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Of Planets, Paper and Pendulums: The Life and Times of David Rittenhouse

Presented by Laurel Hill Cemetery at Laurel Hill Cemetery

June 11, 2011

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The program will commence at Historic RittenhouseTown, where experienced guides will lead visitors through the home where David Rittenhouse was born in 1732, and the village where he spent his early years. Special items related to David will be on display, including a David Rittenhouse clock; a letter written by David, referring to Benjamin Franklin, while he was President of the American Philosophical Society; and a compass made by his brother Benjamin. A Rittenhouse interpreter will be on hand to answer questions about the achievements of this great scientist and statesman. The program will reconvene at Laurel Hill Cemetery, where the group will visit the gravesites of David Rittenhouse and his wife Hannah, and provide an explanation of how they came to be reinterred in the famed National Historic Landmark Cemetery from a simple city churchyard. You will then visit the gravesites of several of his contemporaries and some of those who followed in his footsteps, leading the way to the Industrial Revolution. These comprise individuals engaged in various fields of scientific study, commerce and politics, each of whom well reflects the influence of Rittenhouse on the nation. Following the program, attendees are invited to visit Laurel Hill’s historic Gatehouse for socializing, cocktails, hors d’oeuvres and music, tol duly toast the life of the remarkable David Rittenhouse.