HARMONY
BOROUGH HISTORIC HARMONY INC.
Municipal Building 218
Mercer St., P.O. Box 524
217 Mercer Street, P.O. Box 945 Harmony, PA
16037
Harmony, PA 16037
724-452-7341
724-452-6780
www.harmonymuseum.org
www.Harmony-PA.gov
"THE INVISIBLE SEX" AUTHOR TO SPEAK, SIGN BOOKS AT
HARMONY MUSEUM PROGRAM
HARMONY, Pa. -- James M.
Adovasio, founding director of Mercyhurst Archaeological
Institute at Erie's Mercyhurst College and co-author of
the book The Invisible Sex, will speak at the
Harmony Museum's Stewart Hall on Saturday evening, May
3.
Admission is free for Adovasio's illustrated
presentation, which begins at 7 p.m. He will discuss his
newest book that unveils the important but previously
ignored roles and contributions of women as the human
race developed throughout the Stone Age. He will also
sign copies of The Invisible Sex, published by
Smithsonian Books, which will be available for purchase
($29 including tax). A wine and cheese reception follows
the program.
Shaped by cartoons and museum dioramas, the public's
typical image of human activity in the Paleolithic
period is of fur-clad men attacking mammoths while women
remain in hiding. More recent research -- by Adovasio,
Invisible Sex co-author and University of
Illinois anthropology professor Olga Soffer and others
-- demonstrates a much different reality.
Adovasio and Soffer, among the world's leading experts
on perishable artifacts such as basketry, cordage and
weaving, present an exciting new look at prehistory in
The Invisible Sex. They argue that women had
a central role in development of language and social
life, and invented such critical materials as clothing
necessary to life in cold climates, rope for rafts that
enabled water travel, and nets for communal hunting. The
authors also note that it is unlikely anyone ever hunted
mammoths, and that "Lucy," the hominid whose 3.3 million
year old fossilized remains were found in 1974 in
Ethiopia and whose name was suggested by a Beatles song,
could well have been a man. The vision they present
about women in prehistory offers provocative
implications for gender assumptions in modern life.
BookLoon.com reviewer Alex Telander describes The
Invisible Sex as "an amazing read that charts our
ancestry from times when apes were the most evolved
animal around, to some 4,000 to 6,000 years ago when
humanity settled down and began farming. What makes this
book different is that the authors [address] the known
history of each period and then reveal evidence that
shows women having a much larger role than was
previously believed. Incorporating up-to-date
information and discoveries on our ancestry, The
Invisible Sex is a great, easy to read book for
anthropology or archaeology addicts, and for anyone who
wants to know what really was going on with our species
in the last two million years."
According to Adovasio, "a variety of stereotypes have
persisted on the role of women in the [prehistoric]
past" largely because of "the inability of investigators
to entertain alternative explanations as well as a
fundamental failure to recognize and appropriately
evaluate evidence contradictory to these stereotypes.
This myopia was compounded by the domination of
Paleoanthropology by males until relatively
recently...If mentioned at all, women, as well as the
old and young of both sexes, are characterized solely as
minor players."
Adovasio is also provost, senior counselor to the
president and dean of the Zurn School of Natural
Sciences and Mathematics at Mercyhurst College and a
former commissioner of the Pennsylvania Historical and
Museum Commission. His first international acclaim came
during the 1970s when he began the archaeological
exploration of Meadowcroft Rockshelter near Avella,
southwest of Pittsburgh, site of North America's
earliest proven human habitation that dates from ca.
14,000 B.C. Significant among Adovasio's ongoing
fieldwork are the multidisciplinary investigations of
the Meadowcroft Rockshelter as well as of sites at
Mezhirich, Ukraine; Dolni Vestonice/Pavlov, Czech
Republic, and Caesarea, Israel. He has published
extensively and is a frequent presenter at national and
international meetings.
He drew a capacity audience to the Harmony Museum in
2003 when he spoke about origins of the hemisphere’s
earliest inhabitants following publication of The
First Americans - In Pursuit of Archaeology’s Greatest
Mystery. It was written with former Natural History
editor and former Smithsonian science editor Jake Page,
the third co-author of The Invisible Sex.
Harmony is at I-79 exits 87-88, about 10 miles north of
the Pennsylvania Turnpike and 30 miles north of downtown
Pittsburgh. Its recorded history began with Murdering
Town, a Delaware Indian village visited by Virginia Maj.
George Washington during his 1753 mission demanding the
French leave the region, sparking the French & Indian
War. Pacifist German Lutheran Separatists, fleeing
European militarism and a state church they considered
corrupt, settled Harmony in 1804 and organized as what
became the internationally famous communal -- and
celibate -- Harmony Society. They went to Indiana
Territory in 1814 and returned to Beaver County in 1824
to found Economy, now Ambridge, where its last members
dissolved the society in 1905. Harmony's resettlement
began in 1815, led by pacifist Mennonites whose
congregation also faded away at the dawn of the 20th
century.
Harmony Museum exhibits interpret the area's
extraordinary array of history, from the Indians,
Washington and the Harmony Society, to maker of fine
percussion hunting and target rifles Charles Flowers and
oil and gas booms of the late 19th and early 20th
centuries. Its Wagner House annex houses exhibits on
local railroads and physicians.
####
4/13/2008
CONTACT: Kathy Luek, Administrator
724-452-7341 or hmuseum@zoominternet.net
19TH CENTURY HARMONIST CLOTHING TO BE SHOWN AT
HARMONIEFEST
HARMONY, Pa. -- Examples of attire worn by communal
Harmony Society members when they immigrated from
southwest Germany to settle Harmony in the early 1800s
will be modeled at the 41st annual Harmoniefest on
Saturday, Feb. 16. The dinner and historical program, a
fundraiser to benefit the Harmony Museum, is held in the
museum's Stewart Hall at Main and Mercer streets.
Admission is $25 per person. Reservations are required,
and must be received by Friday, Feb. 8.
Curator Sarah Buffington of Old Economy Village in
Ambridge will narrate the fashion show. Historic
Harmony, the volunteer historical society and
preservation advocate that operates the nine-property
Harmony Museum, will contribute part of the evening's
proceeds to a program providing authentic costumes for
Old Economy docent-interpreters. Commemorating the
communal Harmony Society's third and final home, Old
Economy Village is operated by the Pennsylvania
Historical and Museum Commission.
Historic Harmony will also present two Heritage Awards
for outstanding restoration projects, and recognize
volunteers who contributed the most hours to museum
activities last year. This year's Heritage Awards will
honor James and Elizabeth Kelleher for restoring the
facade of their ca. 1890 home on East New Castle Street
in Zelienople, and Belynda Slaugenhaupt and Suzanne
Spohn for restoring the 1862 Stauffer farmstead barn at
their home on Camp Run Road in Lancaster Township.
Harmony was founded late in 1804 by German Lutheran
Separatists. led by Johann George Rapp. They left the
Stuttgart area to escape militarism and conduct their
religious affairs free of state interference. They
organized formally as the Harmony Society in February
1805, an event celebrated with an annual February feast
they called Harmoniefest. Their first American home,
called Harmonie, which eventually had a population of
nearly 900, encompassed the town and 7,000 acres of what
became Jackson and Lancaster townships. The celibate
Harmonists, who anticipated the imminent return of
Christ, moved to southwestern Indiana in 1814, returning
in 1824 to found Economie, now Ambridge in Beaver
County, only 22 miles from their original home. The
Harmony Society, which became 19th century America's
most successful communal group, was dissolved there in
1905 by its last survivors.
Although Historic Harmony’s Harmoniefest does mark the
founding anniversaries of Harmony and the Harmony
Society, it celebrates two and a half centuries of
extraordinary history. The area's recorded history began
with young British Virginia Maj. George Washington's
visit with local Delaware Indians during his 1753
mission to the region seeking withdrawal of a growing
French occupation, thus sparking the French & Indian
War. Nearby, the war's first shot was fired at
Washington by a "French Indian."
Harmony is one of western Pennsylvania’s most
significant historic sites. The Harmony National
Historic Landmark District comprises 10 old-town blocks
as well as the Harmony Society cemetery in adjacent
Jackson Township. When "second founder" Abraham Ziegler
bought the Harmony Society’s holdings in 1815, his and
other Mennonite families began resettling the area. The
Mennonite congregation, also pacifist, faded away as the
Harmony Society met a similar end.
Harmoniefest begins with a 6 p.m. reception. Dinner
entree choices are stuffed pork chop, chicken scaloppini
and vegetarian lasagna. Information and reservations can
be obtained from the Harmony Museum office,
724-452-7341, toll-free 888-821-4822, or hmuseum@zoominternet.net.
####
CONTACT: Kathy Luek, Administrator, 724-452-7341
1/27/08
HARMONY NEW YEAR'S EVE ON GERMAN TIME OFFERS TOURS,
DINNER, FILM, FAMILY FUN
Harmony, Pa. -- The Harmony
Museum will be open for tours, show a short comedy
film that's become a New Year's Eve must-see in
Germany, provide a traditional German opportunity to
foretell what the new year will bring, and offer a
pork and sauerkraut buffet dinner as its part in the
borough's inaugural family-oriented "Silvester" New
Year's Eve celebration.
The historic borough of Harmony invites residents
and visitors from throughout the region to observe
2008's arrival on German time -- six hours earlier
than U.S. Eastern Standard Time -- in recognition of
Harmony's important German heritage that originated
more that 200 years ago.
Pacifist Lutheran
Separatists from near Stuttgart in the duchy of
Wurttemberg, now part of the German state of
Baden-Wurttemberg, founded Harmony in 1804. They
organized as the communal Harmony Society, which
soon gained international renown. The group, which
adopted celibacy, moved on to settle two more towns
-- New Harmony, Ind., and Economy, now Ambridge, on
the Ohio River only 22 miles from Harmony. Its last
members disbanded the society there in 1905. The
Harmonist heritage led to Harmony's designation more
than 30 years ago as western Pennsylvania's first
National Historic Landmark District.
According to legend, St. Sylvester, the Catholic
pope 314-335, converted Emperor Constantine I to
Christianity and cured him of leprosy. The year's
last day, St. Sylvester's feast day, is known in
Germany as Silvester or Silvesterabend.
Harmony's New Year's Eve party begins at 2 p.m. with
the NexTier Bank Silvester 5K Run. Celebrants
welcome 2008 four hours later when the Sign
Innovation Ball Drop counts down to Armstrong's
Silvester Zambelli Fireworks finale at 6 p.m. --
midnight in Germany.
The Harmony Museum will be open 3-5:30 p.m. for a
token $1 donation, with free admission for
continuous showings of "Dinner for One" at the Main
Street end of the museum's Stewart Hall. For $1 a
try at the adjacent Wagner House museum annex,
visitors can have a go at Bleigiessen -- using the
shape of melted lead to interpret what the new year
may bring. The museum's $10 German dinner that
begins at 4:30 p.m. in the main section of Stewart
Hall will continue until the buffet is depleted.
In the humorous and somewhat politically incorrect
"Dinner for One" English-language film short from
the 1960s that has somehow become a very popular
German New Year's Eve entertainment, butler James
and lady of the manor Miss Sophie -- both elderly
and increasingly tipsy -- conduct a dinner party
with imaginary guests.
Bleigiessen involves placing a bit of lead in a
spoon, heating it with a candle until the lead
melts, dropping the molten lead into water and
interpreting its shape when chilled to predict what
to expect in the new year. A flower, angel, beetle
or sailboat are among shapes bearing good tidings.
An apple, broom, pants or lance -- not so good. The
Harmony Museum folks have found a guide to help lead
melters decide what their bit of metal says is ahead
for them in 2008.
Harmony's Silvester also includes a German band
concert 3:30-5:30 p.m. in front of the Harmony Inn,
craft demonstrations and activities for kids.
Weather permitting, there will be free rides on
Antique Motor Coach Association of Pennsylvania's
restored 1947 Harmony Short Line bus. Harmony's
antique and specialty shops, including the museum
gift shop, will offer post-Christmas sales.
Additional information about the Silvester
celebration, as well as 5K race entry forms, are
available at the borough's Web site,
www.harmony-pa.us.
####
12/26/2007
CONTACT: Kathy Luek, Administrator, 724-452-7341
ELEGANT DINNER & CANDLELIGHT TOURS OPEN HOLIDAYS AT
HARMONY MUSEUM
HARMONY, Pa. -- Visitors
attending Historic Harmony's annual holiday season
Candlelight Christmas fundraiser on Sunday, Dec. 9, can
again choose to enjoy an elegant, reservations-only
dinner in addition to touring Harmony Museum buildings
that are decked out in Christmas trim.
The dinner option was introduced at the 2006 Candlelight
Christmas and sold out quickly. The single-seating
dinner will be served at 5:30 p.m. in the museum's
Stewart Hall, with entree choices of Wellington style
beef, chicken or salmon. Diners are welcome to bring
their own beverage. The $25 per person fee, the same as
a year ago, includes a museum tour before or after
dinner. Reservations must be placed with the museum
office no later than Tuesday, Dec. 4, at
724-452-7341/888-821-4822 or hmuseum@zoominternet.net.
The decorated and candlelit main museum, Ziegler log
house and Wagner House annex will be open 4-8 p.m.
Harmony's historic center, reminiscent of a rural German
village and core of the first National Historic Landmark
District in Western Pennsylvania, becomes especially
picturesque when luminaries are lighted at dusk around
the diamond and along Mercer Street. The winner of
Historic Harmony's annual handmade quilt raffle will be
drawn at 8 p.m., and the museum's gift shop and
Harmony's other antique and specialty shops will be open
into the evening.
A $2 Candlelight Christmas admission donation is
requested of those not having dinner; proceeds benefit
Historic Harmony and its museum operations.
A unique model railroad platform that delighted museum
visitors during the 2006 Christmas season is again a
special holidays-only attraction in the Wagner House.
Donated to Historic Harmony by the Ronald Eckstein
family of Forward Township, the layout's highlights are
remarkable log buildings and accessories made in the
1930s and early '40s by the late William Yobp of New
Kensington and an O-27 gauge Lionel train and trolley
from the 1950s.
Harmony is 10 miles north of the Pennsylvania Turnpike
and 30 miles south of I-80 at I-79 exits 87-88. The
area’s recorded history began with a Delaware Indian
village visited by George Washington during his 1753
mission demanding French withdrawal from British
territory, sparking the French & Indian War; its first
shot was fired at him nearby by a "French Indian."
Pacifist German Lutheran Separatists founded Harmony
late in 1804, and their communal Harmony Society gained
international renown. After their 1814 departure, the
area's resettlement was led by pacifist Mennonites.
These and many other aspects of area history are
interpreted by the Harmony Museum.
####
11/20/2007
CONTACT: Kathy Luek, Administrator, 724-452-7341 or
888-821-4822
HARMONY MUSEUM SCHEDULES WASHINGTON 1753 COMMEMORATION
HARMONY, Pa. -- History fans
of all ages are invited to participate in a Harmony
Museum commemoration on Saturday, Dec. 1, to learn
more about 21-year-old Virginia Maj. George
Washington's 1753 mission to western Pennsylvania
that sparked the French & Indian War as well as
other aspects of Harmony's rich history.
The two-mile walk begins at 1 p.m. in Harmony's
diamond. A donation of $5 per person is requested.
Washington came to the region from Williamsburg,
Va., late in 1753 with an ultimatum from Gov. Robert
Dinwiddie for French withdrawal from British
territory, virtually assuring war -- officers at
Fort LeBoeuf (Waterford, Erie County) responded that
the British should stay out of New France. The
significance of the mission and some of its
incidents will be discussed during the walk over
historic ground with Washington and guide
Christopher Gist reenactors Jason Cherry and Kenneth
Cherry of Butler.
The program marks the 254th anniversary of
Washington's overnight Nov. 30-Dec. 1, 1753, stay at
Murdering Town, a Lenni Lenapi (Delaware) village
across the Connoquenessing Creek from where Harmony
would be established 51 years later. The French &
Indian War's first shot, fired at Washington by a
"French Indian" east of Murdering Town 26 days
later, missed its target -- also with great
historical consequence. The French soon drove
Virginians from the Forks of the Ohio and
constructed Ft. Duquesne there. After a small force
led by Washington ambushed a French party at Great
Meadows (near Uniontown) in May 1754, French troops
secured Washington’s surrender at Ft. Necessity, and
what would become the first global war was truly
under way.
During the Harmony Museum's Dec. 1 program,
Washington and Gist will lead participants to where
it is believed Washington's party forded the
Connoquenessing, then through Harmony and along a
creek-side trail to the approximate site of
Murdering Town. Historians believe that the village
was on high ground near where Mennonites established
a cemetery and meetinghouse in the early 19th
century. Walkers will be offered refreshments at the
historic 1825 meetinghouse before returning to
Harmony.
Harmony is at I-79 exits 87-88, about 10 miles north
of the Pennsylvania Turnpike and 30 miles south of
I-80. Pacifist German Lutheran Separatists, fleeing
European militarism and a state church they
considered corrupt, founded Harmony in 1804 and
organized as the internationally known communal
Harmony Society. When they left for Indiana in 1814,
resettlement was led by Mennonites from eastern
Pennsylvania, also pacifists whose congregation
faded away at the beginning of the 20th century. A
pioneering school for girls was established here in
1817 by a Pittsburgh pastor, and the area benefited
from local oil and gas discoveries in the late 19th
century and again early in the 20th century.
Exhibits at the Harmony Museum, open daily 1-4 p.m.
except Mondays and holidays, interpret all of this
and other aspects of area history.
####11/14/07
CONTACT: Kathy Luek, Administrator, 724-452-7341 or
888-821-4822, or hmuseum@zoominternet.net
HARMONY MUSEUM SUMMER HISTORY CAMP DATES SET
HARMONY -- Historic Harmony has
scheduled its annual Harmony Museum summer History
Camps, with the session for beginner campers (third,
fourth and fifth graders) held
July 23-27 and advanced camp (last summer's beginners)
July 30-Aug. 3 for. Each
day's session is held from 9 a.m. to noon.
Activities for first-year campers include museum tour,
nature walks, and such
pioneer crafts as tin piercing, weaving and candle
making. The advanced program
focuses on German culture, Harmony history with related
field trips, and crafts.
Preregistration is required with the museum office,
724-452-7341. The fee is $27 for
Historic Harmony members. The $30 fee for others
includes a student membership.
Beginner camp coordinator is Valerie Cuccaro and
advanced camp coordinators are
Marcy Luek and Margaret Miller.
Harmony, Western Pennsylvania's first National Historic
Landmark District, is one of
the region’s most significant historic places. In the
mid-1700s it was the site of a
Delaware village visited by George Washington during his
1753 mission into the
region that sparked the French & Indian War.
Pacifist German Lutheran Separatists founded Harmony in
1804 and organized as the
Harmony Society, 19th century America’s most successful
communal group. Mennonite
Abraham Ziegler bought the society’s town and thousands
of surrounding acres in
1815. Harmony Museum exhibits present these and many
other elements of the area’s
remarkably rich history.
CONTACT: Kathy Luek,
Administrator, 724-452-7341
ANNUAL
HARMONY MUSEUM HERB & GARDEN FAIR JUNE 9
HARMONY, Pa. -- The Harmony
Museum’s 3rd annual Herb & Garden Fair, featuring a
plant exchange and sale, will be held 10 a.m.-3 p.m. on
Saturday, June 9, at the historic 200-year-old barn
museum annex on Mercer Road just north of the
picturesque Connoquenessing Creek.
Gardeners may trade potted plants as specialty vendors
offer roses and other ornamentals, herbs and garden art.
Seminars will take place throughout the day.
Plant donors and exchangers should bring their plants to
the barn on Friday to be displayed properly when the
fair opens. They will receive vouchers for use during
Saturday's exchange. Museum volunteers recommend that
plants be potted well ahead of time to assure they are
perky in time for the fair.
Homemade lunch will be offered, incorporating herbs from
the museum garden. Selections will include quiches and
basil tomato salad. Visitors to the Wagner House museum
annex gift shop a few blocks away, at 222 Mercer St. in
the National Historic Landmark District, can enjoy
various rare and unusual roses blooming in its garden.
Guided museum tours will be available 1-4 p.m., and
Harmony’s many other antiques and specialty shops invite
browsing.
Harmony, just off I-79 in Butler County, is one of the
region’s most significant historic places. In the
mid-1700s it was the site of the Lenni Lenape (Delaware)
Murdering Town, visited by George Washington during his
1753 mission to demand French withdrawal from the region
that sparked the French & Indian War; a "French Indian"
fired the war’s first shot at Washington nearby.
Pacifist German Lutheran Separatists founded Harmony in
1804. Their Harmony Society became 19th century
America’s most successful communal group. A decade later
the Harmonists relocated to Indiana Territory and
Mennonite Abraham Ziegler bought the society’s town and
thousands of surrounding acres in what would become
Jackson and Lancaster townships. The Harmony Society
returned in 1824 to settle 20 miles west of Harmony in
Beaver County and disband in 1905; its final home is
commemorated at the Old Economy Village historic site in
Ambridge.
During the second half of the 19th century, Harmony’s
Charles Flowers made fine hunting and target rifles, now
collected as works of art. Oil and gas booms benefited
the region in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
Harmony Museum exhibits present these and other elements
of the area’s remarkably rich history. A heritage
tourism site for 200 years and Western Pennsylvania's
first National Historic Landmark District, Harmony
retains the architectural character of the hometowns of
its German founders.
Harmony is at I-79 exits 87 and 88, about 30 miles north
of downtown Pittsburgh, 10 miles north of Pennsylvania
Turnpike exit 28, and 30 miles south of I-80.
####
CONTACT: Kathy Luek, Administrator, 724-452-7341
QUILT
IN A DAY PROGRAM RETURNS TO HARMONY MUSEUM
HARMONY, Pa. -- Patricia
Knoechel's annual how-to-quilt appearance always fills
the Harmony Museum's Stewart Hall, so another full house
is expected when she returns for this year's Quilt in a
Day presentation at 10 a.m. on Tuesday, May 29.
Her two-hour presentation will focus on a traditional
flowered 1930s "Magic Vine" design as well as "Quick
Trip" strip-pieced quilting techniques suitable for
beginners as well as experts. Both are based on new
books by Knoechel and her sister, Quilt in a Day founder
and television quilter Eleanor Burns. The area natives,
who reside in California, have written many popular
quilting books.
Quilts will be displayed, and Quilt in a Day books and
supplies may be purchased. Admission is $6, with
proceeds benefiting the Harmony Museum. Reservations or
advance ticket purchases are recommended strongly
because of the popularity of Knoechel's museum
presentations each spring. Reservations may be made with
the museum office, 724-452-7341 or e-mail hmuseum@fyi.net,
and tickets are available at the Museum Shop, Wagner
House museum annex, 222 Mercer Street.
The Museum is open for guided tours following the
program.
Harmony, a National Historic Landmark 30 minutes north
of downtown Pittsburgh, is among Western Pennsylvania’s
most significant historic places. In the mid-1700s it
was the site of the Leni Lenape Murdering Town visited
by George Washington during his 1753 mission seeking
French withdrawal from the region, sparking the French &
Indian War; a "French Indian" fired the war’s first shot
at Washington nearby. Pacifist German Lutheran
Separatists founded Harmony in 1804, their Harmony
Society becoming 19th century America’s most successful
communal group. Mennonite Abraham Ziegler bought the
society's town and surrounding land in 1815.
The Harmony Museum exhibits present these and other
elements of the area's unusually rich history, and the
architectural character of the town remains much like
that of a rural German village.
Harmony is at I-79 exits 87-88, about 30 miles north of
downtown Pittsburgh, 10 miles north of Pennsylvania
Turnpike exit 28, and 30 miles south of I-80.
####
5/6/2007
CONTACT: Kathy Luek, Administrator, 724-452-7341
NOTE TO BROADCASTERS: Knoechel is pronounced nay-gehl
SEE GEORGE WASHINGTON AT HARMONY MUSEUM
HARMONY, Pa. -- The
public is invited to a program at the Harmony Museum to
view the History Channel's special "Search for George
Washington" production. The presentation begins at 7:30
p.m. on Tuesday, May 8, in the museum’s Stewart Hall,
and admission is free.
The program expands on and further illuminates the
historical detective work and 21st century technologies
that determined Washington's true appearance in a
project described by Jeffrey Schwartz at the museum's
Harmoniefest program in February.
Project leader Schwartz, forensic anthropologist and
University of Pittsburgh professor, appears throughout
the 50-minute History Channel program broadcast one week
after he spoke in Harmony. It shows the challenges
encountered and technologies applied -- including
advanced forensics and 3-D laser scanning -- to create
accurate images of Washington as 19-year-old surveyor,
45-year-old Colonial army commander and first American
president at 57. The program also shows how life-sized
figures of Washington were produced, and their
installation last September at a new museum at Mount
Vernon, Washington's Virginia estate.
The Harmony area’s recorded history began with a Lenni
Lenape (Delaware) village visited by Washington during
his 1753 mission on behalf of Virginia's governor to
demand French withdrawal from the region, sparking the
French & Indian War. Nearby, a "French Indian" fired the
war’s first shot at the 21-year-old major. The Indians
had left the area many years before the Harmony Society
of pacifist German Lutheran Separatists came to western
Butler County's wilderness in 1804 to establish Harmony
as its first American home. The religious commune soon
attracted international attention as its population grew
to about 850 immigrants convinced of Christ’s imminent
return and dedicated to separation of church and state.
The Harmonists departed in 1814 to Indiana Territory,
returning in 1824 to build their final home at what
became Ambridge in Beaver County, commemorated by Old
Economy Village there. Their Butler County property was
bought in 1815 by Mennonite blacksmith Abraham Ziegler,
Harmony's "second founder."
Harmony Museum exhibits present these and other elements
of the area's rich history. Access to additional
historic sites and National Historic Landmark District
walking tours may be arranged by appointment. Harmony is
at I-79 exits 87-88, about 10 miles north of the
Pennsylvania Turnpike, 30 miles north of downtown
Pittsburgh and 30 miles south of I-80
CELEBRATE NEW SEASON WITH HARMONY MUSEUM SPRING FEAST
HARMONY, Pa. -- Spring brings
warmer, sunnier times and, in Harmony, revival of the
Harmony Museum's popular reservations-only German
dinners, beginning on Saturday, April 14 with a
Frühlingfest, or spring feast. The buffet dinner will be
served 5-7 p.m. in the museum’s Stewart Hall.
Selections will include pork schnitzel, sauerbraten,
meatballs in gravy, sauerkraut, red cabbage, German
potato salad, spaetzle (German pasta), dandelion salad,
cucumber salad, beets, carrots, breads, homemade
desserts, and coffee, tea, and water. Diners are always
welcome to bring along their favorite German beverage.
Cost is $13 per person, and proceeds benefit museum
operations. Reservations may be made with the museum
office: 724-452-7341, toll-free 888-821-4822, or
www.harmonymuseum.org.
Diners are encouraged to spend the day exploring the
museum, the National Historic Landmark District, and
Harmony's many specialty shops with goods ranging from
antiques and crafts to souvenirs of one of the region's
most historic sites.
Recognized in 2004 with a statewide award for its
long-standing historic preservation efforts, the
picturesque town with an architectural character not
unlike that of a German village has been a heritage
tourism destination for nearly 200 years. Harmony is at
I-79 exits 87-88, a quick 10 miles north of the
Pennsylvania Turnpike, 30 miles north of Pittsburgh’s
Point and 30 miles south of I-80.
The area’s recorded history began with a Delaware Indian
village visited in 1753 by George Washington during his
mission to the region that sparked the French & Indian
War. Nearby, a "French Indian" fired the war’s first
shot at him on Dec. 27, 1753. The communal Harmony
Society of German Lutheran Separatists founded Harmony
in 1804 as its first American home and was soon
attracting international attention. With their 1814
departure, resettlement was led by Mennonite blacksmith
and "second founder" Abraham Ziegler.
RENOVATION COMPLETED AT HARMONY MUSEUM
HARMONY, Pa. -- Completion of
an eight-week Harmony Museum renovation project has
reopened all exhibit rooms in the main museum
building to public view.
Museum volunteers removed a deteriorated floor in
the multi-subject History Room, constructed a
substantial subfloor and installed and stained
southern pine flooring, repainted the room's walls,
installed new cases for its display of Native
American artifacts, and reorganized its other
exhibits. The adjoining Victorian Room was also
painted and its displays of period furnishings and
artifacts refreshed.
The project finished a two-phase rehabilitation that
began with the similar rehabilitation of the
adjacent Mennonite Room in early 2006.
Historic Harmony President John Ruch said the old
History and Mennonite room floors were badly-built
replacements dating from the first half of the 20th
century, and no significant artifacts were found
under them. The building, on the diamond at the
center of the Harmony National Historic Landmark
District, was built in 1809 by the communal Harmony
Society as a warehouse and granary with a massive
wine cellar as its basement.
The Harmony Museum, established in 1955 and one of
the region's few history museums that operates all
year,
is open 1-4 p.m. daily
except Mondays and holidays. Regular admission fees
are $5 for adults and $2 for children for a guided
tour that includes three historic buildings.
The Harmony area’s recorded history began with
Murdering Town, a Delaware Indian village visited by
George Washington during his 1753 mission to demand
French withdrawal from the territory, sparking war
between Britain and France. The first shot of the
French & Indian War was fired at him nearby by a
"French Indian." The Harmony founded in 1804 by
German Lutheran Separatists as the first home of
their famed communal Harmony Society encompassed
much of Jackson and Lancaster townships as well as
the town. After the Harmonists left, their town and
extensive property was purchased in 1815 by "second
founder" blacksmith Abraham Ziegler, who with his
and other Mennonite families led the area's
resettlement.
Among additional aspects of Harmony's rich history
interpreted in Harmony Museum exhibits are pioneer
life, a late 19th-early 20th century oil and gas
boom, and the medical practice of rural doctors.
Harmony, is at I-79 exits 87-88, about 10 miles
north of the Pennsylvania Turnpike, 30 miles north
of Pittsburgh’s Point and 30 miles south of I-80.
FLOOD PLAIN DEVELOPMENT CHALLENGED;
WASHINGTON'S TRUE APPEARANCE DECIPHERED
HARMONY, Pa. -- "Why in the
world should new construction be allowed in the
Connoquenessing flood plain while millions of dollars
are being spent to buy and vacate flood plain properties
damaged in the 2004 flood?"
Local, county, state and federal officials are about to
be asked to respond to that question with regard to the
controversial Creekside Manor housing plan, said
Historic Harmony President John Ruch during the
historical society and preservation advocate's annual
Harmoniefest on Saturday evening (Feb. 10).
The annual fundraising event's 80 diners, including
public officials, applauded University of Pittsburgh
Professor Jeffrey Schwartz's illustrated presentation
about his four-year forensics project to determine
George Washington's appearance as youth, middle-aged
Colonial army commander and first U.S. president. His
internationally recognized undertaking is the subject of
"Save Our History: The Search for George Washington" on
the History Channel, 10 p.m. this coming Saturday (Feb.
17).
Historic Harmony also presented awards to honor recent
building restorations and recognized members for
volunteer service to the Harmony Museum during 2006.
The 47-acre Creekside Manor site and three adjacent
properties are eligible for the National Register of
Historic Places. Directly across the Connoquenessing
Creek from Harmony's historic district and west of
Mercer Road, it was probably the site of the Delaware
Indian village visited by young Virginia Maj. George
Washington in 1753. It was also the first land cleared
by the communal Harmony Society that founded Harmony in
1804, for its physician's herb garden, crops and
sheep-grazing, as well as its religious labyrinth. It
has been in agricultural use ever since.
Ruch revealed that the property was offered to Historic
Harmony last June, when the organization was given up to
three years to finance and complete the purchase to
preserve it as green space. The historical society began
immediately to pursue grants and related support with
foundations and other organizations, but was "incredibly
shocked" when told last month the property was being
sold to a builder -- "what must certainly be the
greatest disappointment in this organization's history"
and "shortest three years we'll ever experience."
"In The Creek Manor" would be a better name for the
development, he added, because nearly half of the
property was under water in the September 2004 flood and
half of the plan's construction would occupy the flood
plain.
"If it is built, it will mean worse damage to
surrounding properties in future floods," Ruch said. "In
fact, that's exactly what the Pennsylvania Department of
Environmental Protection told the developer, as well as
Harmony and Jackson Township officials, just a few days
before the property was offered to Historic Harmony.
There's simply no question that if Creekside Manor is
built, the consequences will be terrible for the
community in terms of public safety, future economic
viability and loss of nationally important historic
resources. This is a project for which there is no
rational justification."
He called on the public to demand "meaningful
protections when it comes to the flood plain, and to
preserve that very historic landscape across the
Connoquenessing."
Schwartz's project resulted in creation of three
life-sized representations of Washington that in
September were installed in a new museum and education
center at Mount Vernon, Washington's Virginia estate.
The work involved using computer and laser technology to
interpret 18th century art and sculpture, anatomical
forensics and even Washington's clothing. The images
produced differ distinctly from such popular
representations as the Gilbert Stuart portrait that once
hung in many school classrooms and that on the U.S. $1
bill.
The interpretation of Washington as a surveyor in 1751
would be similar to his appearance during his mission to
western Pennsylvania two years later to demand French
withdrawal from the region. He spent a night with
Delaware Indians across the Connoquenessing from the
future site of Harmony, and four weeks later an Indian
allied with the French shot at him nearby.
Historic Harmony presented two Heritage Awards for 2007
during Harmoniefest. Robert Householder, Zelienople,
honored for renovation of the facade of the building at
115 S. Main St., Zelienople, was also a 1999 recipient
for restoration of Zelienople's former First National
Bank building. Beth Nicklas and Alan Miles received an
award for barn and outbuilding facade restoration at the
ca. 1830 Ziegler-Peffer farmstead, their home at 129
Textor Hill Rd., Jackson Township.
Volunteer Service Recognition awards honored four
Harmony Museum volunteers contributing the most hours of
service during the past year. Recipients were Sharon
Anno, Lancaster Township, 121.5 hours; Sam Regal,
Zelienople, 81.5 hours; and Kathy Luek, Harmony, and
Suzie Rape, Zelienople, 80 hours each. Ruch noted that
74 volunteers contributed more than 3,800 hours to
museum activities during 2006.
The original Harmoniefest was a feast celebrating the
Harmony Society's founding. The pacifist commune's
members came to the United States seeking religious
freedom and believing in separation of church and state.
The event conducted by Historic Harmony celebrates all
of the area's rich history.
Harmony is one of western Pennsylvania’s most
significant historic sites and includes western
Pennsylvania's first National Historic Landmark
District. The first American home of the Harmony Society
had a population of nearly 900 when the commune
relocated to southwest Indiana in 1814; it returned to
Beaver County in 1824 to establish Economy (now
Ambridge), where the society dissolved in 1905 and is
commemorated by the state's Old Economy Village historic
site.
When blacksmith Abraham Ziegler, Harmony’s "second
founder," bought the Harmony Society’s town and
extensive property in 1815, his and other Mennonite
families led the area's resettlement and Ziegler sold
the town lot by lot. The Mennonite congregation also
faded away at the beginning of the 20th century.
WHAT DID GEORGE WASHINGTON REALLY LOOK LIKE? FIND
OUT AT HARMONY MUSEUM HARMONIEFEST
HARMONY, Pa. --The University
of Pittsburgh's Jeffrey H. Schwartz will present an
illustrated program, "What Did George Washington Really
Look Like? The First Forensic Reconstruction of Our
First President," during Historic Harmony's 41st annual
Harmoniefest program on Saturday, Feb. 10, at the
Harmony Museum's Stewart Hall..
Historic Harmony will also present two Heritage Awards
for area renovation projects and recognize volunteers
who contributed the most hours to the organization's
2006 activities. Reservations are required for
Harmoniefest and must be received at the museum by
Friday, Feb. 2.
The annual museum fundraiser dinner and historical
program commemorates Harmony’s 1804 founding by German
Lutheran Separatists and their organization as the
communal Harmony Society on Feb. 15, 1805. Historic
Harmony officials note that this is an appropriate
occasion for Schwartz's presentation because Feb. 22
marks the 275th birth anniversary of Washington, who
contributed importantly to the history of Harmony and
the region.
Schwartz, professor in Pitt's departments of
Anthropology and History and Philosophy of Science, led
a four-year project to determine Washington's true
appearance at three stages of his life: teen-aged
surveyor, gentleman farmer taking command of the
Revolution's Colonial army, and at his inauguration as
first American president. The work was used to create
life-sized models for a new museum-education center at
Washington's Virginia estate, Mount Vernon.
The effort combined 18th century art, sculpture,
dentistry and clothing with digital computer technology
and knowledge of skeletal and soft tissue changes of the
aging process. Schwartz describes the result, which has
attracted international attention, as the first
"de-aging" of an individual -- recognizable as
Washington, but notably different from popular
representations.
The image of Washington at 19 depicts his appearance two
years before he came to western Pennsylvania in 1753 as
a Virginia major with an ultimatum demanding French
withdrawal from the region, setting the stage for the
French & Indian War. He spent a night with Delaware
Indians at their Murdering Town near the future site of
Harmony, camped at three other Butler County locations,
and was the target of the war's first shot, fired
several miles east of Murdering Town by a "French
Indian."
Schwartz, author of many articles and books, is also a
resident fellow of Pitt's Center for Philosophy of
Science, research associate of the American Museum of
Natural History and Carnegie Museum of Natural History,
and forensic anthropologist for the Allegheny County
Coroner's office. The New Jersey native received
master's and doctoral degrees at Columbia University
after undergraduate study at the university's Columbia
College.
This year’s Heritage Awards honor Robert Householder,
Zelienople, for renovation of the facade of the building
at 115 S. Main St., Zelienople; and Beth Nicklas and
Alan Miles for barn and outbuilding facade restoration
at the ca. 1830 Ziegler-Peffer farmstead, their home at
129 Textor Hill Rd., Jackson Township.
The original Harmoniefest was an annual feast
celebrating the Harmony Society's founding. The pacifist
commune's members, anticipating the imminent return of
Christ, came to the United States to flee militarism and
seek religious freedom grounded in separation of church
and state. Historic Harmony’s event, begun in 1967,
celebrates more than 250 years of area history, and
since 1991 has been the occasion for presenting its
preservation awards.
Harmony is one of western Pennsylvania’s most
significant historic sites. The Harmony National
Historic Landmark District comprises about 10 blocks in
the borough that separated in 1840 from Connoquenessing
Township and the noncontiguous Harmony Society cemetery
in what in 1854 became Jackson Township.
Separatists from the German Duchy of Wurttemberg began
developing what they called Harmonie late in 1804 as
their first American home. The Harmonist community, then
numbering about 850, moved to southwest Indiana in 1814
to build a second Harmony. It returned to Beaver County
in 1824 to establish Economy (now Ambridge), where the
celibate society dissolved in 1905 and is commemorated
by the state's Old Economy Village historic site.
Pacifist Mennonites led by Abraham Ziegler, Harmony’s
"second founder" who bought the Harmony Society’s
extensive property in 1815, resettled the area. Ziegler
ultimately sold off the town in lots. Although their
congregation faded away as the Harmony Society was
meeting a similar end 20 miles away, many descendants of
Mennonites reside in the area.
Harmoniefest begins with a 6 p.m. reception. Dinner is
roasted game hen or stuffed brisket served with potato,
caramelized root vegetables, salad and dessert;
vegetarian lasagna is also available. Admission is $25
per person, reservations are required and must be
received by Friday, Feb. 2. Additional information and
reservations can be obtained from the Harmony Museum,
724-452-7341 or toll-free 888-821-4822, or e-mail at
hmuseum@fyi.net
HISTORIC HARMONY INSTALLS INCUMBENT OFFICERS, DIRECTORS
HARMONY -- Officers and two
additional directors, all incumbents, were installed
during Historic Harmony's annual Christmas
membership dinner (on Tuesday, Dec. 12) for new
terms that begin Jan. 1. The nonprofit historical
society and preservation advocate operates the
nine-site Harmony Museum.
Officers are members of Historic Harmony's 10-seat
governing board. Unanimously reelected to two-year
terms were President and Chief Executive Officer
John S. Ruch, Jackson Township, retired PPG
Industries manager of corporate public information;
Vice President Cathryn Rape, Harmony, First Energy
meter service and Harmony Borough mayor; Secretary
Samuel F. Regal, Zelienople, retired Consolidated
Natural Gas controller; and Treasurer Joseph White,
Harmony, University of Pittsburgh associate
professor of history.
Non-officer directors reelected to serve three-year
terms through 2009 were Tim Shaffer, Prospect,
attorney with Dillon McCandless King Coulter &
Graham and former state senator; and Eleanor M.
Wise, Jackson Township, retired Seneca Valley School
District fourth grade teacher.
Continuing non-officer directors are
Barbara Pabst, Evans City; co-owner of Pabst Blue
Ribbon Farms and Pabst Blue Ribbon Antiques and
retired Rockwell International executive secretary;
Joan M. Szakelyhidi, Harmony, Butler Memorial
Hospital microbiology supervisor; Barbara Vickerman,
Zelienople, retired dairy farmer; and John L. Wise
III, Center Township, vice president and secretary,
Butler Eagle.
Harmony, western Pennsylvania's first National
Historic Landmark District, ranks among the region's
most significant historic sites. George Washington
visited a Indian village here during his 1753
mission to New France’s Fort LeBoeuf that sparked
the French & Indian War; a "French Indian" fired the
war’s first shot at him nearby. Harmony originally
encompassed about 7,000 acres spanning today's
Jackson and Lancaster townships as the 1804 first
American home of the Harmony Society of pacifist
German Lutheran Separatists that gained
international fame as 19th century America’s most
successful communal group. The society sold its
Harmony in 1815 to Mennonite "second founder"
Abraham Ziegler. All of this, and other aspects of
the area's rich history, are interpreted at the
Harmony Museum, one of the region's few history
museums that is open year-round.
2007 HARMONY MUSEUM EVENTS
Harmony Museum: Harmony
is a National Historic Landmark 30 minutes north of
Pittsburgh’s Point that ranks as one of the region’s
most significant historic sites. It also offers fun
shopping at numerous antique, specialty and craft
shops as well as quality family dining. George
Washington visited the Lenni Lenape's (Delaware's)
Murdering Town here during his 1753 mission to
demand French withdrawal from the region, sparking
the French & Indian War; a "French Indian" fired the
war's first shot at him nearby. Pacifist German
Lutheran Separatists founded Harmony in 1804; their
Harmony Society became 19th century America’s most
successful communal group. After Abraham Ziegler
bought the Harmony Society’s 7000 acres in 1815, his
and other Mennonite families became an important
influence through much of the 1800s. Many of their
descendants remain in the area. Charles Flowers made
outstanding percussion hunting and target rifles
here ca. 1850-1890. The Harmony Museum, open all
year in the center of the National Landmark
District, presents these and other aspects of
Harmony's rich history and, by appointment, offers
tours of additional sites. Harmony is at I-79 exits
87-88. Museum: Guided tours 1-4 p.m. except Mondays
and holidays; reservations suggested for weekends,
required for groups; phone 724-452-7341, toll free
888-821-4822, e-mail hmuseum@fyi.net. Web site
www.harmonymuseum.org. Hours for its Museum Shop
vary, and it can be visited online at
www.harmonymuseumgiftshop.org.
At the Harmony Museum’s
Stewart Hall unless noted.
February 10, Harmony Museum’s 41st annual Harmoniefest
fundraising dinner, 6 p.m., commemorates Harmony’s 1804
founding by German Lutheran Separatists and 1805 formal
creation of their communal Harmony Society. Program:
"What Did George Washington Really Look Like?: The First
Forensic Reconstruction of Our First President,"
presentation by Jeffrey H. Schwartz, University of
Pittsburgh, who led a four-year project to reconstruct
Washington as a youth, middle-aged commander in chief
during the Revolution, and when inaugurated as
president, resulting in the first "de-aging" of an
individual -- recognizable as Washington but different
from popular representations. Reservations required:
888-821-4822, e-mail hmuseum@fyi.net; Web:
www.harmonymuseum.org.
April 14, Harmony Museum German dinner, menu of
traditional German foods. Diners may provide their own
wine or beer. 5-7 p.m. Reservations required:
888-821-4822, e-mail hmuseum@fyi.net; Web:
www.harmonymuseum.org.
May 29, Harmony Museum’s annual "Quilt in a Day"
program, 10 a.m.-Noon, presented by Patricia Knoechel,
author and co-author of quilting books with sister and
internationally syndicated television quilter Eleanor
Burns. Reservations recommended: 888-821-4822, e-mail
hmuseum@fyi.net; Web: www.harmonymuseum.org.
June 9, Harmony Museum Art Show/Plant Exchange, 10
a.m.-4 p.m. Shop for works by area artists at the
museum’s Stewart Hall and grounds, visit the nearby
historic 1805 barn to exchange plants and buy from
vendors of specialty roses and other plants. Lunch
available at Stewart Hall. 888-821-4822, e-mail hmuseum@fyi.net;
Web: www.harmonymuseum.org.
August 11, Harmony Museum’s annual Antique Gun Show in
Stewart Hall, 9 a.m.-4 p.m., presenting historic
firearms spanning Colonial era through late 19th
century, including fine longrifles by Harmony master
gunsmith Charles Flowers. 888-821-4822, e-mail hmuseum@fyi.net;
Web: www.harmonymuseum.org.
August 18, Harmony Museum German dinner, menu of
traditional German foods. Diners may provide their own
wine or beer. 5-7 p.m. Reservations required:
888-821-4822, e-mail hmuseum@fyi.net; Web:
www.harmonymuseum.org.
October 13, Harmony Museum German dinner, menu of
traditional German foods. Diners may provide their own
wine or beer. 5-7 p.m. Reservations required.
888-821-4822, e-mail hmuseum@fyi.net; Web:
www.harmonymuseum.org.
November 10-11, Harmony Museum’s annual WeihnachtMarkt
(German style Christmas Market) where local and regional
artisans and other vendors offer a taste of German
holiday season tradition with a memorable shopping
opportunity for quality artwork, crafted goods, toys and
other wares, including German imports. Related
activities throughout the historic 200-year-old town, a
National Historic Landmark with a number of antique,
craft and specialty shops. Saturday 10 a.m.-8 p.m.,
Sunday Noon-5 p.m. 888-821-4822; e-mail hmuseum@fyi.net;
Web: www.harmonymuseum.org.
Dec. 1: Washington Mission Commemoration. Hike with
Virginia Maj. George Washington and guide Christopher
Gist to site of Lenni Lenape (Delaware) village
Murdering Town, hear about visit by Washington Nov.
30-Dec. 1, 1753, during his mission to order French from
British-claimed territory, precipitating French & Indian
War. A "French Indian's shot nearby, the war's first,
missed Washington. Two-mile hike begins 1 p.m. at
Harmony Museum's historic 1805 Mercer Road barn.
888-821-4822 ; e-mail hmuseum@fyi.net; Web:
www.harmonymuseum.org.
December 9, Harmony Museum’s Candlelight Christmas
fundraiser. Tour Christmas-decorated museum buildings
4-8 p.m.; elegant dinner, 5-7 p.m., requires
reservations and includes tour admission. 200-year-old
National Historic Landmark town center glows with
luminaries after sunset. 888-821-4822, e-mail hmuseum@fyi.net;
Web: www.harmonymuseum.org.
UNUSUAL MODEL BUILDINGS, RAILROAD DISPLAYED AT HARMONY
MUSEUM
Harmony, Pa. -- An unusual
model railroad platform that delighted old and young
alike when unveiled Nov. 11-12 at the
Harmony Museum's
WeihnachtMarkt (Christmas Market) will remain on
view until early January.
The display was donated to Historic Harmony early this
year by the Ronald Eckstein Family, after being a
Christmas fixture of the Eckstein home for about 50
Christmas seasons.
Prominent on the layout are log buildings, a manger
housing Nativity figures, sleighs, wagons and boats
handcrafted between 1936 and the early 1940s by the late
William E. Yobp of New Kensington for an expansive
Christmas season living room display. Ronald Eckstein,
whose late first wife, Lyda Lee, was William and Edith
Yobp's daughter, built the model railroad platform in
the 1950s for his O-27 gauge Lionel train and trolley,
using some of Yobp's buildings for its village.
The display's log buildings are five meticulously
constructed houses, steepled church, mill, and a barn
with sandstone block foundation, all with interior
illumination. According to Edith Yobp, of Creighton, the
barn, mill and church were the first model structures
her husband built. He worked on the projects every
evening from October until Christmas Eve -- except for
Thursday bowling nights. Her father, J.C. Tipton,
provided advice for making the barn and wagons. William
Yobp, who died in 1973, was head of his Alcoa
heat-treating department.
The Lionel train is a model of The Western & Atlantic
Railroad train pulled by "The General" of Civil War
"Great Locomotive Chase" fame. The yellow trolley,
operating on a separate track, is a Lionel Model 60.
Over the years, Eckstein, of near Renfrew, added trees,
a community Christmas tree, a rail fence, outhouses,
stacks of firewood and other items. Some figurines are
German imports from Yobp's original display.
The Yobp-Eckstein Christmas Display can be seen during
regular guided tours of the Harmony Museum, open 1-4
p.m. daily except Mondays and holidays.
Harmony is at I-79 exits 87-88, about 10 miles north of
the Pennsylvania Turnpike and 30 miles south of I-80.
Its recorded history began with George Washington's
visit to a local Indian village during his 1753 mission
that sparked the French & Indian War. The communal
Harmony Society of German Lutheran Separatists founded
Harmony in 1804. After they moved to Indiana in 1814,
resettlement was led by Mennonites. Museum exhibits
interpret this and much more area history.
####
11/20/2006
CONTACT: Kathy Luek, Administrator
724-452-7341 or hmuseum@fyi.net
NEW
BOOK ABOUT OLD COUNTY MAP DISCUSSED AT HARMONY MUSEUM
HARMONY, Pa. -- The public is invited to a
presentation by Violet Covert of Butler
about her recently published book, "Map of Butler County
1858," at the Harmony
Museum's Stewart Hall at 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Sept. 12.
Admission is free, and the
book will be available for purchase.
In her program Covert also uses the chronicle recorded
by Sally Hastings about her
family's move to Western Pennsylvania to help the
audience understand the region ca.
1795-1800, when the first pioneering families began to
settle in Butler County. The
county was established in 1800.
Covert notes that the oldest known Butler County map --
its large format intended
for wall display -- provides much valuable information
for researchers and anyone
with an interest in county history. With her book, the
1858 map is available for
general public use for the first time, in a form that
the author notes can go along
"as a travel and research companion along the highways
and byways of Butler County."
Each of the county's 33 townships has its own chapter in
Covert's book. The old
map's section depicting each is opposite a modern map of
the same area. The author
also describes the county's formation and courthouses,
school districts and historic
sites, as well as the locations of 11 known surviving
maps. The book, printed by
Mechling Bookbindery of Chicora, also contains maps
indicating cemetery locations.
For more information about the Sept. 12 program or
Harmony Museum operations,
contact the museum office at 724-452-7341/888-821-4822
or www.harmonymuseum.org.
Harmony, which has been attracting visitors for nearly
200 years, is at I-79 exits
87-88, 10 miles north of the Pennsylvania Turnpike and
30 miles south of I-80. The
area's recorded history began with an Indian village
visited by George Washington
during a 1753 mission to the region sparking the French
& Indian War; a "French
Indian" fired it's first shot at him nearby. The
communal Harmony Society of German
Lutheran Separatists founded Harmony in 1804, left in
1814 and were replaced by
Mennonites. Recognized for its historic preservation
success, Harmony became a
National Landmark in 1974.
####
CONTACT: Administrator Kathy Luek, 724-452-7341
HARMONY MUSEUM SETS HERB & GARDEN FAIR
HARMONY, Pa. -- The Harmony Museum’s second annual
Herb & Garden Fair expands to include a plant exchange
and sale, seminars and an art show on Saturday, June 10,
from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at four museum sites.
Gardeners may bring their own potted plants to trade for
others, and purchase plants from among varied offerings
by specialty garden and nursery vendors, at the Mercer
Road barn museum annex and in the garden of the Wagner
House annex next to the museum on Mercer Street. A
series of seminars, between 10:15 a.m. and 2:15 p.m. at
the Mercer Street log house museum annex, will cover
such topics as roses, herbs, landscaping and pest
control, and will include a presentation by gardener
Trapper John.
A show and sale at the museum’s Stewart Hall will
present works by some of the area’s most talented
artisans, including paintings, drawings, silhouettes and
photographs. The technique of painting on china will
also be demonstrated.
Lunch will be available at Stewart Hall as well. Museum
tours will be offered 1-4 p.m., and the museum’s gift
shop and Harmony’s other delightful shops invite
browsing throughout the event.
Harmony, a National Historic Landmark in Butler County
30 minutes north of downtown Pittsburgh, is among
Western Pennsylvania’s most significant historic places.
In the mid-1700s it was the site of the Lenape Murdering
Town, visited by George Washington during his 1753
mission seeking French withdrawal from the region that
sparked the French & Indian War; a "French Indian" fired
the war’s first shot at Washington nearby. Pacifist
German Lutheran Separatists founded Harmony in 1804, and
their Harmony Society became 19th century America’s most
successful communal group. After Mennonite Abraham
Ziegler bought the society’s town and surrounding lands
in 1815, Mennonites remained an important area influence
for decades. During the second half of the 19th century,
Harmony’s Charles Flowers made fine black-powder hunting
and target rifles, many now viewed as works of art.
The Harmony Museum exhibits present these and other
elements of the area’s unusual history. The town, which
has attracted heritage tourism for nearly 200 years,
retains an architectural character much like that of the
rural German hometown villages of its founders. Harmony
is at I-79 exits 87 and 88, about 30 miles north of
downtown Pittsburgh, 10 miles north of Pennsylvania
Turnpike exit 28, and 30 miles south of I-80.
HARMONY MUSEUM GIFT SHOP
OPENS ONLINE SHOPPING WEBSITE
HARMONY, Pa -- Folks who just
can't get to the Museum Gift Shop or have only an
occasional opportunity to do so, especially
out-of-towners, may now support the Harmony Museum by
buying from the Museum Gift Shop through
www.harmonymuseumgiftshop.org
. Put it
into your favorites so you can check in often! It is still in it's growing
stages, so there's lots to be added yet! It's a secure web site so you can shop
with confidence and ease! You can call us at
724-452-5509 with any questions you may have. We have a great and growing
selection of items for your shopping pleasure. Our book
selections include Harmonist, Indians, George
Washington, Arts & Culture, Architecture, Eric Sloane,
Pa History and Victorian Era. The kids haven't been left
out either! There's a assortment of Sticker books, Paper
Doll books, Coloring books and more! We also have our
line of Harmony items - including our ornaments, Virgin
Sophia plate, coasters, candles, etc. And there's also a
selection of limited quantity gift items for your home
or to give for any special occasion. If you're in town,
stop by and see us, but if you just can't get here, it's
the next best thing!
HARMONY MUSEUM CUTS FEES
DURING RENOVATION PROJECT
HARMONY, Pa. -- Admission
fees for the Harmony Museum have been reduced
temporarily while some exhibits are unavailable to
visitors during a renovation project. Guided tour
fees are $2 for adults and $1 for children until
renovation of the main museum building’s Mennonite
Room is finished. Other discounts are suspended
while these special rates are in effect.
Volunteers have been refurbishing rooms and exhibits
with little disruption apparent. However, it was
discovered on Saturday (March 11) that the Mennonite
Room floor required extensive rehabilitation. It and
two adjacent exhibit rooms will be closed until the
floor work is completed and exhibits reinstalled.
Four other main museum public rooms, as well as the
nearby Ziegler log house and Wagner House exhibits,
remain open. The museum’s gift shop and multipurpose
Stewart Hall are also unaffected.
The Harmony Museum, established in 1955, is open 1-4
p.m. daily except Mondays and holidays. Regular fees
for guided tours are $5 for adults and $2 for
children. The main museum building, built in 1809 as
a warehouse and granary with a massive wine cellar,
housed a school for girls 1817-1826. The ca. 1810
Wagner House was originally a two-family home. The
ca. 1840 log house was relocated to from nearby
Middle Lancaster in 1976.
The area’s recorded history began with Murdering
Town, a Delaware Indian village visited in 1753 by
George Washington during a mission to demand French
withdrawal from British-claimed territory that
assured war between Britain and France. Nearby, a
"French Indian" fired the first shot of the French &
Indian War at Washington. German Lutheran
Separatists founded Harmony in 1804 as the first
home of their communal Harmony Society. After their
1814 departure, resettlement was led by Mennonites
whose congregation faded away early in the 20th
century.
Additional aspects of local history interpreted by
the Harmony Museum include pioneer life, the early
school for girls, outstanding percussion rifles made
by Charles Flowers, the oil and gas boom of the late
19th and early 20th centuries, and medical practices
of rural doctors.
Harmony, is at I-79 exits 87-88, just 10 miles north
of the Pennsylvania Turnpike, 30 miles north of
Pittsburgh’s Point and 30 miles south of I-80.
####
CONTACT: Administrator Kathy Luek, 724-452-7341
3/12/2006
HARMONY MUSEUM GERMAN DINNER
- BENEFITS HISTORIC
HARMONY OPERATIONS.
HARMONY, Pa. --
Saturday, April 8: Welcome spring with a Harmony Museum
German dinner,
5-7 p.m., Stewart Hall, $12. Beef, pork, wurst, potato
pancakes, German potato salad, spaetzel, much more plus
beverages, desserts. Diners are welcome to bring a
beverage. Reservations recommended: 888-821-4822,
www.harmonymuseum.org. Spend the afternoon, tour
museum, stroll historic district, browse shops.
MAJOR BEQUEST,
AWARDS PRESENTED
AT HISTORIC HARMONY’S HARMONIEFEST
HARMONY, Pa. -- The largest financial donation ever
received by Historic Harmony was announced during
the historical society’s annual Harmoniefest at the
Harmony Museum’s Stewart Hall on Saturday evening
(Feb. 11). In addition, three property owners
received preservation awards, and the program
concluded with storyteller Alan Irvine describing
18th century abductions of Pennsylvania settlers by
Indians.
President John Ruch also noted that 2006 is the 40th
anniversary of the revival of the historical
society, established in 1943 but dormant since
shortly after the end of World War II, and the 20th
anniversary of Historic Harmony’s purchase of the
museum building and of the borough’s local historic
zoning ordinance.
He announced that Historic Harmony had earlier in
the week received more than $66,000 as major
beneficiary among several nonprofit groups
benefiting from a trust fund established by member
Charles G. Ziegler of Catonsville, Md., who died a
year ago. The veterinarian was a direct descendant
of Harmony’s Mennonite "second founder" Abraham
Ziegler, who in 1815 bought the communal Harmony
Society’s 7,000 acres in Connoquenessing Township
that became the borough and parts of Jackson and
Lancaster townships.
Ruch said that a substantial portion of the Ziegler
bequest and a recent Ayres Foundation grant will be
used for improvements to the museum’s multipurpose
Stewart Hall and adjacent Wagner-Bentle House annex,
and for long-delayed work to complete the
reconstructed Mercer Street log house annex. The
balance of the trust bequest will be invested.
Heritage Awards were presented to Glade Run Lutheran
Services for preservation of Zelienople campus
structures related to the former Orphans Home and
Farm School; St. John’s Lutheran Stone Church for
preservation of its 1829 Lancaster Township church;
and William and Ann Schlichtkrull for preservation
of their Jackson Township barn. Ruch said that of 79
properties honored since 1991 for preservation and
restoration, 30 were in Harmony, 20 in Zelienople,
12 in Jackson Township, and 10 in Lancaster
Township. "Perceptive owners have come to recognize
that economic benefits of preservation and
restoration go hand-in-hand with appreciation for
heritage and improving the entire community’s
quality of life," he said.
Irvine’s "Stolen Away" presentation told of two
abductions during bloody 18th century Indian raids
at opposite ends of the commonwealth, and their
opposite outcomes. Five-year-old Frances Slocum was
one of three children from different families taken
in a deadly raid at the Slocum home near
Wilkes-Barre in 1778. Her fate was unknown until, 59
years later, she was discovered living in Indiana
Territory. Now the widow of a chief, she chose to
remain there with her extended Miami family. Massie
Harbison and her year-old son were taken from their
family home near Freeport in 1792 by raiders who
killed her two older sons. Her son in her arms, she
escaped two days later near today’s Butler and got
home after struggling through the forest for two
more days.
FLEA MARKET BENEFITS HARMONY MUSEUM
MARCH 4, 2006
HARMONY, Pa. -- A flea market
to benefit Harmony Museum operations will be held 8 a.m.
- 2 p.m. on Saturday, March 4, at the museum's Stewart
Hall, on the diamond at the center of Harmony's National
Historic Landmark District. Food will be available.
Sellers may set up on Friday afternoon, March 3. For
information and table reservations, call 724-452-5860.
HARMONIEFEST DINNER - HISTORIC HARMONY'S ANNUAL
FUNDRAISER FEBRUARY 11,
2006
INDIAN ABDUCTIONS OF GIRL,
WOMAN
TOLD AT HISTORIC HARMONY’S HARMONIEFEST
HARMONY, Pa. -- Late 18th century abductions by Indians
of a little girl and a young mother at opposite ends of
Pennsylvania, with incredibly different outcomes, will
be brought to life by well-known Pittsburgh storyteller
Alan Irvine at Historic Harmony’s Harmoniefest dinner on
Saturday, Feb. 11. The annual fundraiser, always
well-attended, is open to the public.
The original Harmoniefest was an annual Harmony Society
feast celebrating the 19th century commune’s formal
organization by Harmony’s founders, pacifist German
Lutheran Separatists who, while anticipating the
imminent return of Christ, came to the United States
seeking religious freedom grounded in separation of
church and state. Historic Harmony’s event, begun in
1967, celebrates the area’s more than 250 years of
recorded history, and since 1991 has also been the
occasion for presentation of annual preservation awards.
Harmoniefest begins at the Harmony Museum’s Doc Stewart
Hall with a 5:30 p.m. reception, admission is $25 per
person, and reservations are required with a deadline of
Friday, Feb. 3. Dinner entree choices are stuffed
chicken breast, roast beef or vegetarian lasagna.
Irvine’s presentation, "Stolen Away," relates the taking
of five year-old Frances Slocum in 1778 near today’s
Wilkes-Barre, the horrific 1792 abduction of Massie
Harbison at Freeport, and how each incident concluded.
This will be his third appearance for a Harmony Museum
program. Irvine has been a storyteller for more than 20
years, performing at such venues as the Whiskey
Rebellion Bicentennial Festival, Old Bedford Village and
National Road Festival. The visiting professor of
sociology at the University of Pittsburgh has also
published several articles.
This year’s Heritage Awards honor Glade Run Lutheran
Services, Zelienople, for preservation of the 1853 Rev.
William Passavant House, 1909 bell tower and other
significant Beaver Street campus structures related to
what was originally the Orphans Home and Farm School;
St. John’s Lutheran Stone Church, preservation of its
1829 sanctuary, Stone Church Rd., Lancaster Township;
and William & Ann Schlichtkrull, preservation of the
barn at their Swain Hill Rd. home in Jackson Township.
Harmony is among western Pennsylvania’s most significant
historic sites. The Harmony National Historic Landmark
District comprises about 10 blocks in the borough that
was separated from Connoquenessing Township and
incorporated in 1840, as well as the noncontiguous
Harmony Society cemetery at the edge of town in Jackson
Township, formed from part of Connoquenessing Township
14 years later.
Separatists from the German Duchy of Wurttemberg began
developing the area they called Harmonie late in 1804 as
their first American home, organizing as the communal
Harmony Society in February 1805. The Harmonist
community, by then numbering about 850, moved to
southwest Indiana in 1814 to build a new Harmony,
returning to Beaver County in 1824 to establish Economy
(now Ambridge), where the celibate society was dissolved
in 1905 and is commemorated by the state-owned Old
Economy Village.
In the mid-1700s a small Lenni Lenape (Delaware) village
called Murderingtown was on the north side of the
Connoquenessing Creek near the future site of Harmony.
It was visited by young George Washington when he
traveled to Fort LeBoeuf at today’s Waterford with a
British ultimatum that the French withdraw from the
region, assuring war between the two nations. Not
surprisingly, the French declined, demanding instead
that the British stay out of New France. Days later, the
first shot of the French & Indian War missed Washington
east of Murderingtown, fired on Dec. 27, 1753, by what
he called a "French Indian."
Pacifist Mennonites led by Abraham Ziegler, Harmony’s
"second founder" who bought the departed Harmony
Society’s extensive property in 1815, resettled the
Harmony area, and Ziegler ultimately sold the town lot
by lot. Although their congregation faded away early in
the 20th century as the Harmony Society met a similar
fate just 20 miles away, many descendants of the 19th
century Mennonites reside throughout the area.
Exhibits at the Harmony Museum, which has nine
properties, present these and many other elements of the
area’s history.
Additional information about Harmoniefest may be
obtained from the Harmony Museum, 724-452-7341
(toll-free, 888-821-4822) or e-mail at
hmuseum@fyi.net
FLEA MARKET -
HARMONY, Pa. -- Held at the
Harmony Museum in Stewart Hall Saturday February 4 from
8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Benefits Historic Harmony Operations.
Breakfast Sandwiches and Coffee will be for sale in the
morning and for lunch there will be Chipped Ham
Sandwiches, Hot Dogs, Potato Soup, Chili and assorted
beverages available to purchase. Sellers may set up on
Friday afternoon, February 3rd. Call Suzie Rape,
724-452-5860, for table reservations.
GERMAN
CRAFTS, MUSIC, FOOD PART OF HARMONY
MUSEUM CHRISTMAS MARKET
HARMONY, Pa. -- Holiday and Appalachian
folk music, craft demonstrations in an
historic log house and classes on making
decorative bows are part of the Harmony
Museum's eighth annual Weihnachten Platz
(Christmas Place), presented Saturday and
Sunday, Nov. 12-13, in the tradition of
holiday markets so popular in Germany.
The market, at the museum's Stewart Hall
in the town center, presents memorable
shopping for quality artwork and goods
ranging from Pennsylvania German fraktur
(decorative folk art), German Belsnickles
(Santas) and redware pottery, to wood
carvings, treenware and ornaments, all by
regional artisans. A mini-store offers
German imports such as nutcrackers, toys,
dolls and holiday decorations. Holiday
baked goods are available as well, and
there will be raffle drawings Sunday for
holiday gift baskets.
Periodic spinning, weaving and candle
dipping demonstrations can be viewed at
the museum's nearby 1819 Ziegler log
house annex. Classes there on decorative
bow-making begin at 1 p.m. and 3 p.m.
each day; a $4 fee includes materials.
Wha-Kewe-nn, a West Virginia music group
dedicated to preserving Appalachian
heritage, performs with hammer dulcimer
and other folk instruments at 12:30 and 2
p.m. Saturday. Guitarist Shelley
McPharlin of Harmony's McPharlin Guitar &
Violin studio, performs holiday
selections Sunday afternoon.
Weihnachten Platz admission is $1 per
person, free for children 16 and younger
accompanied by adults. Admissions for
hourly museum tours, 11-4 p.m. Saturday,
Noon-4 p.m. Sunday, are lowered for this
event, to $3 for adults, $1 for children
6-12, free for younger children.
Refreshments available both days include
bratwurst with kraut, apple strudel and
mulled cider. Outside Stewart Hall, apple
butter simmers on an open fire.
The adjacent Harmony Museum shop has been
restocked for the holiday gift season,
and other shops in Harmony expand the
market experience. Family dining is
available at several nearby restaurants.
Harmony, a National Historic Landmark, is
at I-79 exits 87-88, less than a mile
east of Zelienople, 10 miles north of the
Pennsylvania Turnpike and 30 miles north
of Pittsburgh's Point, 30 miles south of
I-80. Its recorded history began with an
Indian village visited by George
Washington during his 1753 mission to
demand France's withdrawal from the
region, sparking the French & Indian War.
Pacifist German Lutheran Separatists
settled the area in 1804 as the communal
Harmony Society. They left in 1814, when
resettlement was led by eastern
Pennsylvania Mennonites.
CONTACT: Kathy Luek, Administrator,
724-452-7341 or hmuseum@fyi.net
10/26/05
HARMONY
MUSEUM CHRISTMAS MARKET REFLECTS TOWN'S
GERMAN ROOTS
HARMONY, Pa. -- Nationally known
Pennsylvania German fraktur artist Marta
Urban of Westmoreland County and crafted
goods importer Little Germany of Berks
County headline artisans and other
vendors preparing to bring a bit of
German holiday season tradition to
Harmony next month for the Harmony
Museum's eighth annual Weihnachten Platz
(Christmas Place).
While Germany's famed Christmas markets
crowd town squares with booths for more
than a month, the museum's version
presents a one-weekend opportunity to
find quality artwork, crafted goods, toys
and other wares in an historical setting
on Saturday and Sunday, Nov. 12-13.
The market's emphasis is on the work of
regional artisans and quality German
wares, assuring shoppers of find items
that will make memorable holiday gifts.
Among them will be treenware, one of a
kind German Belsnickles (Santas),
woodcarvings, redware pottery, holiday
ornaments, handmade soaps, Christmas
cookies and gingerbreads, and much more.
Refreshments and live entertainment are
part of the Weihnachten Platz experience.
Bratwurst mit kraut und apfel strudel and
mulled cider will be among goodies
available to shoppers. Outside, apple
butter will be simmering over an open
fire. Museum tours will also be
available.
The museum shop, the town's other
antiques and crafts shops, and area
restaurants that offer family dining with
unique atmosphere add to the Harmony
visitor's market eexperience.
Local artisans may still be considered
for this year's Weihnachten Platz by
contacting the museum office immediately
at 724-452-7341, toll-free 888-821-4822,
or hmuseum@fyi.net.
Harmony is at I-79 exits 87-88, only 10
miles north of the Pennsylvania Turnpike,
30 miles north of Pittsburgh's Point and
30 miles south of I-80. Its recorded
history began with an Indian village
visited by George Washington during a
1753 mission to the French near Lake Erie
that sparked the French & Indian War.
Pacifist German Lutheran Separatists
settled the area in 1804 and organized
the internationally famous communal
Harmony Society. When they left in 1814,
area resettlement was led by Mennonites
from eastern Pennsylvania whose
congregation faded away at the dawn of
the 20th century. Many of their
descendants still reside in the region.
CONTACT: Kathy Luek, Administrator,
724-452-7341 or
hmuseum@fyi.net
10/11/05
HISTORIC HARMONY
RAISES $23,000 WITH MATCHING GIFT
CHALLENGE
HARMONY, Pa. -- Historic Harmony's
special two-month fund raising campaign
that ended Sept. 30 raised nearly
$23,000, spurred by a $5,000 matching
grant from a funder that has requested
anonymity.
Gifts from members and friends of the
volunteer historical society and
preservation advocate that operates the
Harmony Museum reached $17,941. The
$5,000 match produced a grand total of
$22,941, enabling the organization to
complete several important projects. One,
exterior painting of the main museum
building on Harmony's diamond, began on
Oct. 3.
"We are grateful to everyone who
contributed to the outstanding success of
this campaign," said President John Ruch.
"Especially after the Gulf Coast
hurricane tragedies, I was concerned that
we might fall short of being able to
claim all of the offered $5,000 match.
But as in the past, many people responded
to Historic Harmony's need, contributions
continued to climb throughout September
and the total at month's end was more
than three times greater than what we
needed for the full match.
"The result is some much-needed fiscal
breathing room with three months left of
what has proved to be a year of unusual
challenges," Ruch added. "Our donors once
again have endorsed the importance of
Historic Harmony's work to the community
and region. This is a wonderful
achievement during the museum's 50th
anniversary."
Nonprofit Historic Harmony, founded in
1943, is self-supporting and receives no
federal, state or county operational
funding. Its mission is to preserve and
promote knowledge of the Harmony area's
history and heritage through its
collections and outreach activities,
foster tourism, and encourage
preservation of historical resources in
support of educational, quality of life,
economic development and associated
objectives.
The Harmony area was the location of an
Indian village visited by George
Washington during his 1753 mission
demanding French withdrawal from the
region, sparking the French & Indian War;
a "French Indian" fired the war's first
shot at him nearby. The Harmony founded
in 1804 by the communal Harmony Society
of German immigrants occupied today's
town of Harmony as well as large areas of
Jackson and Lancaster townships. When the
Harmonists moved to Indiana in 1814, the
area's resettlement was led by
Mennonites. Their congregation faded away
a century ago, but hundreds of
descendants reside in the region.
CONTACT:
John Ruch 724-316-6002
Administrator Kathy Luek, 724-452-7341
10/4/2005
HARMONY MUSEUM
PRESENTS OKTOBERFEST GERMAN BUFFET
HARMONY, Pa. -- The Harmony Museum
celebrates the fall season and its
colorful splash of beautify across
western Pennsylvania's Germany-like hills
with an Oktoberfest buffet dinner, 5-7
p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 15, at the
museum's Stewart Hall.
Museum volunteers will serve up a spread
including beef sauerbraten, roast pork,
bratwurst, potato pancakes, German potato
salad, spaetzel (German pasta),
sauerkraut, red cabbage, vegetables,
cucumber salad, apple sauce, breads, and
a choice of beverages and desserts.
Diners are welcome to supply their own
German beverage.
Cost is $12 per person, with proceeds
benefiting museum operations.
Reservations are recommended and may be
made with the museum office at
724-452-7341 or, toll-free, 888-821-4822.
Diners are urged to spend the afternoon
strolling historic Harmony, a National
Historic Landmark. The museum, on the
town diamond, will be open 1-4 p.m. for
guided tours. Local shops offer antiques,
collectibles, and other quality items
such as the works of local artisans. The
landmark district is worth a leisurely
stroll as well.
Honored during its bicentennial last year
for its historic preservation efforts,
Harmony has been a heritage tourism
destination for nearly 200 years. The
village is at I-79 exits 87-88, only 10
miles north of the Pennsylvania Turnpike,
30 miles north of Pittsburgh's Point and
30 miles south of I-80.
The area's recorded history began with an
Indian village visited by George
Washington during his 1753 mission to the
French at Fort LeBoeuf near Lake Erie
that sparked the French & Indian War; a
"French Indian" fired its first shot at
Washington nearby. German Lutheran
Separatists founded Harmony in 1804 and
their communal Harmony Society soon
gained international renown. When they
left in 1814, resettlement was led by
Mennonites whose many descendants still
reside in the area.
Other aspects of local history
represented in Harmony Museum exhibits
and facilities include pioneer life, a
19th century girls' boarding school,
percussion rifles made by Charles Flowers
during the 19th century, the oil and gas
boom of the late 1800s-early 1900s, and
rural medical doctors.
CONTACT: Administrator Kathy Luek,
724-452-7341
9/28/05
QUILT SHOW
RETURNS AT HARMONY MUSEUM
HARMONY, Pa. -- Quilters, quilt
collectors and the Harmony Museum will
display dozens of antique and
contemporary quilts in a special show
Friday evening, Saturday and Sunday,
Sept. 16-18, in which area residents are
encouraged to participate with quilts of
their own.
The popularity of a week long show during
Harmony's bicentennial last September
|