We continue with our Pennsylvania signers of the Declaration of Independence today. We must first address some massively important questions relating to Pennsylvania before moving on as they have seismic implications. I want your input in response to these important questions in the comments.

First,

Which chain eatery has the best Philly Cheesesteak sandwich?

We all know the locals would trump the chains, but not many of us get the opportunity to partake of the offerings of the locals. That is why this question relates to the chains. What we do know is that there are too many choices and personal likes and dislikes to promote one style over the other. However, that does not stop me from giving my view since I am the author of this story. 😂

That said, I do think ribeye makes for the best taste. I also think the Firehouse Subs version is #1(a) and Jersey Mike’s Big Kahuna is #1(b) for the best chain provider of the ones I have tried. The later uses white American cheese versus provolone with the former. For what it is worth Charleys Philly Steaks wins the #1 pick with nearly all of the reviewers who have tried them. There are just no Charleys anywhere around where I could try one.

So, the next question is which Pennsylvania professional sports team is the most popular?

We know most Pennsylvanians love their sports, especially the professional teams. To answer this I picked one measure which would be to see which had the most web searches conducted on them. The results as provided by a gaming site that did the research a few years ago by checking google searches was as follows (in order): Pittsburgh Steelers (NFL), Philadelphia Eagles (NFL), Pittsburg Penguins (NHL), Pittsburgh Pirates (MLB), Philadelphia Phillies (MLB).

After the Eagles’ Super Bowl appearance in 2024, I suspected that order may have changed with the top two when also considering TV ratings. The margin narrowed, but even based on TV ratings the order remains the same. Perhaps the Eagles victory in the last SB may have put them over the top subject to more current data that I could not find. One thing we can determine with certainty, it appears that Steeler fans and Eagles fans do not cross their self imposed red lines of fandoms.

It was interesting to note that the wretched Pirates, or Rats as MLB Central Division competitor fans call them, as a bad team of late had nearly double the searches over the Phillies organization that made it all the way to the World Series the year the data and article was published. It is also telling that the NBA’s Philadelphia 76ers did not even make the Top 10. So much for the NBA. It died when Michael Jordan retired in my home anyway.

https://www.pennstakes.com/info/pennsylvanias-most-popular-sports-teams

https://www.thesportsgeek.com/blog/nfl-most-watched-2024

Next, what are the Top 15 attractions for visitors in Pennsylvania?

For this one I went to Tripadvisor, which seems like a logical source since people love to talk about and rate where they visit. From the TA site: “…we consider traveler reviews, ratings, number of page views, and user location.” The results were surprising to say the least.

In order: Eastern State Penitentiary (😂), Longwood Gardens (botanical), Independence Hall, Sight & Sound Theaters (Biblical dramatizations), Duquesne Incline (cable car ride), Knoebels Amusement Resort, Reading Terminal Market (food), Gettysburg National Military Park, Phipps Conservatory and Botanical Park, Philadelphia Museum of Art, Fallingwater (Frank Lloyd Wright home/nature), The Amish Farm and House, PNC Park (Pirates), Presque Isle State Park, Strip District (eateries, bars, shops).

https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attractions-g28959-Activities-Pennsylvania.html

A visit to Eastern State Penitentiary sounds like the most Philadelphia thing evah. Visitors are treated to the former accommodations of Al Capone and death row in a medieval looking, architecturally wondrous House of Pain. Yeah! Now if they could convert it to Pennsylvania’s version of Alligator Alcatraz and permit MAGA supporters to attend departure ceremonies with open viewing of illegals being jettisoned we might be on to something. Many of us would pay reasonable admission fees to attend.

I am going to avoid the currently most popular Pennsylvania celebrity with the next question as it creates recency bias. Besides that I cannot stand Taylor Swift. The question I pose is who are the Top Fifteen greatest Pennsylvanians of all time?

Even Swift was relegated to #100 in the linked listing below. The authors seemed to take their approach a tiny bit more seriously, but alas, also very woke. It is hard to take a list of greats seriously that has Fred Rogers at #3 out of 100, but you know what is said about opinions and azzholes, everybody has one.

My version from the list would go: William Penn, Benjamin Franklin, Dwight Eisenhower, Benjamin Rush, Betsy Ross, John Dickinson, Edgar Allan Poe, Jimmy Stewart, George Westinghouse, George C. Marshall, Milton Hershey, Billie Holiday, Jim Thorpe, Wilt Chamberlain, John Coltrane, Stephen Foster, Johnny Unitas, Arnold Palmer, and… welp, I guess I cannot stop at fifteen. Pretty amazing list of people. I could list nearly fifteen patriots from the independence movement alone. Guess it is time to move on. I left out Andrew Carnegie due to what we know about how his Foundation’s funds were used to weaponize against the interests of We the People.

https://www.pennlive.com/life/2018/06/100_greatest_pennsylvanians.html

Finally, what is the religious composition of Pennsylvania residents?

Short answer – about 7 in 10 are Christians.

https://www.studycountry.com/wiki/what-is-the-most-common-religion-in-pennsylvania

Enough with the fluff, time to move on to the another PA signer of the Declaration.

George Ross, Jr.

The next founding father is often overlooked in the discussions about Declaration signers. A son of Anglican clergy Rev. George Ross, Sr. who had emigrated from Scotland in 1679, George Ross was born in 1730 in New Castle, DE as one of sixteen children of his father who had two wives. The Ross family had a long history in Scotland dating back to the year 1173 with the naming of an ancestor as the Earl of Ross in 1226 as he had great battle victories under King Alexander II. George’s sister, Gertrude, married the son of a prominent judge and politician. Upon the man’s death she married Declaration signer, George Read. Ross Jr. was also the uncle of the man who married Betsy Griscom in 1773. Perhaps you have heard of Betsy Ross?

Just in prominent family relationships alone we see George Ross, George Read and Betsy Ross. There is more acknowledgement of his importance in the patriot past with George Ross, George Washington and Robert Morris being featured on a 3 cent US stamp commemorating Betsy Ross back in 1952.

Ross received a classical education at home through the efforts of his father. He went on to read law at the office of his attorney older brother, John. At the age of 20 he was admitted to the Pennsylvania Bar and opened his practice in Lancaster, PA in 1750. He married Ann Lawler in 1751 and they went on to have three children together; two sons and a daughter. They were of the Episcopal faith and he was a vestryman in St. James Episcopal Church there. They met when she was 19 after she sought his legal advice and she became one of his first clients. It was an unusual event for a young woman to need legal advice in those days, but it appears none of her family were still living. It is possible his expertise was needed as she owned properties there that had probably been passed to her from her deceased father. With their marriage they had considerable combined wealth. She was considered quite beautiful by the town’s residents as were their children. One portrait of her follows,

During those days Ross was a Tory and was appointed as a Crown prosecutor for 12 years in Carlisle until elected into the PA provincial legislature in 1768. Although late to the cause of independence, through his experiences he began to see the difficulties caused by Parliament’s actions against the colonies. He became consumed with support for the independence movement and continued to progress in politics, representing PA in various roles and as a delegate in the General Congress in 1774. Just prior to that his wife passed away unexpectedly in 1773 at the age of 42 . George chose not to remarry.

He became a member of the Committee of Safety the next year in 1775 before being elected into the Continental Congress in 1776. He also served as a Colonel in the Continental Army. Being a benevolent person at heart he was soon tasked with improving relationships and negotiating a peace treaty, the Fort Pitt Treaty, with the northwestern PA located Indians.

Ross was not a member of the Continental Congress when the Declaration was approved. However, he had become one for the state prior to its signing and executed the document. He assisted with procurement and inspection of military supplies until his health turned poor and had to resign. In 1777 he was appointed a judge in the state’s Court of Admiralty (maritime related). He was a strong states’ rights advocate in the law before it became a controversial subject. He returned to serve once again in the Pennsylvania Assembly in 1778.

In 1779 he passed away from the effects of gout at the age of 49. He is buried with other founders in the Christ Church cemetery. Although Ross did not fight in the war due to his health, both of the couple’s sons served with distinction and led exemplary lives along with their sister. Ann, one son (George), and their daughter (Mary) are buried in St. James Episcopal Church Cemetery in Lancaster with other family members.

George Ross, Jr. went about his duties to God, country and family resolutely and well. We salute him as an important founding patriot of our great nation.

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Be blessed and go make something good happen!