Always on the lookout for connections between Philly and the rest of the world!
William Penn, the founder of Pennsylvania, was born in London in 1644, but thanks to the Great Fire of 1666 most of the city of his youth is gone. The tower of All Hallows church is a rare survivor.
It was in its church that Penn was baptized, the event recorded in a ledger that still survives and can be seen in the basement crypt’s museum (free!).
Its thanks to Penn’s father that the tower even survived the fire. In his role as Admiral of the Navy, Penn Sr. had the surrounding buildings blown up to act as a fire break, and it was from here that he watched the fire’s destruction of the city.
Ben Franklin is another of early Philadelphia’s influential citizens that has ties to London. In fact, he spent so many years in London that it warrants its own post (London: Benjamin Franklin’s Only Remaining House). Franklin’s first stay is detailed in his autobiography, while his second is highlighted at his only existing residence on Craven Street.
In 1858 the most complete dinosaur skeleton ever found was discovered in South Jersey (Hadrosaurus Foulki: The World’s First Dinosaur). Ten years later it became the world’s first mounted dinosaur skeleton on display at the Academy of Natural Sciences. It was British sculptor Benjamin Waterhouse Hawkins who came to Philly to design and cast the skeleton, but you have to visit London to see his amazing Victorian Crystal Palace dinosaurs (London: Dino-Mania, Victorian style).
Secrets of Philadelphia 