Today, January 17, 2023, was inauguration day in Pennsylvania. This inauguration is particularly historic to us here in Montgomery County.
Governor Josh Shapiro
Governor Josh Shapiro is the eighth governor to hail from our county. The other governors were: Gov. David R. Porter (1839-1845), Gov. Francis R. Shunk (1845-1848), Gov. John F. Hartranft (1873-1879), Gov. John C. Bell (Jan. 2, 1947- Jan. 21, 1947), Gov. Samuel W. Pennypacker (1903-1907), Gov. George Earle III (1935-1939), and Gov. Milton Shapp (1971-1979). To learn more about these past governors, click on their names. We have various items in HSMC's collection that are connected to these governors. This includes items such as: photographs, portraits, a quilt, and political pins.
Portrait of Gov. Hartranft, HSMC Collection
In addition to being from Montgomery County, Governor Shapiro is also, as far as I have been able to verify, the third Jewish governor in our state. Former Governor Milton Shapp, also from Montgomery County, was the first Jewish governor in Pennsylvania.
Gov. Shapp's Election, Times Herald, November 4, 1970, HSMC microfilm collection
Lastly, today was historic for another reason too. Lt. Governor Austin Davis was sworn in as Pennsylvania's first Black lieutenant governor.
Lieutenant Governor Austin Davis
