New Exhibits Are Open!

The Centre County Library & Historical Museum, corner of Allegheny and Howard Sts., invites everyone to stop by and see new displays of some of the museum's old things.

    The museum is open for tours during its regular hours.  Two of the four display rooms, on the second floor of the historic Miles-Humes house, have been redone. One of them is now the Textile Room, displaying woven and quilted and other fabric items from Centre County, including an array of wool coverlets made by Emmanuel and William Ettinger and Frederick Weaver of Aaronsburg in the early to mid-1800's.

    The textile display includes two recent acquisitions: a gift of two Ettinger coverlets in pristine condition from Ellen Burd of Kansas City. Ms. Burd received the coverlets through her family, the Marshalls of Buffalo Run, and wanted to return them to the county from which they came for safekeeping and the enjoyment of museum visitors.

    The second renovated display room holds an exhibit of Civil War artifacts from the museum's permanent collections, including a variety of items from soldier Simon Harper of Penn's Valley. Harper was a musician in the Union Army and his drum and various other items are displayed, including two intricately fashioned wooden picture frames that Harper made while he was in a soldiers' rest camp. The frames contain photographs of Harper and his wife.

    Tours of the Centre County Library & Historical Museum are free at any time, and visitors may also want to look at the Pennsylvania Room on the first floor of Miles-Humes house, where local and state history materials are kept. The Pa. Room's Centre County family history research collection attracts genealogists from all over the county.