Mid-Summer Snapshots

Ranunculus (buttercups) blooming in the logging camp at Pennsylvania Lumber Museum (photo via PLM Facebook page)

Here in the northern hemisphere, we've just passed the mid-point of summer (meteorologically speaking), and the gardens and landscapes on the Trails of History are in peak form. Sites have been posting photos, so I thought I'd share a few of my favorites from the past week or so. Please check out the calendar below for programs but also remember that you don't need a special program to enjoy our sites. Pick one that's close to you and pay them a visit. I hope you have a great week.

Sunflowers in the garden at Graeme Park with the stone barn (visitor center) in the background (photo via GP Facebook page)

Ephrata Cloister's traditional German four-square garden with vegetables in the center beds and herbs around the fence line (photo via EC's Facebook page)

View of the barn (left) and blacksmith shop from inside the Boone House at Daniel Boone Homestead. A project to apply UV-filtering film to the Boone House windows was recently completed by PHMC staff (photo via DBH Facebook page)

Up Next

Today, July 21

• It's ALIVE! (or maybe not): Living and Non-Living Things (in-person); 11:30 am-12:30 pm; The State Museum of PA
• Younger visitors are invited to explore living and non-living things and the properties that something needs to exhibit to be alive. Included in regular admission (Living & Non-Living Things program info).

• Family Gallery Tour: Geology Hall (in-person); 1:30-2:30 pm; The State Museum of PA
• Get hands-on with the rocks and minerals of Pennsylvania. Learn about Pennsylvania’s landforms and resources. Meet on the 3rd Floor Balcony for this presentation. Included in regular admission (July 21 Geology Hall tour info).

Saturday, July 22

• Life Under the Canopy: The Vietnam War (in-person); Saturday and Sunday, 10 am-4 pm; PA Military Museum
• 2023 closes the 50th anniversary of the Vietnam War. Join museum staff and living history volunteers in our final event of the anniversary. Immerse yourself in the controversial conflict that defined the second half of the twentieth century; walk through a military camp and experience life on the front in Southeast Asia. Explore how conflict often falls on the shoulders of youth, changing the lives and perspectives of many young Americans in the 1960s and 1970s. Encampment is open to the public 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. both days. Regular admission rates apply to tour the Museum Gallery (Vietnam War program info).

• Storytime (in-person); 10:30-11:30 am; The State Museum of PA
• Hear a reading of Birds by Kevin Henkes, learn about the many colors of birds, and paint with bird feathers. For ages 2 to Pre-K and included in regular admission. Sign up at the Ground Floor Info Desk when you arrive (State Museum StoryTime info).

• Explore PA Industry with the Giant Map (in-person); 1:30-3 pm; The State Museum of PA
• Travel across the Giant Map of Pennsylvania to discover the industries that shaped our state. Included in regular admission (PA industry program info).

Sunday, July 23

• Beer Brewing & Garden Highlights (in-person); 1-4 pm; Pennsbury Manor
• Explore and experience the sights, sounds, and smells of the recipes and plants that fed the early residents of Pennsbury. Included in regular admission (Brewing & Gardens program info).

• Discovering Dioramas (in-person); 1:30-2:30 pm; The State Museum of PA
• Observe how the art in the Mammal Hall dioramas blends light, color, and sculptural elements to capture a moment in time and connect with Pennsylvania mammals and wild places. Discover close looking and use your new knowledge and creativity to design your own paper diorama! Included in regular admission (Dioramas program info).

Tuesday, July 25

• Garden Workshop Series (in-person); 10-11 am; Pennsbury Manor
• Today's workshop is about preserving produce. Geared for ages 12 and up. Registration required - $35 for non-members, $30 for members. Call 215/946-0400 (July Garden Workshop info).

Wednesday, July 26

• State Symbol: Fossil (in-person); 11:30 am-12:30 pm; The State Museum of PA
• On December 5, 1988, the fossil of an extinct arthropod, Phacops rana, was chosen to represent the state of Pennsylvania. Now re-classified as the species Eldredgeops rana, this trilobite once dwelled in the water that covered Pennsylvania during the Cambrian period. Learn more about this fossil and make a “fossil” to take home. Included in regular admission (State Fossil program info).

• Giant Map of Pennsylvania (in-person); 1:30-2:30 pm; The State Museum of PA
• Challenge your knowledge of the geography of Pennsylvania while exploring the giant map of the state. Included in regular admission (Giant map program info).

• Music on the Lawn (in-person); 7-8:30 pm; Joseph Priestley House
• Rolf Sturm and Jenna Mammina will present an evening of jazz music on the lawn of the Joseph Priestley House (Music on the Lawn program info).

Thursday, July 27

• What's Cooking (in-person); 11:30 am-12:30 pm; The State Museum of PA
• Visit the Summer Kitchen in Village Square to discover cooking in the early 1900s, featuring innovative items from the industrial revolution. Test your skills with hands-on tools and take home some period recipes. Included in regular admission (Summer Kitchen program info).

• Highlights Tour (in-person); 1:30-2:30 pm; The State Museum of PA
• Pennsylvania is the only state named for both its people and the place, “Penn’s Woods.” Discover how this relationship of people and place shows throughout the history, art, and science of the Commonwealth with a tour of featured exhibits on each floor. Included in regular admission (Highlights Tour info).

Friday, July 28

• A Place for All Tour (in-person); 11:30 am and 1:30 pm; The State Museum of PA
• Discover three stories of integration in Pennsylvania during the Civil Right movement. Hear the stories of the men and women whose courageous steps helped change our state. Included in regular admission (A Place for All Tour info).

• Returning the Wild to the Wilderness (virtual); 12:15-12:45 pm; The State Museum of PA
• Thomas Keller, Furbearer Biologist with the Pennsylvania Game Commission, will share the history of wildlife loss within the Commonwealth, the legacy of rewilding, and the possibility of returning the American marten to the forests of the state. The program is free, but you must register to receive the link (Returning the Wild program info and registration).

Advance Tickets or Registrations

• Sensory Hours (in-person); Tuesday, Aug. 8, 3-5 pm, and Tuesday, Aug. 22, 9-11 am; Railroad Museum of PA
• Light, sound, and crowd levels will be lower, and there will be some quiet spots in the galleries to take a break. Several historic trains will be open with staff on hand to answer questions. Advance tickets required (tickets for Aug. 8 Sensory Hours and tickets for Aug. 22 Sensory Hours).

• The Colemans and Martic Forge (hybrid); Tuesday, Aug. 8, 7-8 pm; Cornwall Iron Furnace
• Jim Polczynski will present a program centered on the ownership of Martic Forge by three generations of the Coleman family (who also owned Cornwall Iron Furnace). You can attend the program in person at Freeman Hall, Cornwall Manor Retirement Community, or virtually via Zoom (Martic Forge lecture info and registration).

• Captain Vicary and Life in Beaver County (in-person); Wednesday, Aug. 16, 6-7:30 pm; Old Economy Village
• Brenda Applegate, executive director of the Beaver County Historical Research and Landmarks Foundation, will present a program based on the journal of Captain Vicary, a transplanted Philadelphia sea captain who settled in Beaver County as a gentleman farmer. The program will provide glimpses into everyday life in the county as well as Vicary's interactions with the Harmonists. The program is free, but registration is required (Captain Vicary lecture info and registration).

• The "Dead" of Summer (in-person); Saturday, Aug. 19, 7-9 pm; Graeme Park
• Experience a reenactment of an early 20th-century seance focused on the period when many had lost loved ones to the 1918 flu pandemic or World War I and were susceptible to this form of entertainment. Tickets are limited and will be available online (Dead of Summer info and tickets).

• Exploring the Armor (in-person); Saturday, Aug. 26, 2-4 pm; PA Military Museum
• Take a private history tour of the outside tracked vehicles and discuss the history of armored vehicles with a preeminent local historian. Limited space, reservations are required. $15.00 or $5.00 with annual Museum membership. Please note that we will not be accessing the inside of the tracked vehicles, but we will walk outside on the grounds, so please dress for the weather with appropriate footwear (Exploring the Armor registration).

Summer Camp Programs (camps are in-person)

• Brandywine Battlefield Park (Brandywine camp info)
• Step Into the Past Week (grades 5-6), July 25-28, 9 am-2 pm

• Drake Well Museum & Park (Drake Well camp info)
• Discovery Days Camp (ages 8-12), July 27, 9 am-4 pm

• Joseph Priestley House (Priestley House camp info)
• Summer History Camp (grades 1-6), July 26-28, 9 am-Noon

• Old Economy Village (OEV camp info)
• July 24-28, Summer Art Camp (ages 6-12), 9 am-Noon, and Summer History Camp (ages 6-12), 12:30-3:30 pm

• PA Lumber Museum (Lumber Museum camp info)
• History Camp (ages 10-18), August 4-5, 9 am-2 pm