💘 Cupid lives under a Philly bar | Morning Newsletter

Hi, Philly. It’s a sunny, breezy Saturday with a high near 61.

Today, I’m talking about the Philadelphia tavern where apparently you’re most likely to meet the love of your life.

Plus, there’s news on a potential strike on SEPTA’s Norristown High Speed Line, the latest City Council move designed to keep so-called nuisance businesses out of parts of Philadelphia, and new safety rankings for local hospitals.

— Paola Pérez (morningnewsletter@inquirer.com)

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We know it’s been named the best Irish bar. We know it’s the oldest continuously operating tavern in Philadelphia. We know it’s the kind of bar that celebrates its longtime bartender with a yearlong party. But what I only recently learned was that McGillin’s claims more couples have found love there than any other place in the city.

My intrigue started with a Facebook post. The bar shared a photo of a newly engaged couple who met there, and “the rest is history.” One reply said: “I also met my husband at McGillin’s! July 13, 2008 — still madly in love!”

It’s hard out here for Philadelphians looking for serious love. We’re the most single (unmarried) big city in the country. But there’s no way we’re doomed to this statistical single-dom. No way we’re fated to endure situationship after situationship, or to be dubbed “long-term, long-distance, low-commitment casual partners.”

That’s why discovering this slice of Philadelphia lore made my heart smile. It’s sweet to read the stories of generations that began at this Center City spot, like the legend of “the nun and the sailor.” Even its employees are getting hitched — with each other, and with regulars-turned-partners. And don’t get me started on the romantic tale of McGillin’s owners Chris Mullins Sr. and his wife, Mary Ellen. This video by my colleague Astrid Rodrigues of a few couples sharing their stories is well worth your time, too.

There are countless more stories of couples and families that trace and credit their beginnings to McGillin’s. Jenn Ladd reported earlier this year that the bar even keeps a spreadsheet to track them. The business is always looking out for more and asks lovers to “stop in to sign our love letters book!” It has also run promotions for wedding proposals, a callback to an Irish tradition where women ask for a man’s hand in marriage — but only on Leap Day.

Does Cupid live under the floorboards? Is he chugging oyster juice down there? What’s the real secret to the matchmaking magic of McGillin’s? “The beer and the wine help,” Mary Ellen said in 2022. This beloved place has been pouring rounds of love since 1860. We can all toast to that. And congrats, Nisha and Mike!

In 2018, a newly installed natural gas pipeline exploded in Western Pennsylvania, destroying a home and knocking out a major electrical transmission line. Thankfully, no one was injured or killed. But the fear of a similar catastrophe happening again lingers for some people, including Rachel Sica Meyer.

A recent poll of Pennsylvanians found that 42% of voters support an outright ban on fracking. And a study showed alarming links between fracking and lymphoma in kids.

“Our children’s health isn’t partisan,” Meyer writes in a guest column. “Pennsylvanians need strong pollution protections from fracking now.”

Read on for Meyer’s perspective on ways state leaders can act to protect the health and safety of residents.

Ursa Bakery’s bread, made in North Philly from local grains, is a far cry from anything you’d find at Wawa. The bakery’s production facility used to be a _____.

A) gym

B) bank

C) bar

D) gas station

Think you know? Check your answer.

Hint: A strip of blocks that runs through parts of North Philadelphia, South Philadelphia, and Fairmount

EASTER NETTY

Email us if you know the answer. We’ll select a reader at random to shout out here.

Cheers to Deborah Faccenda who correctly guessed Friday’s answer: Christmas Village. Philly’s popular open-air German-style market returns to LOVE Park for its 17th season starting Nov. 28. Here’s what you can expect.

A Veterans Day ceremony on the Battleship New Jersey on Monday began with the Bells of Peace. The ship’s bell was rung 11 times at 11 a.m., marking the moment the armistice with Germany went into effect at the end of World War I on Nov. 11, 1918. The holiday was broadened in the 1950s to honor all veterans.

In addition to the Camden ceremony, there was a rifle salute and a memorial wreath was tossed upon the Delaware River. See more photos from the commemoration. — Tom Gralish

Are our squirrels built differently?

On Reddit, one Philadelphian is warning against chirping or whistling at the creatures unless you want them to jump through your window. On a different thread, someone shared a photo of a PPA envelope filled with acorns and a written warning: “Stop Parking Here. — The Squirrels.”

That thread is filled with people recounting their own squirrel horror stories. Some consider the fake parking ticket a veiled threat. Others have creative ideas to pay it (see: peanuts and an oak tree). Word is still out on what the ”holy squirrel tribunal” has to say on this matter.

👋🏽 Let’s do this again tomorrow morning. See you then.

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