Catching Up

Now that I’ve thoroughly milked this year’s Charter Day for blog material, it’s time to scan the horizon for other items of interest on the Trails of History. These are in no particular order, and I’ve undoubtedly missed things that might be just what you’re looking for. But I hope it will inspire you to visit your favorite site or explore one you’ve never been to. There are some advantages to an early spring.

First, a couple of events coming up this weekend and next that didn’t get included in the March program preview.

Sunday, March 25, at 2 p.m., Conrad Weiser Homestead will host a free lecture, “The Tulpehocken Confusion, Conrad Weiser and Ephrata,” by Kerry Mohn, curator at Ephrata Cloister and formerly on staff at the Weiser Homestead. The lecture is based on diaries that Conrad Weiser kept during time he spent at Ephrata Cloister that provide insight into a time (1730s and 1740s) of religious fervor and upheaval in the Tulpehocken region of Pennsylvania (and yes, I had to look that up).

Saturday, March 31, is the spring kickoff of blacksmith demonstrations at Drake Well Museum, which take place the last Saturday of each month through October. You can find footage of a past demo here on YouTube.

PHMC/Landis Valley Village & Farm Museum, photo by Cindy Kirby-Reedy

And there are some items I’ve been meaning to include in Trailheads but just haven’t fitted them in before now (you know how tightly structured these posts usually are—ahem).

Flagship Niagara’s educational voyages, offered in partnership with various schools, colleges, and universities, are becoming an increasingly important part of the sailing program. One of this summer’s adventures for college students will focus on environmental science, studying ecosystems in all five of the Great Lakes. The application deadline has just passed but if you go to the program flyer (here), you can find out more about the program. (By the beginning of summer, Niagara will have undergone a major repair job involving replacement of wooden framing below the water line.)

Between now and the end of December, you can visit a new temporary exhibit at Landis Valley Village & Farm Museum, “The Golden Age of an American Art Form: The Lancaster Long Rifle.” The exhibit draws from Landis Valley’s collections as well as those of other museums and individuals. The exhibit opened on Charter Day (just can’t help getting in a mention of Charter Day) and has garnered a good bit of coverage near and far (including in Wyoming, which prompted a couple of visitors from The Equality State to stop in).

Changing exhibits are slated to open in April at Pennsylvania Military Museum and Railroad Museum of Pennsylvania, so I’ll keep you posted on those.