After the fireworks...the history and stuff

Breaking news: PHMC 2010 Photo contest opened July 1 (and runs to January 1, 2011). Go here for details!

I love the 4th of July. The fireworks, getting together with family and friends, and the food (big surprise). I’m not much for parades, but if you like parades you can surely find at least one to suit your tastes. I like the fact that this is a holiday that unites us as a nation of communities and people of different backgrounds and traditions. There are many perspectives on what it means to be American, but on Independence Day, I think we can put a lot of that aside and celebrate the fact that we don’t all have to believe exactly the same things (the signers of the Declaration of Independence certainly didn’t see eye-to-eye on everything). We can commemorate our rich and varied history, made up of the victories and losses, the successes and disappointments, the dreams and fears of generations of folks from all over the political (and geographical) map.

Once you’ve digested the hot dogs and potato salad, and your ears have stopped ringing from the percussion of the neighbors’ roadside-stand fireworks, you can continue the celebration on the Pennsylvania Trails of History. That’s right, Trailheads, this is the July program preview (drumroll, please). Most sites on the Trails will be observing their regular Sunday schedule on July 4, but remember to check ahead to make sure that the site you want to visit will be open when you plan to be there. There’s a lot going on the rest of the month, too, so here goes.

July and August are prime time for summer history camps, but since we covered those in a post in June, they are not listed below.

Bushy Run Battlefield
July 11: Bushy Run Trail Run

Conrad Weiser Homestead
July 4: Ringgold Band Concert
July 11: Weiser Interpretive Sunday

Cornwall Iron Furnace
July 17: Cast Iron Cooking Demonstration

Daniel Boone Homestead
July 4: Independence Day Program

Drake Well Museum
July 4: Antique Car Show
July 24: Coopering for Kids

Eckley Miners’ Village
July 17-18: Summer of ’44 WWII History Weekend

Fort Pitt Museum
July 2-4: Onsite activities during Three Rivers Regatta

PHMC/Graeme Park

Graeme Park
July 3, 10, 24, 31: Farm and Flea Market (no market on 7/17)
July 17: Celtic Heritage Festival

Hope Lodge
July 30: Movie Night

Landis Valley Village and Farm Museum
July 24: Civil War Day

Old Economy Village
July 17: Hands on History Day

Pennsbury Manor Watch for William and Hannah Penn in the Wawa Welcome America Independence Day Parade in Philadelphia! Then visit Pennsbury and say that you saw them; see what happens.

July 4: Historic Trades (joyner and blacksmith)
July 11: Living History Theater—Women Preachers: A Visit from Mary Rogers and Elizabeth Webb
July 18: Open Hearth Cooking Demonstration: Preserving the Harvest
July 25: Garden Highlights

Pennsylvania Lumber Museum
July 3-4: Bark Peelers Convention




Pennsylvania Military Museum
July 8-11: People’s Choice Arts Festival
July 24-25: Vietnam Revisited

Railroad Museum of Pennsylvania
Through July 5 (started June 30): Reading Railroad Days (night photo shoot July 2)

Somerset Historical Center
July 21-22: Archives without Tears (cosponsored with Pennsylvania State Archives; you can attend one or both days; registration deadline is July 9)