Things to Do, Read, and Watch

Living historians portray U.S. Army soldiers during Landis Valley Village & Farm Museum's Civil War event in 2019 (photo via Landis Valley's Facebook page)

Summer continues on its way to fall, with lots of activities on the Trails of History. Landis Valley Village & Farm Museum's Civil War Weekend has a little something to interest the whole family and gives you a sense of what a small village was like during that era. If outdoor theater is more your thing, Conrad Weiser Homestead is hosting three performances of The Tempest by Reading Community Players. You can also learn about butterflies and moths at The State Museum of Pennsylvania. That's just the weekend, please see below for the week ahead and for summer camp listings (many are still taking enrollments).

Cornwall Iron Furnace, which just marked the 50th anniversary of the closing of the Cornwall Ore Mines, has released a new book, Always More Production, by museum volunteer, frequent speaker, and retired geologist Mike Weber. Mike drew heavily on research collections at the museum, including monthly reports sent from the mines in Cornwall to the main office of Bethlehem Steel. The book presents a detailed history of iron mining activities in Cornwall from 1737 to 1973. You can check Cornwall's Facebook post for details on how to get your copy.

The Friends of Conrad Weiser Homestead have produced a new history video focused on Conrad Weiser and his home. Copies on DVD are available in the Museum Store. This video project was in addition to Conrad Weiser Homestead's participation in the PA History to Go series. Those videos are available to stream on PHMC's PA History to Go website.

Up Next

Today, July 14

• Family Gallery Tour: Mammal Hall (in-person); 11:30 am-12:30 pm; The State Museum of PA
• Touch furs, hold antlers, view skulls and ask questions during a tour of Mammal Hall. Included in regular admission (Mammal Hall tour info).

• Chill and Build (in-person); 1-3 pm; The State Museum of PA
• Unwind with the family on a Friday afternoon. Choose the colors and shapes to make your own creation or follow the pattern on the design cards to make a tree, rocket and more using building blocks. Included in regular admission (Chill and Build program info).

• The Tempest (in-person); Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, 6-9 pm; Conrad Weiser Homestead
• Reading Community Players will present William Shakespeare's The Tempest on the grounds of the Homestead for three nights, starting tonight at 6 pm. The event is rain or shine (under a tent, with chairs provided). Tickets are $20 for adults, $15 for students and seniors, and may be purchased ahead or at the door (The Tempest at CWH info).

Saturday, July 15

• Butterflies and Moths (in-person); 10 am-Noon and 1-3 pm; The State Museum of PA
• Learn more about butterflies and moths in Pennsylvania and make a butterfly craft to take home. Included in regular admission (Butterflies and Moths program info).

• Civil War Weekend (in-person); Saturday, 10 am-4 pm, and Sunday, Noon-4 pm; Landis Valley Village & Farm Museum
• A wide array of military and civilian activities will be offered, including drills and firing demos, vintage baseball, and displays about Civil War-era medicine on and off the battlefield. Regular admission charged; please start at the Visitor Center to purchase tickets (Civil War Weekend info).

• Acting Workshop (in-person); 2-4 pm; Joseph Priestley House
• Laurie McCants, co-founder of the Bloomsburg Theater Ensemble, will lead a two-part workshop for students age 8 to 12. Actors will choose a historical figure, research their life, write a script, and reenact them. Second session takes place July 22 (Acting Workshop info and registration).

• Stargazing: Tonight's Sky (in-person); 3-4 pm; The State Museum of PA
• Join the Planetarium Director for a live chat exploring what you can see in the sky tonight. Learn about the basic motions of the sky, visible constellations and planets, and any special celestial events that are coming up in the next month. Admission and planetarium tickets must be purchased at least 5 minutes before showtime.

Sunday, July 16

• Open-Hearth Cooking (in-person); 1-4 pm; Pennsbury Manor
• Stoneware crocks, bladders, vinegar, gally pots, and sugar will abound as the cooks start preserving the harvest for the winter to come. Included in regular admission (Open-Hearth Cooking program info).

Wednesday, July 19

• Family Gallery Tour: Geology Hall (in-person); 11:30 am-12:30 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 19 Geology Hall tour info).

Thursday, July 20

• Storytime in the Garden (in-person); 10-11 am; Pennsbury Manor
• Enjoy a story in the garden and then explore the grounds of Pennsbury Manor. Cost is a $3 grounds pass (additional fee to tour the Manor House). Suggested ages 4 to 8, but all are welcome (Pennsbury Storytime info).

• State Symbol: Brook Trout (in-person); 11:30 am-12:30 pm; The State Museum of PA
• In 1970, the brook trout was chosen as the official state fish of Pennsylvania. Learn more about its selection, biology and create brook trout fish art, Gyotaku, the traditional Japanese method of printing fish. Included in regular admission (Brook Trout program info).

Friday, 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).

Advance Tickets or Registrations

• Garden Workshop Series (in-person); Tuesday, July 25, 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).

• Returning the Wild to the Wilderness (virtual); Friday, July 28, 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).

• 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).

• 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 unless marked otherwise)

• Brandywine Battlefield Park (Brandywine camp info)
• Live the Battle Week (grades 5-6), July 18-21, 9 am-2 pm
• 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 20 & 27, 9 am-4 pm

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

• Landis Valley Village & Farm Museum (LVVFM camp info)
• A Child's Life in the Civil War (ages 5-11), July 18-21, 9 am-12:30 pm

• Old Economy Village (OEV camp info)
• July 17-21, Summer History Camp (ages 6-12), 9 am-Noon, and Summer Art Camp (ages 6-12), 12:30-3:30 pm
• July 24-28, Summer Art Camp (ages 6-12), 9 am-Noon, and Summer History Camp (ages 6-12), 12:30-3:30 pm

• Pennsbury Manor (Pennsbury camp info)
• Colonial Camp Week (ages 6-8), July 17-21, 9 am-4 pm

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

Focus on Collections - Mining PPE

So we are on Week 4 of Trails of History sites closed to the public. All onsite public activities and all onsite events are canceled through April 30. Staff are either on site performing maintenance and security duties--thank you to these essential workers--or teleworking on projects to keep services and communications going and plan for our eventual reopening. To see what your favorite sites are sharing on social media, check the April program page for links to Facebook. To see some recent highlights, check out last week's post. And if you're looking for videos to watch, PHMC's YouTube channel has all kinds of options.

For up-to-date information on Pennsylvania's response to COVID-19, please visit the Pennsylvania Dept. of Health website. Also, you may want to read info about increasing concerns about scams related to economic stimulus payments.

This week's post comes to us from Bureau of Historic Sites and Museums curator Rachel Yerger (see her March 27 post on Hope Lodge collections), with a focus on mining personal protective equipment (PPE) in the collection at Cornwall Iron Furnace. Cornwall site administrator Mike Emery provided additional images for the post. To see other mining-related collections, visit PHMC's new Museum Collections online portal and select Anthracite Heritage Museum, Cornwall Iron Furnace, or Eckley Miners' Village on the PHMC Museums tab.

UPDATE 4/20/2020: Rich Hall, a docent at Erie Maritime Museum and a retired design engineer for General Electric, shared some info on Personal Protective Equipment [sorry, we're having trouble with that link] and a Mine Monument in western PA that he presented at a meeting of the Western Mining Electrical Association. Rich also made a presentation on the Erie Maritime Museum, which is housed in a former Penelec electrical generating plant (some of Rich's EMM projects have been reported on in Trailheads posts in 2014 and 2015).

What is PPE? I’m sure by now many have heard the acronym and know that it stands for Personal Protective Equipment. But PPE means something different for a miner than it does for a medical professional. Against the harsh underground conditions faced by miners, thin nitrile or latex gloves just won’t cut it. This week I thought I would highlight some PPE used in the Cornwall Iron Mines during the mid-late 20th Century.

Cornwall is home to one of the most important iron-ore mines in Pennsylvania history. Ore mining was the backbone of the Cornwall Iron Furnace, which produced iron from 1742 until 1883. Even when the furnace ceased production, the mines continued to operate under the helm of Bethlehem Steel until 1973 when the mines were closed due to extensive flooding from Hurricane Agnes.

November 1963 National Safety Council Poster, posted by Cornwall Mine #4, Cornwall, PA. (Photo from the Charlie Neal research collection, Cornwall Iron Furnace. )

Mine safety became an industry priority in the United States around the turn of the 20th Century. As with many other industry safety regulations, it took a wave of mining disasters to reform industry safety standards. The U.S. Bureau of Mines was formed in 1910 and while their mission has evolved over the years, their main goal has been safety. Around the same time Mine Safety Appliances Inc. (MSA Inc.), a Pittsburgh-based company, was founded by John T. Ryan Sr. and George H. Deike.

CF2018.2.2 Miner’s Safety Helmet. This miner’s helmet, made by Mine Safety Appliances Inc., was used by Francis Boughter while working at Cornwall Ore Mine, Lebanon, PA. Mr. Boughter worked in Cornwall mines until it was shut down in 1973. (Learn more about this object in PHMC's Museum Collections portal.)

One of the first products MSA Inc. made was an electric cap lamp. Prior to electric cap lamps, miners used flame-based light sources, like carbides or oil lamps, which created considerable safety hazards in mines. Not only were electric cap lamps a massive safety enhancement, but they also improved visibility, which increased productivity. 

CF2018.1.10 Edison Model S Electric Cap Lamp.  This cap lamp was used by William J. Fritz while working as a Concreter and Timberman in the #3 and #4 underground mines at Cornwall, Lebanon, PA.  (View in Collections portal)

Men working in Cornwall Mine, 1946.  (Photo from the Charlie Neal research collection, Cornwall Iron Furnace.) 

Over the years MSA Inc.’s product offerings grew to include all types of personal safety items, such as pocket-sized first aid kits.

CF2108.1.6A-G MSA First Aid Packet. In addition to PPE MSA also produced this first aid kit which includes Merthiolate tincture, mercury-containing antiseptic, now banned in over-the-counter products by the FDA. (View in Collections portal)

Effective check-in and check-out systems are also cornerstones of mine safety. At Cornwall Mine, as with other mines, each miner was assigned two brass tags with an individual identification number. The miner would leave their tag on the tagboard before entering the mine, and then remove it once they returned to the surface. This was an important way to ensure that every worker was accounted for.

CF2018.1.21A-B Brass Check Tag 3942, William Fritz. These tags were used by William Fritz. According to another Cornwall Mineworker, the brass tags could also be used to sign out equipment and collect paychecks.

Personal safety and the use of personal protective equipment while on the job is a priority, regardless of the industry. Current shortages in PPE for medical professionals are a real problem in many states. Sadly, none of the PPE in the Cornwall Iron Furnace collection qualify as PPE for medical professionals under CDC guidelines, but we are pulling together some of our curatorial PPE, which does qualify, to donate to state agencies that are currently in need.

What can you do to help?