York, Pennsylvania

:  A national first for York:  "The First National Thanksgiving."  So, now we have three states arguing over a holiday that is supposed to bring us together.  Massachusetts, Virginia, and Pennsylvania all claim ultimate bragging privileges when it comes to the first Thanksgiving.  [2006]

Essington, Pennsylvania

Eternal Life on the Landscape:  Governor of New Sweden, Johann Printz, was the William Penn of his time.  With a full-form statue, Printz takes his place as one of the main characters in the European colonization of the Atlantic seaboard.  The text beneath his feet reads like a resume for his next position.  [2008]

Denver, Colorado

History Under Foot:  On pavements, historical markers can take the form of medallions and be just as effective as roadside placards.  The first traffic signal with a pedestrian walk component was installed (a) 30, (b) 60, (c) 90 years ago.  Just read what's under foot in Denver to find out.  Why waste any open space?  [2005]

San Diego, California

The First of Them All: If you can't be the first in the nation or the state, maybe you can be the first in the county.  Examine how this 'first' is contextualized geographically.  In 1865, the county was bigger than three New England states.  Is that a put-down of New England or just a way of enlarging the school's importance?  [2007]

Trenton, New Jersey

The First of Them All:   If you can't be the first in the nation or the state, maybe you can be the first in the city.  Here's the site of Trenton's first synagogue, attested by the Har Sinai Temple Centennial Committee.  The cemetery association gave life to the Hebrew community of Trenton.  What irony!  [2006]

Eldorado, Ontario, Canada

The First of Them All:  If you can't be first in the nation, you can at least be first in the province.  What ties the present to the past, though, is the place-name Eldorado.  El Dorado was the "city of gold" sought since the 1500s.  Today, Canadian firms, including El Dorado Gold, dominate the world's gold mining industry.  [2002]

Galesville, Maryland

The First of Them All: If you can't be first in the nation, you can at least be first in the state.  What did Galesville have before anyone else in Maryland?  The first General Meeting of Friends.  That almost begs for some sloganeering:  "Come visit your oldest friends in Galesville."  [2008]

Lumberton, North Carolina

The First of Them All:  Memo to Lumberton:  don't forget to celebrate the centennial, 1912-2012, of this important American first for the public sector.  On the other hand, perhaps North Carolina should decommission this marker since it seems to point toward a role for government in national health care.  [2011]

Washington, Virginia

The First of Them All:  In America, it's almost an obsession.  Being first, that is.  Perhaps it is born of an inferiority complex from the earliest days of European settlement when the first of everything happened in the "old world."  [2010]

Meriden, Connecticut

History as Chronology:  Here's a run-down of Meriden's history: its very own curriculum vita.   Would you hire this town?  I guess there is nothing more objective than chronology stripped of interpretation. Can you identify any maintenance issues in evidence here?  [2009]

Cardiff, Wales

Don't be square!  In fact, don't even be angular.  In the British Isles, ovals and medallions seem to be used much more frequently than in the United States.  [2005]