Philadelphia Kick Off Event — Jan 21, 2010
National Honeybee Bicentennial Kicks Off Jan. 21
Celebrates Philly-born “Father of American Beekeeping”
Science Friday Initiative’s Carl Flatow comes to town Thursday, Jan. 21, to kick off national celebrations of the Father of American Beekeeping, Philadelphia’s own Lorenzo Langstroth.
The occasion is the 200th anniversary of Langstroth’s birth. Raised on Front Street, educated at Yale, Langstroth invented the movable-frame beehive in Philadelphia. It allows for the study of bee science and the extraction of honey from a hive, without damaging the colony and relies on a unique insect instinct we call “bee space.”
“Without Langstroth’s invention of the movable-frame hive…the honey bee would not have become the best studied insect on the planet. “ - Thomas D. Seeley, PhD., Professor of Biology, Cornell University Dept. of Neurobiology and Behavior
Given the critical role honey bees play in pollinating a full one-third of our diet and the current worldwide “colony collapse” crisis, Langstroth’s importance looms especially large today. The Langstroth Bicentennial events will honor an unsung American hero, and recognize Philadelphia as the birthplace of the most important events in beekeeping history.
The gathering in Mt. Airy will be the first of many events throughout the United States. Locally, the inaugural event at the Unitarian Society of Germantown, in Mt. Airy, will feature presentations by Carl Flatow, Barbara Ceiga, and Marc Hoffman.
The evening’s hosts — the Philadelphia Beekeepers’ Guild, Montgomery County Beekeepers’ Association and the Chester County Beekeepers’ Association — will use this opportunity to further plans for the 1st annual Langstroth / Philly Honey Fest, September 2010, and other Langstroth-centered events at regional institutions.
Carl Flatow, Director of the Science Friday Initiative’s Down to Earth program will talk about the scope of the national Langstroth bicentennial project, centered around bee science and the Rev. Langstroth as the quintessential “citizen scientist.”
Marc Hoffman is a Langstroth historian and performer of a one-man show as the “Bee Man” — the Rev. Lorenzo Lorraine Langstroth, that will be performed, locally, later this year. He will talk about the man and his accomplishments.
Barbara Ceiga, vice president at the Academy of Natural Sciences, will put it all in context, describing Philadelphia’s central role in American science in Langstroth’s day.
Joel Eckel of the Philadelphia Beekeepers’ Guild will introduce the program for the evening.
The evening will also include a raffle of a Brushy Mountain Hive Kit and several subscriptions to Bee Culture magazine. Haagen-Dazs’ Help the Honey Bees project is providing ice cream for dessert.
This event is free.
The public is invited to this evening of celebration, entertainment, enlightenment (and planning), Thursday, Jan. 21, 7 PM, at the Unitarian Society of Germantown, 6511 Lincoln Drive, Philadelphia. see: http://www.usguu.org/pages/Directions for maps, public transportation and (free) parking info.
To contact the Philadelphia Beekeepers’ Guild send email to Suzanne Matlock.
