From the Executive Director

Posted by on Dec 15, 2022 in | Comments Off on From the Executive Director When people think of Pennsylvania, its coastline is usually not the first thing that comes to mind — but Pennsylvania has a rich maritime history. The commonwealth is home to six ports: Philadelphia, Chester, Eddystone, Marcus Hook, Pittsburgh and Erie. During most of the 18th century and early 19th century, the Port of Philadelphia on the Delaware River was the largest port in the United...
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From the Executive Director

Posted by on Sep 12, 2022 in | Comments Off on From the Executive Director When I talk with others about the new Pennsylvania State Archives building that is being constructed in Harrisburg, the most frequent follow-up question I get is, “So what is happening with the old archives building?” I must admit that for many the 1964 building is a love it or hate it resource. The sleek State Archives tower, with its companion drum-shaped State Museum of Pennsylvania, is a...
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From the Executive Director

Posted by on May 13, 2022 in | Comments Off on From the Executive Director PHMC plays a large role in preserving and sharing Pennsylvania history, but of course, this is not work we do alone. Pennsylvanians rely on a host of local organizations to help keep the history they care about alive. As part of its budget each year, PHMC receives $2 million for its Cultural and Historical Support Grants. This somewhat bureaucratic-sounding line item translates into meaningful...
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From the Executive Director

Posted by on Mar 9, 2022 in | Comments Off on From the Executive Director Civil rights, voting rights and race relations. These are all topics of conversation today, as they have been for more than a century and a half across the United States, including here in Pennsylvania. But without a shared knowledge about the history of these topics, it becomes harder to have meaningful and productive conversations. This summer we are opening a new exhibit at The State Museum...
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From the Executive Director

Posted by on Nov 29, 2021 in | Comments Off on From the Executive Director Last weekend at The State Museum of Pennsylvania, I met a member of the Delaware Tribe (the Lenape). He grew up in Oklahoma, where his tribe is located today, and this was his first visit to Pennsylvania. Prior to coming to Harrisburg, he had visited the Delaware Water Gap. I was captivated as he talked about seeing the Delaware River for the first time. The river looms large in Lenape history,...
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From the Executive Director

Posted by on Aug 13, 2021 in | Comments Off on From the Executive Director Throughout the pandemic, we at PHMC have had the opportunity to share Pennsylvania’s rich history with people well beyond our borders through virtual programming. Over the last year we have seen visitors join us from across the country and around the world. Although we have learned how important virtual engagement is, much of what we do remains grounded in the physical world. We have buildings,...
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From the Executive Director

Posted by on Jun 3, 2021 in | Comments Off on From the Executive Director For a long time, the Smithsonian Institution has called itself “The Nation’s Attic.” The name conjures up its role as America’s memory. Storerooms hold bits and pieces of the lives of Americans, famous and less celebrated. That metaphor also works for us here at PHMC. We consider ourselves to be like a Pennsylvania version of the Smithsonian museums, capturing the broad history of the...
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From the Executive Director

Posted by on Mar 19, 2021 in | Comments Off on From the Executive Director Over the past year, PHMC has been working on its new strategic plan. We have been thinking about what we are and what we need to be — for the Pennsylvanians we serve and as champions of history. Our mission is to discover, protect and share Pennsylvania’s past. We hope to inspire others to value and use our shared history in ways that are meaningful to them. In short, we see a future where...
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From the Executive Director

Posted by on Feb 5, 2021 in | Comments Off on From the Executive Director Although PHMC does not actively install historical monuments across the commonwealth, our Pennsylvania Historical Markers serve a similar purpose. Begun in 1914 and “updated” in 1946 with the advent of the blue-and-yellow, pole-mounted roadside plates, the markers represent an extraordinary public historiography (see “A Century of Marking History,” Fall 2014). They teach us not only about what...
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From the Executive Director

Posted by on Dec 23, 2020 in | Comments Off on From the Executive Director Our country is experiencing significant growing pains right now. The challenge we thought we had been facing solely with the COVID-19 pandemic has been compounded by an economic downturn, civil unrest, and an overdue conversation about race. History, which had taken a back seat to a STEM-focused world, now finds itself at the center of these conversations. History offers lessons about the past...
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