his battalion of "Associators."

first appeared: 4/23/2006

The first paper mill in North America was established near Philadelphia in 1690. One of its founders, printer William Bradford, was arrested for printing a leaflet critical of the Quaker government. His trial produced no verdict but was likely the first on the continent involving freedom of the press.

first appeared: 4/9/2006

Herb Morrison, a native of Pennsylvania, became the first person to broadcast coast-to-coast in 1937 as a reporter for WLS Radio in Chicago. Morrison uttered the famous words, "Oh, the humanity!" when the German airship Hindenburg erupted in flames at the Lakehurst Air Station in New Jersey, killing 36.

first appeared: 3/26/2006

Founded in 1802 and incorporated in 1870, Bloomsburg (pop. 12,375) enjoys the distinction of being the only incorporated town in Pennsylvania. No other municipality has this official designation, which was accomplished by a special act of the state Legislature.

first appeared: 3/12/2006

Kennett Square (pop. 5,273) is the nation’s smallest community to support a symphony orchestra. The musical assemblage has been an all-professional orchestra for more than 60 years and frequently features internationally known performers in its regular concerts.

first appeared: 2/26/2006

The first live reports from a U.S. presidential convention were televised in June 1948 from the Republican National Convention in Philadelphia. Convention delegates nominated candidate Thomas Dewey, who was upset by Democrat Harry S. Truman in the November election.

first appeared: 2/12/2006

To finance Gen. George Washington’s Yorktown campaign in 1781, Robert Morris, superintendent of finance under the Colonies’ Articles of Confederation, obtained a loan from France. Morris used part of the loan, along with some of his own money, to start the Bank of North America, which was chartered in 1781 in Philadelphia.

first appeared: 1/29/2006

The nation’s first botanical garden, Bartram’s Gardens, opened in Philadelphia in 1728. In addition to the garden, the 45-acre site includes Bartram House, a wildflower meadow, a river trail and a wetland.

first appeared: 1/15/2006

MISS PENNSYLVANIA 2006—Nicole Brewer of Philadelphia hopes to become a news anchor one day—and after completing her studies at Millersville University and already getting some on-air experience, she’s on her way. Brewer also has an extraordinary, unusual ability to speak sentences backward.

first appeared: 1/8/2006

Annually over the past decade, Cherry-Crest Farm in Paradise Township (pop. 4,698), set in the heart of Pennsylvania Dutch country, has transformed five acres of cornfields into a giant maze. Visitors enjoy other family activities, including a petting zoo, hands-on displays, rides and roasted corn.

first appeared: 1/1/2006

Philadelphia native Samuel Leeds Allen patented the Flexible Flyer sled in 1889. The hill in nearby Moorestown, N.J., where Allen tested his invention remains popular with "coasters" to this day.

first appeared: 12/18/2005

Mushroom farming originated in Kennett Square (pop. 5,273) in 1896 when two florists planted mushrooms beneath their greenhouse shelves. Pennsylvania leads the nation in commercial mushroom production.

first appeared: 12/4/2005

Artist and naturalist John James Audubon gained his first impressions of American birds and wildlife while living at Mill Grove, an estate his father purchased in 1789. Today, the mansion house in Audubon (pop. 6,549) displays many of the artist’s major works.

first appeared: 11/20/2005

The Harrisburg (pop. 48,950) Pennsylvanian newspaper took the first political poll in 1824. The presidential preference survey was conducted in Wilmington, Del., not in Pennsylvania.

first appeared: 11/6/2005

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