Tempting Fate

This hopeful message comes by way of Ephrata Cloister's Facebook page

I know it's still March and that in Pennsylvania we're not out of the woods yet when it comes to late winter weather. But it's officially spring, and we can all use some bright and cheerful flowers. So I'm sharing with you what several Trails of History sites shared this week. It's tempting fate, but I think it's worth it. I hope these images brighten your day as they brightened mine. Happy weekend!

The barn (Visitor Center) at Graeme Park and its Star Magnolia (via GP's Facebook)

This crocus is welcoming spring at Old Economy Village, which reopens for the season on April 1 (via OEV Facebook page)

"Flower Piece" (1916) by Charles Demuth, watercolor on paper, The State Museum of Pennsylvania (via SMOP Facebook page)

Up Next

Today, March 25

• Learn at Lunchtime (virtual), 12:15-12:45 pm, The State Museum of PA
• Nevin Welte from the PA Fish and Boat Commission will talk about freshwater mussels and efforts to improve their populations in PA's rivers and streams. Offered via Zoom; registration is required (Learn at Lunchtime info and registration).

• Ritchie Boy Secrets (in-person and virtual), 1:30 pm, Pennsylvania Military Museum
• Dr. Beverley Driver Eddy will discuss her book, Ritchie Boy Secrets, which explores the history of the Military Intelligence Training Center in northern Maryland during World War II. The program is presented in cooperation with Penn State's Osher Lifelong Learning Institute (OLLI) and will be offered in-person and via Zoom. Registration is required for both. In-person tickets are $20 and include admission to the museum; Zoom tickets are $15 (OLLI Lecture info and registration).

Saturday, March 26

• The Battle of Iwo Jima: A Pennsylvania Story (in-person), 1-2 pm, Pennsylvania Military Museum
• Museum director Tyler Gum will share the story of the Battle of Iwo Jima using images and artifacts that belonged to a Centre County native who experience it. The lecture is free and open to the public (donations welcome); seating is first come, first served (PMM lecture info).

Sunday, March 27

• Beer Brewing and Garden Highlignts (in-person), 1-4 pm, Pennsbury Manor
• Explore the recipes and plants that fed the early residents of Pennsbury Manor. Included in regular admission (Pennsbury program info).

Wednesday, March 30

• Giant PA Map (in-person), 11:30 am-12:30 pm, The State Museum of Pennsylvania
• Discover our state and test your geography knowledge. Included in regular admission (Giant Map info).

Thursday, March 31

• Winter History Class (virtual), 9 am-noon, Ephrata Cloister
• Today is the last session for 2022 and will feature an exercise to imaging working at night by candlelight and a behind-the-scenes look at caring for an managing the site's artifact collections. If you did not register for the full course, you can watch today's session via Zoom for $10 (Winter History Class info and registration).

• Family Gallery Tour: Paleontology (in-person), 11:30 am-12:30 pm, The State Museum of Pennsylvania
• Museum educators will have hands-on fossils of plants and animals from the Carboniferous Period to the present. Included in regular admission (Family Tour info).

• Wisdom & Wine Series (in-person), 6:30-8 pm, Drake Well Museum & Park
• Local historian William Moore will present "Recipes of the Oil Region." Tickets are $5. At 5:30 there will be a wine-tasting happy hour (separate $5 fee). Registration is required (Wisdom & Wine registration).

Advance Tickets or Registrations

• Somerset Historical Center has rescheduled their Pysanky Egg Decorating Workshop to Saturday, April 2. This class is geared to beginners and the fee includes materials. Adults and kids age 12 and up welcome; ages 12 to 15 must be accompanied by an adult (Pysanky workshop info and registration).
• Rails and Ales: enjoy an evening of craft beer among the museum's historic trains at the Railroad Museum of PA, April 9, 5:30-9 pm; must be 21 or older to attend; variety of ticket options (VIP tickets are sold out), including designated driver tickets (Rails and Ales tickets)
• Tickets are on sale now for Bushy Run Battlefield's Art and Wine with Henry! event on Saturday, April 23. Enjoy some history and view the work of local artists (Art and Wine info and tickets).
• On Wednesday, April 27, Graeme Park will host a lunch and learn program, "Forgotten Heroes - Women and the Fight for the Right to Vote." The program includes continental breakfast, a lecture, and a buffet lunch; tours of the Keith House will be available after lunch. Tickets are $35; reservations are required (Forgotten Heroes info and tickets).
• Landis Valley Village & Farm Museum will offer living history tours on Saturday, May 21, based on the life and work of local inventor William Chester Ruth. Ruth was born in 1882 in Chester County; his father had been enslaved in South Carolina and his mother was a free woman of color. Ruth will be portrayed by actor Keith Henley of American Historical Theater. Tour times are 9:30, 12:30, and 3; advance tickets are required (William Chester Ruth Tour info and tickets)
• On May 22, Daniel Boone Homestead will host the Trails of History Run, which includes a 5K, 10K, and 1/2-mile fun run. There will be awards for 5K and 10K races, plus special awards for the best-dressed representation of the 1770s era. Advance registration is required (DBH trail runs info). Training runs for new runners start at 10:30 am every Sunday at the DeTurk House (near the front entrance gate off of Daniel Boone Rd).
• Drake Well Marathon, August 14 - this race is a Boston Marathon qualifier. Registration for a variety of categories is now open.