If there’s one thing I love about cities in general, it’s urban legends. Philly has a very interesting one, and of course, it has to do with sports. Ever heard of “The Curse of Billy Penn?”
Here’s how the story goes. Once upon a time, Philadelphia sports teams were on fire. In 1967 the Sixers became NBA champs. In 1974 and 1975 the Flyers won the Stanley Cup. Five years later, the Phillies won the World Series. Then the Sixers became champions again in 1983. The golden era, if you will.
But in 1987, developer Willard Rouse erected One Liberty Place which soared past the William Penn statue by about 400 feet. What’s the big deal with that? Well, throughout the 20th century there was a “gentlemen’s agreement” among developers to keep any building from rising higher than the top of Billy Penn.
Is Willard Rouse the reason that Philly sports teams lost their mojo? That’s what the legend says! Weirdly enough, later that same year the Flyers lost to the Edmonton Oilers in the seventh game of the Stanley Cup finals and then lost the finals again a decade later.
Phillies fans cheering on their team in the 2022 World Series championship games. (Daniel Shirey /Getty Images)
That’s not all though. Our beloved teams suffered a series of losses from 1993 to 2005. Fans experienced the devastation of losing the World Series, the Super Bowl, and the NBA Finals.
At some point during all this defeat, someone put the pieces together and theorized that the angry spirit of William Penn must be the cause.
Does this urban legend still hold true? I mean, look at what happened with the Phillies in October. Looks like Billy Penn is holding a grudge.
