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Thomas H. Keels

Wicked Philadelphia: Sin in the City of Brotherly Love Paperback – February 19, 2010

by Thomas H. Keels (Author)

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Historian Thomas Keels tells many ribald stories in his book, "Wicked Philadelphia: Sin in the City of Brotherly Love," including various methods of body snatching and murder.
--Marty Moss-Coane, WHYY-FM

Prim and proper Philadelphia has been rocked by the clash between excessive vice and social virtue since its citizens burned the city's biggest brothel in 1800. With tales of grave robbers in South Philadelphia and harlots in Franklin Square, Wicked Philadelphia reveals the shocking underbelly of the City of Brotherly Love. In one notorious scam, a washerwoman masqueraded as the fictional Spanish countess Anita de Bettencourt for two decades, bilking millions from victims and even fooling the government of Spain. From the 1843 media frenzy that ensued after an aristocrat abducted a young girl to a churchyard transformed into a brothel (complete with a carousel), local author Thomas H. Keels unearths Philadelphia's most scintillating scandals and corrupt characters in this rollicking history.

Print length

124 pages
Language

English
Publisher

The History Press
Publication date

February 19, 2010
Dimensions

6 x 0.31 x 9 inches
ISBN-10

9781596297876
ISBN-13

978-1596297876
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Editorial Reviews

Review

Historian Thomas Keels tells many ribald stories in his new book, "Wicked Philadelphia: Sin in the City of Brotherly Love," including various methods of body snatching and murder.
--Marty Moss-Coane, Radio Times, WHYY-FM

"Wicked Philadelphia" does an excellent job of fusing history with humor to create an informative, inviting work that educates as well as entertains.

--Philadelphia Gay News

About the Author

Thomas H. Keels is an auslander, sociologist E. Digby Baltzell's term for an outsider who moves to Philadelphia and falls in love with its rich heritage. Since moving to Philadelphia in 1988, Tom has written five books dealing with local history: Wicked Philadelphia; Forgotten Philadelphia: Lost Architecture of the Quaker City; Philadelphia Graveyards and Cemeteries; Philadelphia's Rittenhouse Square (with Robert Morris Skaler); and Chestnut Hill (with Liz Jarvis). His next book, Rainbow Cities: Philadelphia's Three World's Fairs, will be published in 2012. Tom is a regular contributor to the Rittenhouse Sq. Revue and also contributes features to Creatively Speaking on WRTI-FM. A self-proclaimed taphophile, he has been a tour guide at Laurel Hill, Philadelphia's premier Victorian cemetery, for over a decade.

Product details

ASIN ‏ : ‎ 1596297875
Publisher ‏ : ‎ The History Press (February 19, 2010)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Paperback ‏ : ‎ 124 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 9781596297876
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1596297876
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 8 ounces
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6 x 0.31 x 9 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #447,041 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #49 in Philadelphia Pennsylvania Travel Books
- #509 in Mid Atlantic US Travel Books
- #1,497 in Crime & Criminal Biographies

Customer Reviews:
28 ratings

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Thomas H. Keels

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Tom Keels is the author of seven published books on Philadelphia and American history:

-- Sesqui! Greed, Graft, and the Forgotten World's Fair of 1926. Temple Univ. Press, 2017.

-- Philadelphia's Golden Age of Retail (with Lawrence M. Arrigale). Arcadia Publishing, 2012.

-- Wicked Philadelphia: Sin in the City of Brotherly Love. The History Press, 2010.

-- Forgotten Philadelphia: Lost Architecture of the Quaker City. Temple Univ. Press, 2007.

-- Philadelphia Graveyards and Cemeteries. Arcadia Publishing, 2003.

-- Philadelphia's Rittenhouse Square (with Robert Morris Skaler). Arcadia Publishing, 2008.

-- Chestnut Hill (with Elizabeth Farmer Jarvis). Arcadia Publishing, 2002.

Besides his books, Tom is a lecturer, tour guide, writer, and commentator specializing in Philadelphia history, architecture, and cemeteries.

Tom has spoken to the American Institute of Architects, American Revolution Roundtable, Chestnut Hill Historical Society, Curtis Institute of Music, Franklin Inn Club, Free Library of Philadelphia, Friends of Independence National Historical Park, Harvard Club of Philadelphia, Preservation Alliance of Greater Philadelphia, Springfield Township Historical Society, and Union League of Philadelphia.

Tom has appeared on "Mysteries at the Museum" on the Travel Channel, on History Making Production's "Philadelphia: The Great Experiment," and on "Philly Firsts" on WLVT/PBS39. Other media appearances include Radio Times on WHYY-FM, Creatively Speaking on WRTI-FM, PA Books on the Pennsylvania Cable Network, Action News on WPVI-TV, and Good Day Philadelphia on FOX-TV. His articles have appeared in Philadelphia Style, The Rittenhouse Sq. Revue, Germantown Crier, and many local newspapers.

Tom has been a tour guide at Laurel Hill Cemetery for twenty years. He has also given tours of the Woodlands, West Laurel Hill Cemetery, and other historic sites. He has conducted classes on Philadelphia cemetery history for the Bucks County Community College Historic Preservation Program, Cheltenham Township Adult School, and Mount Airy Learning Tree.

Visit Tom's web site at www.thomaskeels.com or check out his Facebook page "Sesqui."

Customer reviews

5 star		59%
4 star		11%
3 star		12%
2 star		14%
1 star		4%

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Not The Best Book About Sin In The City Of Philadelphia

Reviewed in the United States on February 22, 2020

Verified Purchase

Having lived in and around Philadelphia for over 20 years, I can tell you there is a lot more the author could have put in this book to make it a lot better. Political corruption and other crimes have been a staple of Philly life for years, and he seems to have cherry picked about a dozen or so to represent the City of Brotherly Love.

Some of what he wrote about was interesting, while some of it had nothing to do with the darker side of the city. I am not sure what criteria the author used, but he missed some good ones from the 1980s and 1990s.

Overall, this book would be a pass for me…just not a enough good juicy stuff here, and what is contained is overflowing with minuet details that are irrelevant to this day and age.

Helpful

betsychina

So much fun to read

Reviewed in the United States on August 24, 2015

Verified Purchase

So much fun to read. The tone and delivery perfect: subtly irreverent, but gosh darn, you learn so much. We've had an uproarious time reading it around the dinner table. Our discussions do segue into what else was going on at that time or with such and such a character or industry, thanks to history major father. As the hopeful matriarch trying to get her kids focused on something else besides the Kardashians or World of Warcraft, this book so works for me.

2 people found this helpful

Helpful

ABC

I love the dark and dirty side of Philadelphia

Reviewed in the United States on October 11, 2016

Verified Purchase

I love the dark and dirty side of Philadelphia. The stories are very entertaining and keep the attention span. Fast read, but each story is its own entity. You can skip around and not miss anything.

One person found this helpful

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James Charnock

200 Years of Wickedness

Reviewed in the United States on May 31, 2014

Verified Purchase

It is interesting enough to know that Philadelphia, PA, had its seamy side from the latter 1700s to the latter 1900s, and to read of the details. But the author bores the reader with such an inundation of minutiae that one is forced to skim in order not to fall asleep.

One person found this helpful

Helpful

Mark

A Must for lovers of Philadelphia History

Reviewed in the United States on October 26, 2015

Verified Purchase

This book is awesome. Philadelphia is a city that is rich in history with a lot of crazy happening here over the centuries. Thomas Keels does a great job sharing these stories.

Helpful

Five Stars

Reviewed in the United States on August 15, 2017

Verified Purchase

wonderful history

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