The Roots of Bird Conservation in Penn’s Woods

  Native naturalists and immigrant ornithologists who began their celebrated careers in Penn’s Woods played a pivotal role in establishing America’s enduring romance with the continent’s fabled feathered tribes. Their fieldwork and studies also helped assemble and strengthen the natural science from which bird conservation emerged in the United States. Birdsong, species diversity and the...
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Changing Values: The Whitetail’s Challenging Existence

  Deer have lost some of the cachet they once held in Pennsylvania. Their values — ranging from ecological, aesthetical and recreational to nutritional, financial and, of course, personal — have endeared many Pennsylvanians to whitetails throughout the state’s existence, but probably never more so than during European colonization and the Great Depression — when venison helped many families...
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Recovery of the Bald Eagle in Pennsylvania: A Conservation Success Story

  Easily recognizable by its white head and tail, dark brown body, hooked yellow beak, and large black talons, the bald eagle is truly a majestic bird. In Pennsylvania, as well as most other parts of North America, bald eagles are apex predators, atop the avian food chain. Humans have been their only primary adversary over the past couple of centuries. When Columbus arrived in America in...
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Repopulating and Managing Black Bears in Pennsylvania

Three species of bears inhabit North America: black bears, polar bears and brown bears (including Alaskan brown bears and grizzlies). The only bear living in the eastern United States, and one that is thriving in Pennsylvania, is the American black bear (Ursus americanus). Pennsylvania’s bear population as of 2022 is estimated to be around 16,000, the result of sound, science-based wildlife...
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Editor’s Letter

The State Museum of Pennsylvania has recently installed in its first-floor gallery a long-term exhibition, A Place for All, focusing on three episodes of the Civil Rights Movement in the commonwealth — struggles for integration at Highland Park swimming pool in Pittsburgh, Girard College preparatory school in Philadelphia, and the suburban community of Levittown in Bucks County. The stories were...
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Artful Trails

In honor of the 50th Art of the State exhibition, open through September 10, 2017, at The State Museum of Pennsylvania, we’re exploring art at other historic sites and museums along PHMC’s Pennsylvania Trails of History. As visual storytellers, our sites employ a multidisciplinary approach to documenting and sharing Pennsylvania heritage. Artworks frequently play a role in the study...
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Pennsylvania Heritage Foundation Newsletter – Fall 2016

Topics in the Fall 2016 Newsletter: Naturalist Scott Weidensaul and Working Together for Wildlife The Giving Circle Artist’s Conversation with Pennsylvania First Lady Pennsylvania Chamber of Business and Industry Day Historian Brent D. Glass to Speak at The State Museum Join the Pennsylvania Heritage Foundation   pennsylvania-heritage-foundation-newsletter-fall-2016...
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Pennsylvania Heritage Foundation Newsletter – Summer 2016

Topics in the Summer 2016 Newsletter: Giving Circle Dinner Pennsylvania Wildlife Art Exhibit Opens Pennsylvania Chamber of Business and Industry Day Naturalist Scott Weidensaul to Speak at The State Museum Lulos Joins PHF Board Join the Pennsylvania Heritage Foundation   pennsylvania-heritage-foundation-newsletter-summer-2016...
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From the Executive Director

For many of us, spring is the traditional season to think about nature and the great outdoors, but here at the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission (PHMC), we think about it all year long. It’s hard to separate Pennsylvania’s history from its natural history; in fact, PHMC is officially charged with “the conservation of Pennsylvania’s historic and natural...
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From the Executive Director

Throughout 2015 the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission (PHMC) will be celebrating the 50th anniversary of The State Museum and Archives Complex in Harrisburg, Dauphin County. As you might expect, we will do some looking back with a full schedule of programs and events, changing exhibits, and special articles in Pennsylvania Heritage to mark this important milestone. But an anniversary...
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