Pennsylvania Heritage Foundation

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The Pennsylvania Heritage Foundation® is a non-profit 501(c)(3) partner of the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission (PHMC), the official state agency charged with preserving and interpreting the Commonwealth's heritage and culture.

It’s almost here! “We Love PA History!” the Podcast of the Pennsylvania Heritage Foundation launches on Wednesday, June ...
06/02/2026

It’s almost here! “We Love PA History!” the Podcast of the Pennsylvania Heritage Foundation launches on Wednesday, June 3 at 5pm.
Our inaugural guest is Andrea Lowery, Executive Director of the Pennsylvania Historical & Museum Commission. Andrea discusses how Pennsylvania saves its history, the current projects at the State Museum Complex in Harrisburg and addresses the question “is it a challenge to make William Penn cool?”

Andrea is the great great great granddaughter of Ellen Webster Palmer, a woman who changed the lives of thousands of boys. How? Tune in to find out.

The link to our website is in the first comment. From there, link to our podcast or you can subscribe on Apple Podcasts or wherever you listen, to follow us.

Milton Hershey opened his first candy business in Philadelphia at 18 years old. Instead of concentrating on one produc...
06/01/2026

Milton Hershey opened his first candy business in Philadelphia at 18 years old. Instead of concentrating on one product, Hershey produced a variety of goods in an effort to appeal to everybody. In addition to candy, he sold fruit and nuts and made ice cream.

Confectionery competition in Philadelphia was fierce. Milton Hershey’s product line was good but the volume of candy produced was too small to make much of a profit. He had neither the equipment nor a large enough staff to permit him to mass produce and distribute enough candy to make money out of penny goods. Though his sales kept up with production, Hershey was not able to earn enough to keep ahead of his bills.

in 2004 the World War II Monument in Washington D.C was officially dedicated. This monument honors every single Ameri...
05/29/2026

in 2004 the World War II Monument in Washington D.C was officially dedicated.

This monument honors every single American that was involved in the war whether it be in service, on the homefront, or laying down their life in the line of duty. When the monument was dedicated, there was a four-day grand reunion of surviving veterans to tell their stories and contribute to the monument. Granitite columns represent each US state or territory that had participated in the war.

Image: The Pennsylvania Column at the World War II Memorial with the Washington Monument behind it.

Today is so we figured we should highlight a classic everyone is familiar with: the Big Mac. The Big Mac was made by J...
05/28/2026

Today is so we figured we should highlight a classic everyone is familiar with: the Big Mac.

The Big Mac was made by Jim Delligatti in Ross Township close to the Northern border of Pittsburgh in 1967. Delligatti used the double decker hamburger design of nearby restaurant franchise Big Boy.

The Big Mac made its official debut at the Uniontown McDonald's for 45 cents, a stark contrast to the now nearly $7 sandwich. The burger was a success and was sold across the country at first and now the entire world.

In 2007, a Big Mac museum was opened to celebrate the sandwiches’ 40th anniversary and North Huntingdon, Pennsylvania was chosen. When this was announced many people from Uniontown were not happy with the decision.

Images: The Big Mac Museum Restaurant in North Huntingdon, PA.

Centralia Fire within the coal country of Pennsylvania lies the ruins of a mine in Centralia. It began when the town w...
05/27/2026

Centralia Fire

within the coal country of Pennsylvania lies the ruins of a mine in Centralia. It began when the town wanted to use an abandoned mine pit as a dump for landfill waste. They set this pit - filled with waste - on fire to get rid of it. Unfortunately, the mine was not outfitted with the proper materials to keep a fire from spreading. When the trash was ignited, it was like a fuse line, once the burning started it could not stop and has been burning since 1962.

Centralia was home to the once famous tourist attraction Graffiti Highway that was buried under dirt in 2020.

Rachel Carson was in 1907 in Springdale, just outside Pittsburgh. She was an author, conservationist and a marine biol...
05/27/2026

Rachel Carson was in 1907 in Springdale, just outside Pittsburgh. She was an author, conservationist and a marine biologist. She worked tirelessly to let people know how beautiful the world was and how we can enjoy it. Carson also wanted people to know that we too are a part of nature but are distinguished as we have power to change it, and these changes can become permanent.

Best known for her work on the ecology of life, she warned of the long-term dangers of pesticides not only to us, but to the entire ecosystem and world. One of her crowning achievements is her book “Silent Spring,” which challenged the use of pesticides on agriculture but also reminded us we are vulnerable as is everything else in the environment. Several landmarks, trails and buildings across Pennsylvania bear her name including the former 9th Street bridge in Downtown Pittsburgh.

A Part of Pennsylvania at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier On a hillside in Cameron County in the PA Wilds is a quarry w...
05/26/2026

A Part of Pennsylvania at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier

On a hillside in Cameron County in the PA Wilds is a quarry where flagstone for the paved walkway of the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier was mined. It was Sinnemahoning stone mason August Johnson who quarried the stone and made the flagstone rough cuts for the Tomb’s walkway in 1931.

This particular cut of flagstone, known as Pennsylvania Bluestone, was chosen by the Tomb’s architect because it is perfect in durability and resistance to wear. Tons of panels measuring 8 by 10 feet were shipped to a Washington D.C. stone yard where they were trimmed to fit 800 linear feet of walkway. They were then trucked over to Arlington National Cemetery for placement as walkways leading to the Tomb.

Today we honor those who gave the last full measure. Communities, towns, and counties across Pennsylvania and our nation...
05/25/2026

Today we honor those who gave the last full measure. Communities, towns, and counties across Pennsylvania and our nation are remembering our fallen service members. This holiday, keep those who lost a friend or family member while serving our country in your thoughts.

Where did Memorial Day Start?Believe it or not, Memorial Day may have started in Boalsburg Pennsylvania, dating back to ...
05/22/2026

Where did Memorial Day Start?

Believe it or not, Memorial Day may have started in Boalsburg Pennsylvania, dating back to 1864. It began as a remembrance for fallen soldiers in the town where three women met while placing flowers on the graves of loved ones. They exchanged stories and decided to place flowers on the graves of all the fallen soldiers in the cemetery.

Year after year these same women would return to put flowers on the graves. This act gained traction with the people in town and this tradition would evolve and be widely celebrated nationwide. Boalsburg dedicated a life-size bronze statue titled "Honors to the Fallen" paying tribute to the women in that very cemetery where it all began.

This Sunday is the 110th Running of the Indianapolis 500 the first winner of the Indianapolis 500 was born in Pennsylva...
05/21/2026

This Sunday is the 110th Running of the Indianapolis 500
the first winner of the Indianapolis 500 was born in Pennsylvania?

A massive crowd, estimated as high as 85,000, witnessed the inaugural running of the Indianapolis 500 on May 30, 1911. The race was won in a time of six hours and 42 minutes by Ray Harroun who was born in Spartansburg Pennsylvania.

He earned $14,250 driving a car he designed himself. His car was the first open-wheel, single-seater race car. Before this, race cars were designed to carry a driver and a racing mechanic whose job it was to watch the instruments and keep an eye on the traffic from behind. Originally called a hazard because it eliminated the racing mechanic, he mounted a mirror over the steering wheel to see oncoming traffic.

Address

400 North Street
Harrisburg, PA
17120

Opening Hours

Monday 9am - 4pm
Tuesday 9am - 4pm
Wednesday 9am - 4pm
Thursday 9am - 4pm
Friday 9am - 4pm

Telephone

+17177872407

Website

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