Catching Up

This summer was marked by an unprecedented (in Trailheads history anyway) run of guest bloggers. I would like to thank Friends of Joseph Priestley House board member John L. Moore; Keystone interns Ryan Zsifkov (2 posts), Corine Lehigh (2 posts), and Kendra Ressler; Collections Advancement Project curator Rachel Yerger; PHMC director of strategic initiatives Beth Hager; and PHMC information specialist Sean Adkins. While I thoroughly enjoy writing weekly posts, it has been a very pleasant experience to share other people's work and a broad range of topics with Trailheads readers. I hope you've enjoyed it too. But now it's time for one of my patented "roundup" posts, gathering items of interest (I hope) that you may have missed (but probably didn't). In other words, fun's over. Winter, as they say, is coming. *wink*

John Fielding ready to answer questions (courtesy Anthracite Heritage Museum)

This past Wednesday was #AskACurator day. 2015 was the second year for PHMC's participation in this international Twitter-based initiative. Curators and social media folks from Anthracite Heritage Museum, Ephrata Cloister, and Landis Valley Village and Farm Museum took part at various times throughout the day, working with PHMC's information specialist. We had some good back and forth among the sites and other non-PHMC museums, with retweeting going on by site followers. (You can find a summary for all three sites on PHMC's Storify or for Ephrata and Landis Valley on Erin Negley's (Lancaster Newspapers) Storify.) Look for us next year on Sept. 14and join in the conversation!

Ephrata Cloister curator Kerry Mohn tweeting (photo by Rebecca Lawrence)

In anticipation of Pope Francis's visit to Philadelphia next weekend, Visit PA compiled a list of "sacred spaces" in Pennsylvania, reflecting the Commonwealth's significant history of religious diversity and freedom (PHMC's annual theme in 2011). Three Trails of History sites are on the list: Pennsbury Manor, home to Pennsylvania's founder, and two sites that embody Pennsylvania's diversity of religious practice and belief, Ephrata Cloister and Old Economy Village. (You can hear more about it on witf's Smart Talk broadcast from Sept. 11, about 35 minutes in.)

On a related note, PennDOT and the PA Turnpike Commission have created a website with info about traffic and road closures during the papal visit. If you're planning to go to Philly or want to be sure to avoid the traffic, this looks like a useful resource. Please be aware that many museums in downtown Philadelphia will be closed next weekend, but Graeme Park, Pennsbury Manor, and Washington Crossing Historic Park will be open. Just sayin'.

The September programs listing ended up being a separate page instead of a regular post, so if you're looking for something to do THIS weekend, please check it out. Look for the October listings to arrive next Friday, so that you can plan ahead.