city of york
275th anniversary
writer michael vyskocil photographer lucia de giovanni
In 2016, York marks its 275th anniversary. For close to three centuries since its 1741 founding, the City of York has witnessed change and challenge, evolution and revolution, retrograde and revitalization. This is the city that contributed largely to an experiment in democracy leading to the development of the United States of America. This is the city where the American Industrial Revolution was deeply rooted. This is the city continuing to flourish as a thoroughly contemporary, multifaceted community. This is a York for the centuries. KENNEDY JEAN-BAPTISTE Kennedy Jean-Baptiste, 16, a William Penn High School junior, spoke about her vision for her school’s future through her poem “My Vision, My Education” at the Creative York Awards. Here’s her hope for York’s future: “I want to see people come together to fix issues and become a stronger community,” she says. “I want the youth to be part of everything going on in the city. I want more people to hone in on their talents and share [those] with the city.”
07 | YRKMagazine.com
CARL KURLANDER Screenwriter, producer, St. Elmo’s Fire film genesis and founder of the nonprofit Steeltown Entertainment Project, Carl Kurlander appreciates how cities like York and his native Pittsburgh convey a sense of vitality. “York is a place that gave birth to new things,” he says. “Given the passion of its community, York, like other post-industrial cities, stands to be able to reinvent itself for an information age which allows people to live wherever they like more and more, and where the quality of life … can be truly appreciated.” JUDY SIMPSON “I feel that it is important to celebrate [the] 275th anniversary to remind us of the importance York played in our nation’s history,” says Judy Simpson, co-founder of the Women’s Giving Circle of York and the York County Honors Choir. “Wouldn’t it be wonderful to include our youth, to provide educational and musical opportunities which can move them forward for many more years?”
MAYOR C. KIM BRACEY As York’s first African-American mayor, C. Kim Bracey has set about engaging people to work together for the good of their neighborhoods and the greater York community. “What a significant and historical moment in time for the City of York to celebrate 275 years of history set before us by our forefathers,” she says. “As we weave the delicate fabric of our history together with the newfound strings of our future, let us move forward in the grace of those who came before us, allowing the groundbreaking steps of our footprints to become prominent marks in our history that future generations will gleam upon.”
What is your idea of a “York for the centuries”? Keep this conversation going on YRK magazine’s Facebook and Twitter, or send a note to info@yrkmagazine.com