With the recent earthquake experienced in the Philadelphia area and the upcoming solar eclipse, I bet you were wondering if Elizabeth Graeme experienced either of these events in her lifetime. No? That’s OK, I get paid to wonder about such things. And the answer is “Yes.” In fact, a very strong earthquake struck New York […]
History doesn’t repeat itself, but it often rhymes. (Attributed to Mark Twain) In the summer and fall of 1793 yellow fever gripped Philadelphia, the capital of the United States. Benjamin Rush, the most prominent doctor in Philadelphia, wrote to his wife Julia Stockton in Trenton on September 13, 1793. “My Dear Julia, Alive! And tho […]
We have heard the word “fever” a lot this year because of the new virus in our midst, but fever itself is not a new phenomenon. In colonial days there was no COVID-19 virus to cause fever but there were certainly plenty of fevers due to moderate illnesses such as common colds or more serious […]
Quarantine, social distancing, and community spread are very much on our minds these days, but the concepts were not unknown to earlier doctors, including our own Dr. Graeme. Even though disease vectors were not always understood or accurately identified (bad air was often blamed), it was observed that those who avoided the sick escaped disease. While […]
William Penn, a Quaker, was looking for a haven in the New World where he and other Quakers could practice their religion freely and without persecution. He asked King Charles II to grant him land in the territory between Lord Baltimore’s province of Maryland and the Duke of York’s province of New York in order […]
January, February, March. Turn up the heat! In our homes today, that means to go to our thermostat and turn a dial or punch in a number. And, of course, our phones can do the job as well. The temperature will rise and we go about our business in comfort. But what about our colonial […]
Graeme Park in the fall has its share of crisp autumn air and fall foliage. And looking at our calendar, it certainly has its share of weddings, too. The more moderate months of September, October and November are very popular. Couples find the backdrop of the Keith House and barn the perfect setting for a […]
In the age of enlightenment, people learned about anatomy from more than just books. The use of articulated skeletons dates back to at least 1543, and by the 18th century, there were purveyors of this somewhat gruesome commodity such as Nathaniel Longbottom, whose card appears at right. Medical schools flourished in Europe in the 18th […]
Imagine yourself, dressed in your finest silk gown or brocade coat and breeches, wig powdered, horse and carriage at the ready* to whisk you off to Graeme Park for an evening of entertainment with the Graeme family at their country estate in Horsham. There will be dancing, music, perhaps a masque or card and dice […]
Ah, spring. A new beginning. New possibilities. Let’s start fresh with a good bath. Wash the winter off of our bodies. Dress in freshly laundered clothes. And…wait. What? You shower every day no matter the season? You always have clean clothes? This is no big deal? Ah, 21st century people you surely are. Certainly not […]