Garden Picnic & Screening of "Philadelphia: The Great Experiment" 1600-1765

Thanks to our sponsors:

PhilaLandmarks, in partnership with History Making Productions, is hosting a socially-distanced, garden picnic screening of "Philadelphia: The Great Experiment" at Powel House.

"Philadelphia: The Great Experiment" explores Philadelphia's unique role as the nation's laboratory for the ideas and ideals that have shaped America. Over thirteen episodes, the series depicts Philadelphia's evolution through four centuries of triumph and failure, with noble ideals of tolerance and freedom often conflicting with realities of racial strife and violence.

This PhilaLandmarks fundraising evening features pre-ordered picnic basket dinners by Herb Scott Catering and historically themed cocktails for purchase from Art in the Age.

Ticket holders are encouraged to bring their own picnic blanket and/or chairs. Garden will have spacing guidelines to ensure social distancing and face masks must be worn.

TICKETS REQURIED FOR EACH NIGHT

-Wednesday, September 16th to feature episodes:

1600-1680: A Lost World

For centuries, the land that will become Philadelphia is home to the Lenni Lenape people. The rich soil and rivers support a peaceful civilization, but in the 1600's Dutch settlers assert their rights to the territory, and a bloody confrontation erupts. Swedish farmers arrive next, but their colony is torn apart by the tyrannical rule of Governor Johan Printz. By the late 1600's, persecuted English Quakers seek a safe haven in the area just as outbreaks of European disease devastate the Lenape.

1680-1720: In Penns Shadow

Philadelphia celebrates its founder more than any other American city, but who exactly is William Penn? For many, he is a statue atop City Hall, but Penn's busy life reflected an era of chaotic upheaval and conflict. He is at once a radical Quaker, political prisoner, visionary city planner, absent landlord, and a slaveholder. His ideals, contradictions, and ambitions cast a long shadow across American history. This installment of Philadelphia: The Great Experiment explores what it means to live In Penn's Shadow.

1720-1765: Franklins Spark

Benjamin Franklin is Philadelphia's most iconic citizen, but how did William Penn's city shape the man often called "The First American"? This episode follows Franklin from his arrival as a fugitive indentured servant to his emergence as a leader of craftsmen, civic innovator, media pioneer, politician, and the force behind America's greatest Enlightenment city. But all around Franklin, slavery drives the city's prosperity. Sampson, enslaved to Governor James Logan, strikes out for freedom, forcing Quaker power brokers to wrestle with the great evil of their times. And soon, Philadelphia's peaceful charter will face its greatest test, as a violent frontier conflict threatens to explode in the city's streets.

*Rain date Sunday, September 20th

-Friday, September 18th to feature episodes:

The Storm (1765-1790)

Fever (1793-1820)

Disorder (1820 - 1854)

*Rain date Sunday, September 20th

-Wednesday, September 23rd to feature episodes:

An Equal Chance (1855-1871)

World Stage (1872 - 1899)

Awakening (1900-1920)

*Rain date Sunday, September 27th

-Friday, September 25th to feature episodes:

Corrupt (1920-1940)

Promise for a Better City (1944-1964)

The Fight (1965-1978)

Breakthrough (1978-1994)

*Rain date Sunday, September 27th

In partnership with: