Museum Open Mon-Sat, 9:30am-5pm | Wheatland Open Mon-Sat, 10am-3pm
Over the next few weeks, we will look at some dinnerware objects on our Instagram page. Today’s blog post will reveal what it may have been like to be a dinner guest at Wheatland. Small Guest Lists Meals at Wheatland generally had a smaller guest list. Buchanan preferred to entertain smaller dinner parties between two […]
Read MoreCatherine Hershey, Philanthropic Catalyst Catherine Sweeney Hershey married Lancaster confectioner Milton S. Hershey on May 25, 1898. Prior to his marriage, Milton Hershey showed little interest in philanthropy. Soon after his marriage, however, the successful businessman and proprietor of both the Lancaster Caramel Company and the Hershey Chocolate Company made his first verifiable charitable gift—a […]
Read More“I have ambitions to be an aviatrix, to follow the interest of my father…I have a great deal of flying to do before catching up with him.” Helen Jones Carter (1920-1998) was the eldest daughter of pilot Jesse Jones, aviator, flight instructor, and manager of the Lancaster Airport. She and her two sisters, Jessie and […]
Read MoreThe Crinoline (mid-1850s to mid-1860s) The cage crinoline, or the hoop skirt, was made of thin steel wires bound in fabric and draped from the waist with cotton tape ties. Though the idea of a hoop skirt has been around for centuries (see the farthingale of the 15th-17th centuries, or the pannier of the 18th […]
Read MoreThe 1939 Golden Gate International Exposition & The 1964 New York World’s Fair My name is James McMahon and for the past year I have been working as a project archivist for LancasterHistory. My responsibilities include cataloguing and digitizing a vast collection of archival materials that document the significant role of the cork industry in […]
Read MoreBorn near Voganville in 1862, Salome Buck was one of five daughters born to George and Mary Hess Buck. She married Abraham Whitman in New Holland on August 2, 1883. In August of 1884, she became the first woman in Pennsylvania to be jailed for stealing horses. According to local newspapers, Salome was […]
Read MoreFeeling a bit sluggish or stiff? Need to get your circulation going? If it’s the 1870s, take a stroll on over to Dr. Frank F. Frantz’s office at 226 West King Street in Lancaster and try out The Equalizer. You’ll be feeling better in no time! Beginning in January 1873, Dr. Frantz purchased the exclusive license […]
Read MoreThe 1939 New York World’s Fair Written by James McMahon, Ph.D. Posted by Emily Miller My name is James McMahon and for the past year I have been working as a project archivist for LancasterHistory. My responsibilities include cataloguing and digitizing a vast collection of archival materials that document the significant role of the cork […]
Read More“This won’t hurt a bit.” I’m sure those words of comfort were spoken as Nurse Landis, overseen by Dr. Stephen Lockey Jr., administered a polio vaccine shot to this youngster sometime around 1955. Dr. Lockey was a pioneer in the field of allergy and immunology who began his 51 year medical career as an intern […]
Read MoreWith the inauguration of 46th President Joseph R. Biden, Jr. on Wednesday, January 20, much attention has been turned to learning the history of previous American presidents. Former President James Buchanan is no exception. Much attention, specifically, has been turned to the fact that Biden joins Buchanan as the second president to have been born […]
Read MoreSturgis Pretzel Bakery—America’s first commercial pretzel bakery—was founded by Julius Sturgis in 1861.