The Bradford County Historical Society announces the opening of its 2013 museum season.
The Society’s summer tour guide is Heather Palmer of Canton.
Heather is a History and Religious Studies major at Albright College. She is
available to give tours of the museum during regular business hours. Heather
will also work on various projects for the historical society during the
summer.
Museum hours have changed and are now the same as the research
library. They are Wednesday through Friday, 10 a.m. – 4 p.m., and the first
Saturday of each month, 10 a.m. – 2 p.m. The facility is closed during major holidays.
Please call to confirm Saturday hours. While the research library is open all
year, the museum is open Memorial Day through Labor Day. Group tours are
available and may be scheduled by calling 570-265-2240. Admission to the museum
is a donation.
The Bradford County Historical Society recently held an
Exhibit Opening and Reception for members to highlight the various changes made
in the museum this year.
The featured exhibit can be found in the gift shop display
case. It is a wonderful collection of models such as airplanes, a ship, a stage
coach, and many more items made entirely of Popsicle sticks. While the material
used sounds unusual, the objects created are stunning and intricate. The
exhibit has already become a favorite of visitors and children especially, who
enjoy seeing large airplanes suspended from the ceiling above the display case.
The models are on loan from the family of Robert Coats Sr. who passed away
earlier this year. Robert was a carpenter in Towanda several years ago and also
a veteran. Come and enjoy his works of art this season.
The historical society added two new lighted display cases to
the second floor during the bicentennial year and are now offering a special
exhibit in each one. The first exhibit is a large collection of canning jars
dating back to the mid-1800’s. Several jar brands, sizes and colors are
displayed with a history of the canning jars. A jar of unopened canned fruit
from 1898 is also displayed. It was offered as a wedding gift that year and
never opened. All of the jars were found in Bradford County and used by local
families.
The second new display case features advertising products
from towns all over Bradford County. These products include gift boxes from
stores in Towanda and Sayre; souvenir china from Overton, Laquin, South Waverly;
a hanger from Canton and much more. Each item has the name of the local town on
it including Wyalusing, Wysox, Troy and many more.
A display of candy boxes from local stores can be found this
year. The boxes include “Chicken Dinner Candy” and one of the first
Butterfinger candy bar packing boxes. Several have already enjoyed seeing an
A&W Root Beer cardboard funnel in which Root Beer could be purchased years
ago. Visitors have remarked that this item brings back many memories.
On the first floor, a new exhibit about the Meredith
Bottling Works in Towanda features Meredith wooden shipping boxes, and a
variety of bottles and labels. A Blood Orange bottle, along with the
accompanying Blood Orange cooler sign are in the display. Blood Orange soda pop
was a local favorite.
The museum now offers some technological improvements
including a digital screen in the gift shop that features hand colored
postcards from around Bradford County. The screen also randomly scrolls through
announcements for visitors, such as the upcoming program schedule.
The Historical Society is also excited to introduce the
addition of QR codes throughout its museum. QR codes are similar to a bar code
and can be scanned using a smartphone equipped with any QR scanner app. The app
is free and smartphone users can download it from their favorite app store.
There are currently five codes placed throughout the museum and all of them
tell about life in the building when it was the county jail. When visitors scan
each code, they can read first hand reports of executions, escapes, and prison
violence from the late 19th and early 20th centuries in
the very room where it happened. Those who don’t have access to a smartphone
can also read the same stories from home by logging on to the museum website.
Matthew Carl, Curator and Manager of the Bradford County
Historical Society, is pleased with the new additions made over the past
winter. He also reminds patrons that the 2013 Friday Night at the Museum
programming season has begun. A schedule of free programs can be found on the
museum website.
For more information about the Bradford County Historical
Society, visit the website at www.bradfordhistory.com or call 570-265-2240
during regular hours, Wednesday through Friday, 10 a.m. – 4 p.m. Get the latest
news and announcements by “Liking” the historical society Facebook page. The
Bradford County Historical Society is a recipient agency of the Bradford County
United Way.
