Eduard “Teddy” Einstein, a beloved professor and mathematician, was biking home from a haircut when a driver killed him earlier this month.
Einstein, 38, was struck and killed by the 18-year-old driver on Dec. 3 while riding his bicycle on Providence Road in Upper Darby. No charges have been filed in Einstein’s death, according to Upper Darby police, but an investigation is continuing, and police said the driver cooperated with police at the scene of the crash.
The West Philadelphia husband and father of two young children, Charlie and Lorcan, was known for his sharp wit, encouraging students, and scouring cities for the most interesting, and spiciest, foods. Einstein was, above all else, dedicated to his family.
“He didn’t need much more than me and the boys. It was like he was my home, and I was his,” Einstein’s wife, Ruth Fahey, 45, said. ”That’s kind of how we agreed that we would move around the country together as a family, and it was wonderfully freeing.”
Teddy Einstein (left) reading a book to his son while the family cat plays with his arm. Einstein was a devoted husband and father who covered the lion’s share of storytelling and bedtime, but especially cooking, as he was an avid chef who liked trying new recipes, his wife Ruth Fahey said. Einstein was killed on Dec. 3, 2025, while riding his bike in a bike lane when he was hit by a driver on Providence Road in Upper Darby, Pa.
Born in Santa Monica, Calif., Einstein graduated from Harvard-Westlake School before receiving a bachelor’s degree in mathematics from Pomona College, a master’s in mathematics from University of California, Santa Barbara, and his Ph.D. from Cornell University. He would go on to hold postdoctoral fellowships at the University of Chicago and the University of Pittsburgh, where he taught, and most recently completed a three-year teaching term at Swarthmore College.
“He loved mathematics and wrote a first-rate thesis,” said Einstein’s Ph.D. adviser, Jason Manning. “Many mathematicians, even those who write a good thesis, don’t do much after graduate school. But Teddy’s work really accelerated during his postdoc at the University of Illinois at Chicago, and he was doing even more exciting work when he passed.”
His colleagues describe a mathematician working at, to put it simply, the intersection of algebra and geometry. Building on the work of mathematicians before him, including modern geometric breakthroughs in years past, Einstein studied abstract 3D shapes that cannot be visually represented in the real world. Work like that of Einstein and others contributes to a tool chest of solutions that scientists can use to study physics, neuroscience, and more.
“It is a terrible loss, especially to his family,” Manning said. “But also to his part of the mathematics community.”
Teddy Einstein (right) holds his second-born, Lorcan, soon after he was born.
As his term at Swarthmore ended earlier this year, Einstein had been working on research that was seven years in the making, Fahey said. This would help springboard him into the next chapter of his career.
Fahey said the day he was killed, Einstein was biking back from a fresh haircut to impress his potential new employers at Florida Gulf Coast University.
Mr. Einstein’s work ethic matched his appetite for camaraderie. He fed grad students out of his tiny Cornell kitchen and hosted a weekly trivia night. That is where he met Fahey. “He just loved to entertain with food,” she said.
Every week, he cooked for Fahey and the boys, from his prized favorites of Korean short ribs and fried chicken to testing out falafel recipes. A keg of home-brewed beer was always in the house so that Einstein could share his creations with friends. Fahey said his most recent yeast yield is still waiting to be processed.
Maddie Adams-Miller, who took Einstein’s math classes in her freshman year at Swarthmore, said her funny and wise math teacher never wanted to see a student fail.
“I loved talking to my friends from high school and telling them I had ‘Professor Einstein’ for math. Teddy always wore funny T-shirts to class and made a lot of jokes,” said Adams-Miller, now a senior. “When I was taking his course, I was struggling with my confidence and was not performing my best academically. Teddy reached out to me to offer support and genuinely wanted me to succeed in his class.”
Teddy Einstein (left) holds his eldest son, Charlie, while he walks down a flight of steps wearing the usual safety gear that he wore while riding his bike. The precautions Einstein took to bike safely weren’t enough to stop a driver from crashing into him on Providence Road in Upper Darby earlier this month, leaving his wife, Ruth Fahey, and their two sons without a father.
An avid cyclist who biked everywhere and advocated for safer streets, Einstein was killed doing one of the activities he loved most. Philly Bike Action, an advocacy organization that Einstein and his wife frequented and his friend Jacob Russell organizes for, shared that he was hit by the driver while riding in an unprotected bike lane and wearing a helmet and high-visibility clothing.
“But there will never be a helmet strong enough or a clothing bright enough to make up for dangerous infrastructure. All Philadelphians deserve the freedom to travel without fear of tragedy,” the group said in a statement.
Russell believes safety improvements will not come solely from attempting to change laws or behavior, but rather by changing the road infrastructure, so that even “when mistakes happen, there aren’t tragedies,” he said.
A screenshot, dated July 2024, from Google Maps showing the intersection where Teddy Einstein was killed on Dec. 3, 2025, in Upper Darby, Pa.
Providence Road, where Einstein was hit and where he biked weekly, is considered a dangerous road by local planning commissions, appearing on the Regional High Injury Network map as a thoroughfare where multiple people have died or been seriously injured in vehicle, pedestrian, or bicycle crashes. Delaware County is currently in the process of onboarding most of its townships onto a “Vision Zero” plan to end all traffic fatalities by 2050 — similar to Philadelphia’s own Vision Zero.
The Delaware County Planning Commission said the county does not own the roads, which are overseen by the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation or specific municipalities; however, officials are “actively working to obtain additional funding for further safety improvements, and are continuing to work with our partners in our 49 municipalities on either our Vision Zero plan or to help them develop their own,” said Delco spokesperson Michael Connolly.
Fahey said she won’t rest until Providence Road’s lack of safety is addressed and will continue campaigning for safety improvements in Philadelphia.
A GoFundMe has been set up for Fahey to help fund efforts to protect Einstein’s legacy as a teacher and advocate, as well as to invest in campaigns to make streets safer, with an emphasis on the road where Einstein was killed. It has already raised more than $60,000.
In addition to his wife and children, Einstein is survived by his parents, K. Alice Chang and Thomas Einstein, and siblings, Michael Einstein and Lily Einstein. The family encouraged people to donate to Fahey’s GoFundMe to honor Einstein’s legacy.
The region is brimming with holiday attractions this season, from Center City’s extravagant affairs to the most humble of mall Santas.
But what about ones that skirt tradition and lean more into the humorous than the Yuletide?
Christmas House at the Deptford Mall combines nostalgia with irreverence for one of the region’s most tongue-in-cheek holiday experiences.
Stepping into the former Victoria’s Secret-turned-holiday-walking tour, guests are greeted by familiar faces like Buddy the Elf and Santa Claus, but they’ll also see a recreation of a Blockbuster video store; a drunk, passed-out Santa; and a reindeer stable where it looks like Donner and Blitzen pooped all over the place.
The tour starts at $25 per person, when buying in groups of four. There are at least nine rooms — not including the seven wacky “hotel rooms” in the back — within the Christmas House to explore at your own leisure or alongside a tour guide.
Ticket prices may prove too burdensome for many families, owner Peter Coyle said, which is why they offer a “No Families Left Out” program, where families can contact the Christmas House and discuss a name-your-price model.
The light tunnel at the Christmas House at Deptford Mall on Tuesday, Dec. 16, 2025, in Deptford.
Coyle said the humor is meant to make adults laugh just as much as kids — hence why so much space is dedicated to nostalgia of the 1980s and ‘90s. Apart from a Blockbuster, which children certainly haven’t visited before, there are Easter eggs only adults will recognize, such as A Christmas Story’s sultry leg lamp — “Fragilé! It must be Italian” — and Red Ryder BB gun or a Griswold family photo from National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation.
“We take the same approach as the creators of the Shrek movies,” Coyle said. “[Those movies] had a lot of fun things that kids loved, but then there were all these innuendoes and references that only adults could appreciate.”
Walking into the “Blockbuster Room” for the first time, adults let out a light chuckle that usually turns into some play-pretend as they reminisce on their former Friday night ritual, while teens who never got the chance to visit one can pretend they’re a ’90s kid for a change, Coyle said. It’s a pared-down Blockbuster with only four shelves of movies, but the store decorations and logos are close enough to feel like a cute homage.
The “Blockbuster Room” at the Christmas House at Deptford Mall on Tuesday, Dec. 16, 2025, in Deptford.
Rita Giordano, 42, of South Jersey, was visiting the Christmas House with her mother, Denise Maloney, 70, and Giordano’s two sons, Richie, 9, and Charlie, 4. Together, they searched for Buddy the Elf hidden in each room.
“We got all of them!” Richie and Charlie said.
For mom and grandma, they were just happy to be enjoying the holiday spirit inside the Deptford Mall as opposed to the bone-chilling weather at outdoor attractions.
A Shrek room at the Christmas House at Deptford Mall on Tuesday, Dec. 16, 2025 in Deptford.
The Christmas House’s wackiest elements are sequestered in the back, where Coyle converted the former fitting rooms of the retail space into the hotel rooms of the “Holiday’s Inn.” The surprise of finding out what’s behind each door will have some bursting out laughing and others rolling their eyes.
There are tamer rooms like the “Hootel Room” — filled with artificial trees and owls — to a New Year’s Eve strobe-light room. A few backrooms go the extra mile, with one featuring Shrek taking a nap in a small bed, bundled up in Christmas and Shrek blankets.
In “The Santa’s Little Surprise,” the limits of guests’ potty humor will be tested. As soon as one walks up to the room, a large handprint and streak of brown substance are plastered on the door. The more one looks, the more fake reindeer poop on the walls and flooring can be found, with used toilet paper strung from the ceiling.
The “Santa’s Little Surprise Room” at the Christmas House at Deptford Mall on Tuesday, Dec. 16, 2025, in Deptford.
Santa’s got his work cut out for him.
For parents trying to keep the Santa make-believe alive for a few more years, they may find the drunk Santa in “The Sleighed and Sloshed” room a little too over the top. Here, a Santa mannequin is laid out on the floor with crushed red Solo cups around him in what looks like Kris Kringle after a bender.
The “Sleighed and Sloshed Room” at the Christmas House at Deptford Mall on Tuesday, Dec. 16, 2025, in Deptford.
There is good, clean fun in the “Harry Potter Christmas Room,” where a photo-op is staged with a broomstick, wizarding hats, and Hogwarts House-themed scarves. Venture into the “Elf Command Center,” where a Santa live tracker displays where Kris Kringle is currently dropping off gifts, and the little ones can write letters to Santa before dropping them in the giant mailbox marked for the North Pole.
The North Pole Movie Theater is usually playing Will Ferrell’s Elf on repeat throughout the day, and the final room features cotton snowballs, ready for harmless snowball fights, accompanied by an artificial snow machine.
The “Harry Potter Christmas Room” at the Christmas House at Deptford Mall on Tuesday, Dec. 16, 2025, in Deptford.
“The best part for me was that it was indoors,” Maloney said. “The kids loved seeing Jack Skellington and the Grinch, plus they got me with the snowballs in the last room.”
Located inside the Deptford Mall at 1750 Deptford Center Rd., Deptford, N.J. 08096, the Christmas House is on the first floor, closest to the Boscov’s entrance and parking. Open weekdays from 4 p.m. to 9 p.m., Saturdays from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m., and Sundays from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. It runs through Jan. 2. christmashousedeptford.com/
Emma Zielinski wasn’t sure how her business selling unclaimed mystery mail would fare at the Christmas Village in Philadelphia this year, or if she’d even be accepted into the holiday market at all.
“I didn’t think they’d take us because we’re not handmade, but when I picked up my vendor badge, they were like, ‘We’ve been waiting for you to apply!’” she said.
As it turns out, thousands of people from across the region have also been waiting for the chance to buy orphaned packages that never found their way home and nobody went to look for — the contents of which remain shrouded to both Zielinski and the buyers until after they are purchased.
“The Christmas Village has really turned my business upside down,” she told me. “I don’t think anyone realized this was going to happen.”
Emma Zielinski, owner of Chain Mail Unclaimed, opens for business at the Christmas Village at City Hall.
From boxes to heavily-taped-up opaque bags, Zielinski is selling about 300 to 500 items a day, each between $10 and $40 a pop, based on weight. On the opening weekend for her Chain Mail Unclaimed hut, which is located in the interior courtyard of City Hall, she sold two weeks of inventory in just two days — and business hasn’t slowed down since.
Philadelphians, she’s found, are always up for a good surprise.
“They are down to party and see what’s going on,” Zielinski said. ”It’s a really good vibe in Philly when we do events, people are a lot of fun and up for trying something new and playing along.”
The element of surprise
When I arrived around 1 p.m. on Thursday, I was shocked to find Chain Mail Unclaimed had one of the only lines at the Christmas Village, aside from the ever-popular raclette cheese stand.
“To be compared to the raclette stand is quite an honor,” Zielinski said.
As I was waiting in line, a young man who’d just purchased a package opened it on the spot and pulled out what appeared to be a spandex elf suit — in a women’s medium.
“At least it’s seasonally appropriate,” I said.
When my turn came, I dug in a large bin and rustled through a couple shelves with the crowd, massaging the bags and shaking the boxes to see if I could prognosticate what was inside of them. Unlike Christmas at home, these tactics are totally fair game at Chain Mail Unclaimed.
Mayumi Burgess takes a guess at what’s inside a package for sale at Chain Mail Unclaimed.
I was pretty sure one of the packages had wicker baskets in it, and another, a pair of shoes, but beyond that it was hard to decipher the contents. All of the $10 items were gone, so I settled on two $15 packages and one for $20. All three are soft goods in opaque bags secured with clear tape, two of which came from the U.S. Postal Service and one from the UPS Store.
Beyond that, I know nothing about them. Even the sender and intended recipient’s names have been artfully covered up with Chain Mail Unclaimed stickers by Zielinski and her crew.
I intend to give one package to my husband (he signed up to deal with the consequences of marrying a total rando) and one each to my Secret Santa recipients at our respective family gatherings.
I can’t wait to see what’s inside. I’m getting older and by the time Christmas rolls around, sometimes I forget what I’ve bought people anyway, but with this it’s guaranteed to be a surprise for the recipients and for me.
I mean, these gifts could literally be anything! They could contain lost Inca gold, the French crown jewels stolen from the Louvre, or a heretofore unknown Dunlap broadside printing of the Declaration of Independence.
Emma Zielinski, owner of Chain Mail Unclaimed, unloads merchandise at her booth at the Christmas Village at City Hall.
Of course, they could be total rubbish or completely embarrassing. I hope my beloved, self-proclaimed “spinster aunt” isn’t going to open a gift of lacy red lingerie before our entire family this Christmas, but sometimes, these are the chances we take in life, and actually, that would be pretty entertaining.
Because part of the fun of giving a gift like this is getting to tell the story behind it, which is why I pshawed a fellow customer in line who requested that I open my packages on the spot.
“Ma’am, these are gifts,” I said, before walking away with my treasures.
‘The tip of the iceberg’
Zielinski, of Lawrenceville, N.J., said she was inspired to create her business after seeing a video of someone on social media visiting a similar pop-up shop at a farmers market in Paris.
She was already attending vendor events in the region for her permanent jewelry business, Off the Chain Studios, and thought this could be a good companion to it.
“It’s exciting, it builds a crowd, and it’s also an entirely different crowd,” Zielinski said. “The person who gets a bracelet welded on won’t necessarily buy an unclaimed package.”
Chain Mail Unclaimed — a name that’s a nod to both her original business and the archaic tradition of chain mail letters — opened in April 2024. Zielinski started with pop-up shops at area weekend events like the Trenton Punk Rock Flea Market and the Northern Liberties Night Market before leveling up to the multiweek Christmas Village in Philadelphia this year.
At left is Emma Zielinski, owner of Chain Mail Unclaimed, a business in the City Hall courtyard of the Christmas Village, looks on as customers sort through packages.
She works with a broker who deals with warehouses across the country where mail sits unclaimed, overstocked, or returned and then gets auctioned off.
“The amount of unclaimed packages is insane. This is the tip of the iceberg, if they don’t get bought, they get incinerated,” she said. “I think we’ve all returned something, but you don’t think what the next step is.”
Zielinksi said she was already aware of human overconsumption as a whole, having been a fashion school student, but she told me this business gives her a whole new perspective.
“People question the legality — yes, it’s legal. Where do you think it goes? It doesn’t just go somewhere and live a happy life, it gets thrown out,” she said.
And suddenly, I was transported to the Island of Misfit Toys from Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, and my heart ached. Charlie-in-the-box deserves a happy life too, darn it, especially around the holidays!
‘Who ordered these?’
Zielinski usually orders six months of stock, or 24 pallets, at a time, but the Christmas Village has upended her business and she’s ordered three times that in the last two weeks alone. Her broker is now on stand-by for the remainder of the season and her staffing has tripled to match the demand.
“People are excited this is here. It also fills a great white elephant gift niche,” she said. “It takes the responsibility off of you if you don’t know what to get someone and it’s a fun talking point.”
Mayumi Burgess and her husband, Alfonso Burgess, of Philadelphia, look for mystery packages sold by weight at the Chain Mail Unclaimed business at the Christmas Village at City Hall.
Packages are typically sold through her website as well, but right now that’s on pause as she tries to keep the Christmas Village stocked. Sometimes she’ll get big items she can’t sell in a palette, like furniture, and she works with Habitat for Humanity and local nonprofits to give those things away.
Zielinski swears she doesn’t open any package before she sells it, nor does she keep any for herself (“I am a total maximalist so once I get started, I could not stop”), but she does love hearing about what her customers received.
So far, the most impressive find was an 18-karat gold diamond bracelet that retails for $4,000.
And the strangest?
“It was a set of animal pregnancy tests, which really took me back,” she said. “Who ordered these? What are the circumstances? I need to know the backstory. That part drives me crazy.”
Emma Zielinski, owner of Chain Mail Unclaimed, opens for business at the Christmas Village at City Hall.
Zielinski said what’s considered a good find is also very subjective. The other day, a woman opened a package and discovered a deadbolt inside. She told Zielinski her door’s been blowing open and it was just what she needed.
“Once, a girl got the perfume she wears,” Zielinski said. “It’s bizarre, but sometimes these items find their way back to where they’re supposed to be.”
DEAR ABBY: My wife and I stopped having sexual relations eight years ago. She keeps our two grandchildren 11 to 12 hours a day, five (and sometimes six) days a week. (That’s 60 to 70 hours.) By the time they’re picked up, she’s irritated, agitated, frustrated and wants to be left alone. She doesn’t want to talk or spend any time with me. She can’t see that keeping the grandkids that much has interfered with our relationship with each other.
We are about to separate because I don’t want to live my last few years with someone I can’t hold or kiss and who doesn’t want to hold or kiss me because she’s so irritated and frustrated by the time the kids leave. She doesn’t want to be bothered. She just sits in her recliner and goes to sleep.
There’s plenty of love, loyalty and trust between us, but after eight years of no intimacy, I think I have waited long enough. I have tried talking to her about it many times. She says she has lost her desire, but she can’t see the reason is because she’s having that same bad day, every day. Any advice before I finalize this?
— HAD IT IN ALABAMA
DEAR HAD IT: I am glad you wrote. There may be more than one reason your wife’s energy and sex drive have disappeared. You state that there is plenty of love, loyalty and trust between you. Please suggest to her that she consult her doctor and ask to have her hormone levels checked.
I can’t help wondering how old your grandchildren are and why she is expected to take care of them for 11 to 12 hours a day. It may simply be too much for her. However, a thyroid issue or a decrease in estrogen may also be contributing to her exhaustion. If that’s the case, there are medical solutions available if your wife is willing to explore them.
Your marriage is worth fighting for, and I hope your wife will see the wisdom before she or your relationship collapses under the weight of the responsibility she has taken on.
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DEAR ABBY: I am a 74-year-old woman who has no surviving immediate family. I have two cousins who are still living. One of them is my age and, to this day, may not know he was adopted as a baby. I discovered it when I was very young and snooped through my mother’s nightstand drawer. I mentioned it to my aunt (his adoptive mother) 30 years ago, and she made me promise not to ever tell him. Is it best to let him live his entire life not knowing, or should I somehow bring it up to him?
— COUSIN WHO WANTS THE BEST FOR HIM
DEAR COUSIN: I will assume that both of your cousin’s parents are deceased. How do you think he will feel when you announce that his entire life has been a lie? Do you think he will be warmly greeted and accepted by siblings who never knew he existed? I know you are eager to tell him the truth, but “the truth” is that his parents are the people who raised him. At this late date, I think it would be better to keep the promise you gave to your aunt rather than disrupt your cousin’s life.
DEAR ABBY: My husband and I are retired and happy. Each of us was married before. We’re not rich, but we get by without help from anyone. We have been blessed with a big family. Between us, we have six children, 15 grandchildren and a great-grandchild. This does not include the in-laws, because quite a few of these offspring are now married.
I am bothered by the sense of entitlement that seems to run rampant in this group. We never receive a “thank you” for anything we do for some of them, whether it’s a birthday, graduation, shower gift, wedding, or an acknowledgment for a funeral. Most of them are old enough to have better manners than that, but it doesn’t seem to matter.
I have bitten my tongue on more than one occasion. When we tried to stop sending gifts, we were called out on it by the two worst offenders. We don’t want to give because “we have to.” We want to give because we WANT to. And while we may want to give, we don’t want to feel underappreciated either. Any advice?
— UNAPPRECIATED IN INDIANA
DEAR UNAPPRECIATED: Just this. Feel free to unburden yourselves to the worst offenders. Tell them in plain English that when a gift goes unacknowledged, it makes the giver feel the gesture is unappreciated, and you don’t like feeling that way. Make it clear that if they cannot summon up the energy to practice basic good manners, you will find another way to spend your money. I cannot make your relatives change, but if you do this, you may be able to wake them up.
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DEAR ABBY: My husband of 20-plus years received a Facebook message from an old high school girlfriend. The message was wildly inappropriate (extremely risque) and ended with her offering to fly out and “meet up” if he ever wanted to. When my husband saw the message, he read it to me and to his best friend, who happened to be in town visiting. Those two guys were laughing so hard they were crying. They thought it was the funniest thing ever, while I was thinking she has a lot of nerve.
My husband wrote back and declined her proposition. But later that night, I was doing some internet sleuthing. (Who wouldn’t?) Abby, she is a marriage counselor! Her message went from being a former flame’s cliche message to repulsive on so many levels. She of all people should know better. I’m itching to give her a piece of my mind. What do you think?
— PERPLEXED IN PORTLAND, ORE.
DEAR PERPLEXED: IF you really feel inclined to contact your husband’s old girlfriend, choose your words carefully. Tell her that when your husband received her message, he read it to you and his best friend, who happened to be in town visiting, and although the two of them were howling with laughter, you didn’t find it funny. Then close by saying you are disappointed that someone who is in a helping profession would stoop that low. (Mic drop.)
Less than a year after President Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation, while our nascent nation was still in the throes of the Civil War, two industrious Philadelphians devised a plan to help raise money for injured Union soldiers, war widows, and children left orphaned by the war.
Charles Godfrey Leland, a Union Army veteran of the Battle of Gettysburg, and George Henry Boker, a founder of the Union League of Philadelphia, had the text of the Emancipation Proclamation printed in Philadelphia in 1864. They got Lincoln to sign 48 copies and then sold them for $10 each, which was about a week’s worth of wages for a day laborer at the time.
Just 27 copies are still known to exist of what is referred to as the Leland-Boker broadside — the only authorized, printed edition of the full text of the proclamation to be signed by Lincoln — and one of them will be sold by Christie’s next month as part of its “We the People: America at 250” auction.
Christie’s is auctioning one of 27 printings left known in existence of the Leland-Boker broadside, an authorized edition of the Emancipation Proclamation which was printed in Philadelphia and signed by President Abraham Lincoln.
Yes, even a British auction house is getting in on our Semiquincentennial celebrations (though, to be fair, the sale is taking place at Christie’s New York offices).
The broadside, which was also signed by Lincoln’s secretary of state, William Seward, and his private secretary, John Nicolay, is expected to fetch somewhere between $3 million to $5 million when it’s auctioned on Jan. 23.
Peter Klarnet, senior specialist for Americana books and manuscripts at Christie’s, said that while the Emancipation Proclamation did not end slavery, it was the document that paved the way for the 13th Amendment.
“It’s part of our historical evolution. As our society changes and society’s mores change, we adjust our founding documents accordingly,” he said. “The Emancipation Proclamation is really a reaffirmation of American freedom in so many ways. It’s now extending that freedom to people who didn’t have it before and extending the promise of what was in the Constitution.”
“The first reading of the Emancipation Proclamation before the cabinet,” painted by F.B. Carpenter, engraved by A.H. Ritchie, circa 1866. Those depicted, from left to right: War Secretary Edwin M. Stanton, Treasury Secretary Salmon P. Chase, President Abraham Lincoln, Navy Secretary Gideon Welles, Interior Secretary Caleb B. Smith, Secretary of State William H. Seward, Postmaster General Montgomery Blair and Attorney General Edward Bates.
Both Leland and Boker were born into well-to-do families in Philadelphia, attended Princeton University, and became writers. Leland was a journalist and author with an interest in folklore and the occult, and who traveled extensively through Europe. Boker was a poet, playwright, and diplomat who served as an ambassador to Turkey and Russia. Both men are buried at Laurel Hill Cemetery.
It’s unclear how the two met, but Klarnet said they most likely traveled in similar social circles in Philadelphia and were organizers of the Great Central or Sanitary Fair held at Logan Square in 1864, which raised funds for supplies and necessities for the Union Army. The fair — which Lincoln attended with his wife, Mary — brought in more than $1 million.
At these fairs, which happened in numerous Union cities, autographs of famous Americans were sold to raise funds, according to Klarnet. The year prior, Lincoln’s signed original manuscript of the Gettysburg Address sold at a similar fair in New York City for $1,000. At a fair in Chicago, Lincoln’s handwritten original draft of the Emancipation Proclamation was auctioned off for $3,000, only to later be destroyed in the Great Chicago Fire of 1871. The official proclamation is housed at the National Archives in Washington.
Leland and Boker commissioned their copies to be printed in Philadelphia by Frederick Leypoldt as broadsides on very fine paper with wide, dramatic borders.
“Surprisingly, not all sold,” Klarnet said. “A few were sold at other fairs and others were donated to institutions.”
Of the 27 left known in existence, only a half-dozen or so are in private hands, Klarnet said. Most are in institutional collections, including here in Philadelphia where we have three — one at the Historical Society of Pennsylvania, one at the University of Pennsylvania Libraries (which also has two marked-up proofs of the broadside), and one at the Union League. The National Constitution Center previously had one on loan from a private collector, but it was sold for $4.4 million at a Sotheby’s auction in June to a hedge fund billionaire.
The first known owner of the authorized edition being sold by Christie’s was Philip D. Sang, a corporate executive from Chicago whose collection was sold around the late 1970s. The current owner is the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History in New York City, which is selling the piece to benefit its acquisitions and direct care fund, according to Klarnet.
To commemorate Juneteenth in 2006, a Leland-Boker broadside of the Emancipation Proclamation was transported by horse-drawn carriage from the the Historical Society of Pennsylvania to the African American Museum of Philadelphia. Members of the 3rd U.S. Colored Infantry guard the proclamation at the African American Museum.
Other works with notable Philadelphia ties in Christie’s upcoming “We the People: America at 250″ auction include an edited Committee of Style draft of the U.S. Constitution, which was written in Philadelphia five days before the final draft was printed; a U.S. Centennial flag; and a 1779 letter written by Benjamin Franklin to his friend David Hartley.
DEAR ABBY: We have a mutual friend who’s very dear to us. He’s a kind-hearted and generous disabled vet who’s too proud to ask for help. Unfortunately, due to his ill health and physical limitations, his home is unkempt. He lives among piles of dusty trash, empty cartons, unfinished projects, dirty clothes and even animal messes. It smells very unpleasant, especially in the heat.
The last time I visited, I sat down in what I thought was a “safe” clear spot and came away smelling of cat urine. Despite our repeated offers, he declines our help to clean up. Unfortunately, it’s so bad that people no longer want to visit his home.
He recently volunteered to host a traditional holiday gathering for our group of friends, but if he does, I’m afraid no one will show. (I’m hesitant to eat anything prepared there anyway, and so are others.) We’ve discussed moving the event, but we’re afraid it would hurt his feelings, since he really enjoys hosting. Plus, what would we say?
Renting a small hall was our first thought, but he’s insistent and excited for the company. Your advice on how to approach this delicate situation would be appreciated.
— IN A TOUGH SPOT IN MICHIGAN
DEAR TOUGH SPOT: Your friend appears to be a hoarder. He may enjoy hosting and want company, but it isn’t going to happen if people are afraid to go to his home and consume anything because of the filth and the odor. The person closest to him has to explain to him that although you all love him, his party would be better attended if the celebration was held off-site. He needs to understand why others are staying away, and he may need physical and psychological help to improve his situation.
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DEAR ABBY: I’m a young gay man with a problem. I met a cute guy, “Mark,” with a sweet personality, and the sex has been awesome. We spent two consecutive nights together in a hotel, but two days later he went to church, and he’s now convinced that being gay is wrong. Mark still rubs my foot with his under the table while we eat and kisses me on the lips. He tells me he loves me very much, but now I’m getting mixed signals. At night on our dating app, Mark sends nudes of himself, even though he says gay sex is wrong. What should I do?
— MIXED SIGNALS IN GEORGIA
DEAR MIXED SIGNALS: Mark is conflicted about being gay because the church he attends made him feel guilty about it. Talk with him and suggest that you feel he could benefit from counseling to help him become more comfortable about who he is. There are three LGBTQ community centers located in Atlanta. If Mark is unwilling, please understand it could be a long journey for him toward self-acceptance. If you are not prepared to wait, you should move on.
Greg and Becky Wimmer believe their Christmas tree is the best lit tree in the state.
The confidence, the couple from York, Pa., said over Zoom, comes from Greg spending almost all his life perfecting the art.
He grew up in Lancaster in a single-parent household with his mother, Judy Wimmer, and a sister who was 10 years older. Judy was the executive housekeeper at the historic Yorktowne Hotel, which was founded in 1925 and provided a lot of unique opportunities for the young Greg.
“She was the matriarch of tree decorating,” Greg said of Judy, who died last year. “Leading up to the Christmas season, she would use the basement of the hotel as her staging area, and would put up three 12-foot trees and five eight-foot trees around the property.”
Judy Wimmer atop a ladder decorating a 12-foot Christmas tree at the Yorktowne Hotel in the late 1990s, where she was the executive housekeeper.
Greg and his sister would go up to the hotel on the Saturday after Thanksgiving every year and help their mother decorate. First, they’d take on the 12-foot lobby tree before moving on to the other rooms. They’d work late into the night, stay over, and spend Sunday decorating.
“I became so accustomed to knowing everything, she had me instruct adults by the time I was a teenager,” Greg said.
Becky, 42, who teaches first grade, appeared on Zoom wearing a festive red sweater, weeks before Christmas. (Greg, 45, who teaches social studies to high schoolers, wore a plaid shirt, and their dog Jingle barked in the background.)
“I always loved Christmas,” she said. “I love to have a Hallmark house and feel cozy and comfy. But I was very intimidated by Greg’s mom and her decorating when I became a part of the family.”
Greg and Becky Wimmer were among the Pensylvannia social media creators invited to Gov. Josh Shapiro’s reception.
The two, both public schoolteachers, met at Elizabethtown College studying for their teaching degrees, and run an Instagram account called the Class Couple. Here, they share content about, of course, holiday decorating but also more serious stuff like voter engagement and clips from them attending a “No Kings” march, anti-ICE protests, and a Kamala Harris rally. Recently, the couple were invited to attend a holiday reception for content creators hosted by Gov. Josh Shapiro.
“We spent quite a few years sharing teaching things, and then COVID hit. We as teachers had to go back to work before the vaccine was out, and because we didn’t get that choice, our kids didn’t, either,” Becky said.
After their oldest son, Grayson, became deaf in his left ear from COVID, “our ‘why’ for sharing online quickly changed,” she said.
They started posting content on health and safety, and sharing Grayson’s journey from hearing loss to cochlear implant to attending a school for deaf students on the campus of Gallaudet University in Washington, D.C.
“We had always been passionate about those types of things, but we felt the need to speak on that a little bit more, especially since it had impacted us directly in such a big way,” Becky said.
Grayson Wimmer was born on Christmas Eve in 2009. He is one big reason behind the family’s knack for going big on Christmas celebrations.
Grayson, who was born on Christmas Eve and is turning 16 this year, is one big reason behind the family’s knack for going big on Christmas celebrations. The family’s first tree goes up on Halloween.
“Only the first one. It’s usually a skinny accent tree,” Greg said.
“Halloween is like the gateway to get us to Christmas. We host Thanksgiving, but by then it’s like a Christmas wonderland,” Becky said. “We have a lot of skinny trees throughout the house.” One of those, she said, belonged to her mother, who is now in hospice with dementia.
“Then there’s the main family tree, two taller skinny trees, and three smaller 3½-foot ones, and a small one in our bedroom.”
Their younger son, Urban, 13, also has one in his room.
But the Wimmers are not hoarders, Greg insists. “My goal is to always fit everything under the stairs in the basement,” he said.
The family uses plastic trees — Grayson is allergic to real ones — and has been using the same ones for more than five years. Although it’s hard to find plastic trees that are not pre-lit, they are happy to take the trouble of finding those. The couple’s go-to stores are always the local home and garden shops.
Lighting the tree is a bit of an Olympic sport for the household and it falls squarely on Greg’s able shoulders. He uses 1,700 lights (17 strands of 100 lights) and buys them months before Christmas. The claim to having the best lit tree in the state is only half in jest, bolstered by social media comments and a new title bestowed upon Greg by the internet: Christmas Lights Man.
A 2020 photo of the family dog, Huck, inf ront of the family’s Christmas tree in York, Pa.
Every year, Grayson and Urban pick and choose which ornaments to put up.
“That’s the key to Christmas,” said Greg. “How do you make it special for you? For me it’s putting 1,700 lights. But whatever your tradition is, lean into it and embrace what the season is about.”
Here are the Wimmers’ best tips so you can lay claim to having the second-best lit tree(s) in all of Pennsylvania.
Measure your space
“Most importantly, get a tree that fits in your space, don’t overpower your room,” Becky said.
Start at the top
Judy used a ladder; Greg uses a stepladder. “The branches are so close together [on top] that it’s the easiest to go up and over each branch,” Greg said.
Don’t wrap, loop
“Build depth by looping the wire around the individual branches and then work your way out from the base of the branch,” Greg said. “This way, I can control the cord more. Going around the tree. … I don’t see how people do it, because I think that you’re then just dancing around.”
“My mom did this,” Greg said of working in sections and his reasoning behind using 17 strands of 100 lights. “So if a strand went out on the main lobby tree, she could just take the ornaments and lights down in one section and replace the lights, instead of taking everything apart.”
No LED lights
Greg uses “the older incandescent lights because I feel like LEDs just don’t give the same glow.”
Always backlight
Greg puts lights on the back end of the tree because “I don’t want a dark corner. It ends up giving off a really neat glow when the other lights are off in the room.”
Check your extension cords
“They can’t all be on one. Use multiple cords and be aware of your breakers’ capabilities, especially with live trees,” Greg said.
It’s going to take time, that’s OK
Greg said he takes about 90 minutes to light the main family tree, which is seven feet tall.
DEAR ABBY: Ten years ago, I connected with “Christi,” a daughter I fathered with a woman I was in a relationship with for a short time decades ago. We split before Christi was born. My ex-girlfriend didn’t tell me about her until after she was born. By that time, she was married to a man Christi knew as her dad. However, she no longer acknowledges him as her father.
Christi and I developed our relationship, and it would be impossible for me to love her more than I do. When I retired five years ago, she asked me to move closer to her and my 11-year-old granddaughter. She said she would appreciate help with things like driving her to school and activities. Since relocating, though, I have been given very little access to either of them. Christi’s family has poisoned my granddaughter against me. Whenever I see them, it’s always in a group of 10 or more, so we haven’t developed any of the closeness I was hoping for.
This situation is making me miserable to the point of affecting my mental health. I get the feeling that if I address this with Christi, I’ll be cast out of her life completely. I don’t think I could handle that. Must I accept the limited role I have been given in their lives or risk our relationship by telling her how I feel?
— LET DOWN IN FLORIDA
DEAR LET DOWN: The time has come to revisit those conversations you had with Christi in which she asked you to move closer. Tell her you agreed because you thought it would be an opportunity to spend time with her and get to know your granddaughter. However, the result has been that you feel more like a free chauffeur service than a grandparent. Ask why this has happened.
If the situation is fixable, talk with a licensed psychotherapist about how to accomplish it. However, if there are no changes, return to the community from which you came before you suffer further emotional damage.
** ** **
DEAR ABBY: Where and how do you draw the line between being kind and being a people pleaser? Furthermore, how do you know when you’re doing something that you don’t particularly want to do, but don’t mind doing, either out of kindness or an inability to say no?
Sometimes, I regret committing to something only when I’m actually in the middle of it or just beforehand. Other times, I realize I’ve taken on too many responsibilities, which makes me feel frustrated and stressed, even though I still enjoy being helpful whenever possible. How do I recognize and avoid these unpleasant feelings and experiences?
— CARRYING THE WEIGHT
DEAR CARRYING: You are a good person. Now start being as nice to yourself as you try to be to others. Because keeping the promises you make to these people is causing you to feel stressed or resentful, you must find the courage to say no. Start practicing now, before the milk of human kindness begins to curdle in your breast.
** ** **
TO MY READERS: The eight days of the Jewish holiday of Hanukkah begin at sundown. Happy Hanukkah, everyone, and a joyous Festival of Lights to all of us.
This week I have invited two reporters to help answer one of the many SEPTA questions we hear.
Have your own thoughts or other questions? Fill in the box at the end!
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Evan Weiss
Deputy Features Editor
Before we get to the question at hand, can you both describe your backgrounds with taking SEPTA?
Beatrice Forman
Food & Dining Reporter
I've been carless since I moved to Philly seven years ago, and take SEPTA pretty much everywhere unless I'm with my boyfriend, who drives. Then I'm a passenger princess.
Henry Savage
Now Reporter
I ride SEPTA bus and subway every week to The Inquirer offices, plus when I’m going out at night. Cheap, and fairly quick travel!
Beatrice Forman
Food & Dining Reporter
“Fairly quick” is doing a lot of heavy lifting.
Henry Savage
You're not wrong lol.
Evan Weiss
Okay, the question is… What’s the etiquette when someone is blasting music on the El with no headphones — speak up or suffer?
Beatrice Forman
I think it's one of those things where it's well within your rights to speak up about someone blasting music on the El (especially in the morning), but do you really want to be known as the curmudgeon who chastised someone over something like this? I'd be so afraid of getting sniped and posted on TikTok.
Beatrice Forman
Have you ever spoken up about this IRL?
Henry Savage
I’ve seen full-blown phone calls on speaker and people smoking out of glass instruments, but to be honest with you, I haven't said anything.
Henry Savage
What's your go-to solution when this happens to you? I'm partial to blasting my headphones.
Beatrice Forman
I wish I was the type of person who could just turn my AirPods up full volume to drown it out, but I am also a 5-foot-tall woman alone on public transit, so the head has to stay on a swivel. Also, sometimes those things die!
Beatrice Forman
I was recently on the BSL home from an assignment in South Philly around the time classes let out, and this kid was blasting Kendrick Lamar loud enough for all the train car to hear, so I ended up politely offering him a pair of corded earbuds to use to see if he'd take the hint.
Henry Savage
Nice work!
Beatrice Forman
He did not take the hint, but I was proud of myself for trying.
Beatrice Forman
Do you think there's a right way to nudge a person to, perhaps, not smoke on the train? Or blast their playlist?
Henry Savage
I think going the solutions-oriented approach of, "Hey, looks like you could use some headphones?" is a good call.
Henry Savage
In reality, what's the right way? Probably being as polite as possible while knowing the person will likely rebuff you. That being said, sometimes all it takes is for one person to call someone out!
Henry Savage
Or should we just invoke "Think of the children and older riders!" Smoking in front of children is the worst look.
Evan Weiss
Smoking is really the most annoying. I've been on the train with my daughter and we just had to move cars — not worth the possible contention with her there.
Henry Savage
Yeah, if things go dicey with your kid there… good call.
Beatrice Forman
I do think sometimes a very pointed and pissed off "Can you not? There's people around" would probably be soooo cathartic though, and would get the point across. Especially for smoking. No one likes that but the smoker.
Henry Savage
The moments you think about an hour afterward and say, "Dang! I wish I said that back there!"
Beatrice Forman
I think it's tough because so much of the issues with these things on SEPTA can be brushed off as just the side effects of living in a city and can feel kind of elitist to complain about, but also, counterpoint: none of this should be happening enough to warrant an Inquirer column.
Evan Weiss
True! FWIW I do think it's far better on the bus than the train — probably because you have the driver upfront to tell people off.
Henry Savage
Yes, I will say that taking the bus there's more enforcement in my opinion. Some SEPTA bus drivers are known to pull the bus over and not leave until the issue is resolved, like smoking, fare evasion, or loud speakers!
Beatrice Forman
I've also seen this happen on the bus, Evan. Mostly music though, not the smoking.
Evan Weiss
Bea, I'm still impressed you said something! I don't think I've ever seen that happen
Henry Savage
Yeah, that's a true Philly move.
Beatrice Forman
It was like exposure therapy for my anxiety.
Beatrice Forman
I will probably never do it again though. Not the hero we quite need.
Henry Savage
In a perfect world? Every single smoker and to a lesser extent music blaster would be confronted, and realistically fined or reprimanded for the behavior. In this economy? I’m keeping it moving and cranking my music.
Henry Savage
If my headphones die, I suffer in — well, not silence — but the blaring sounds of AI voice over TikTok slop videos.
Evan Weiss
Any last words, Bea?
Beatrice Forman
Be the change you wish to see in the world and don't smoke or make me listen to your bad taste in TikToks on SEPTA.
This conversation has been edited for length.
What other Very Philly Questions should we address?
