The 52 Weeks of Firsts Podcast
In celebration of America’s 250th anniversary, The 52 Weeks of Firsts Podcast uncovers the “firsts” that helped shape the nation—each one rooted in Philadelphia’s remarkable history. Each week, our host sits down with a special guest to explore one groundbreaking first, from the first professional basketball league and the nation’s first zoo, to the first public showing of a motion picture and beyond. Short, lively, and packed with fascinating stories, every episode connects these historic milestones to the present, showing how Philadelphia’s innovations continue to shape our everyday lives.
Episodes
Most people think Stonewall was where the LGBTQ+ rights movement began, but Philadelphia got there first. This episode tells the story of the first Annual Reminder Demonstration, a series of Independence Day protests held at Independence Hall years before Stonewall, and how a simple act of holding hands helped ignite the modern Pride movement. Host Marisa Magnatta is joined by Rue Landau, Philadelphia City Councilmember At-Large, c...
This episode tells the story of how thirteen fractured colonies — each with their own militias, customs, and loyalties — were forged into a single fighting force: the Continental Army. Host Marisa Magnatta is joined by Matthew Skic, Director of Collections and Exhibitions at the Museum of the American Revolution in Philadelphia, whose award-winning curatorial work on the Revolutionary War brings the look, feel, and huma...
Marisa sits down with Betsy Ross herself to dig into the story of the first American flag, the remarkable woman behind it, and why her story still resonates nearly 250 years later.
This episode tells the story of the strange, smoke-belching invention that changed transportation forever: the first successful steamboat for passengers and freight, launched on the Delaware River by an almost-forgotten inventor named John Fitch. Host Marisa Magnatta is joined by Mike Madeja, whose work bringing maritime history to life offers a unique window into the ambition, risk-taking, and river culture that shaped early Ameri...
This episode explores the remarkable story of how Philadelphia hosted the 1876 Centennial Exhibition: the first World's Fair ever held in the United States – and in doing so, introduced the world to the telephone, the typewriter, ketchup, and a new vision of American identity. Host Marisa Magnatta is joined by John Sigmund, Director of Partnerships & Sponsorships at the Fairmount Park Conservancy and a resident caretaker ...
This episode uncovers the Philadelphia origins of American medicine. Host Marisa Magnatta is joined by the CEO of Penn Medicine, Kevin Mahoney, to explore the remarkable story of how two Philadelphia icons, a doctor and a founding father, made it so that healthcare could be more accessible to the working-class public by starting the first ever hospital in America, changing the trajectory of medicine for good.
This episode dives into the Philadelphia roots of Mother’s Day. Host Marisa Magnatta is joined by journalist, content creator, and new mom Holly Jones to explore the remarkable story of Anna Jarvis, the woman who fought to establish Mother's Day as a national holiday…and then spent the rest of her life trying to take it back.
Welcome to the city of harmony! This episode dives into Philadelphia music history, with the first American-made piano and world’s first sousaphone. Host Marisa Magnatta is joined by musician and historian Dave Detwiler to learn about the innovators who introduced these instruments to America, and how this impacted how we experience and make music to this day.
Host Marisa Magnatta is joined by Lynn Heidelbaugh, Curator at the Smithsonian National Postal Museum, to chat about the origins of America’s postal system through the story of its first Postmaster General, Benjamin Franklin. Together, they unpack how early postal innovations changed the flow of information, why that shift made those in power uneasy, and what it reveals about the way we communicate today.
This episode explores Bartram’s Garden, the oldest surviving botanical garden in the United States, and how its legacy of curiosity, experimentation, and plant‑powered joy continues today. Host Marisa Magnatta is joined by Christopher Griffin, better known as Plant Kween: an educator, author, and unapologetic champion of botanical self‑care. Together, they dig into how this historic landscape shaped American horticulture and ...
Host Marisa Magnatta sits down with Gracie Valdez, Artistic Director of Cirque du Soleil’s LUZIA, and Zorè España, a 6th-generation circus performer and Cyr wheel artist. Together, they trace the lineage of the American circus – from John Bill Ricketts’ 1793 "riding school" in Philadelphia to the multidisciplinary spectacle of the modern-day circus.
Host Marisa Magnatta dives into the story of Franklin Field, the pioneering stadium at the University of Pennsylvania that helped shape modern sports - from hosting the first Penn Relays and the earliest scoreboards to broadcasting college football on radio and television. Joined by longtime Penn Relays director Dave Johnson, the episode looks at how one Philadelphia stadium became a proving ground for innovation, and why its legac...
Host Marisa Magnatta and Dr. Jen Caudle, Family Doctor and Medical Educator, unpack how two Philadelphians challenged the system and changed the way we study medicine in America - for good. Together, they trace the high-stakes rivalry between John Morgan and William Shippen Jr. and explore how a 1765 "start-up" evolved into the world-renowned Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania.
Host Marisa Magnatta and Tessa York, founder of Meet Your Matches, strike up the story of the humble matchbook - a practical fix dreamed up by a 19th-century patent lawyer that sparked a global advertising phenomenon. Together, they explore how Joshua Pusey’s small design tweak lit the fuse for collectible matchbooks, branding culture, and the nostalgic connection people still feel every time they flip one open.
Host Marisa Magnatta and Dr. Lara Devgan, board-certified plastic surgeon, entrepreneur, and founder of Lara Devgan Scientific Beauty, dig into the story of the first women’s medical college, and how its graduates were still denied full entry into the profession - even with formal training. They explore how early alumni faced resistance from hospitals, physicians, and pharmacists, and how one persistent graduate - Dr. Hannah ...
Marisa Magnatta reunites with Kathy Romano - a longtime Philly radio personality and the host of the Kathy Romano Show - to chat about the origins of the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society and the creation of the very first Philadelphia Flower Show. Kathy brings her deep local perspective to explore how a family business, a community of growers, and one ambitious idea blossomed into nearly two centuries of gardening culture.
This episode traces how Germantown became the birthplace of the first public protest against slavery in America. Host Marisa Magnatta is joined by Marquise Davon Richards, a Philly-based educator and content creator whose work amplifies Black voices and challenges dominant narratives around race, identity, and liberation. Together, they explore how four German Quakers sparked a centuries‑long fight for Black freedom.
From a community forged through exclusion to a landmark born of global collaboration, this episode uncovers the story behind Philadelphia’s Friendship Arch: the first fully authentic Chinese gate in the U.S. Host Marisa Magnatta sits down with Kun-Yang Lin, acclaimed choreographer and founder Kun‑Yang Lin Dancers, to explore how immigration, artistry, diplomacy, and community power shaped this iconic symbol of Asian American ...
This episode uncovers how one woman’s fight for her children sparked the creation of the Pennsylvania Abolition Society: the first organization of its kind in the world. Host Marisa Magnatta is joined by Philly Media Personality Tomika Bryant, to explore how Dinah Nevil, a woman of Lenape and African descent, forced the "City of Brotherly Love" to confront its own contradictions, and how a small group of reformers turned a pe...
From a segregated church pew to a national movement, this episode explores how an act of resistance in a Philadelphia church led to the founding of the African Methodist Episcopal Church. Host Marisa Magnatta is joined by Philadelphia Inquirer columnist Elizabeth Wellington to unpack how faith, race, and self-determination shaped this origin story, and why Mother Bethel still matters today.
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