As you may have guessed, we’re fans of history on this website. We spend a lot of time reading, researching, interviewing, and writing on the topic. Enjoy!

Protective Magic: Incantation Bowls

How Incantation Bowls Protect from Demonic Forces Believing that malevolent forces caused tumors and other illnesses, Jewish communities in Mesopotamia created incantation bowls (c. 300–700 CE) to trap demons and protect the family. Inscribed in Aramaic with spiraling spells and magical symbols, and placed upside down at the entrances of their homes,

2023-03-30T08:44:59-04:00By |Archaeology, History, Robin Van Auken|
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Ask a Curator Day

We're all curious about what goes on behind closed doors, and that's true for museums and galleries and historical societies, as well as private residences. Spencer Baird My favorite closed doors are at the National Museum of American History, Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C. Also the Smithsonian's Natural History Museum. I pause and stare at

2021-03-11T11:51:23-05:00By |History|
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Williamsport: Boomtown on the Susquehanna

Williamsport: Boomtown on the Susquehanna (Robin Van Auken and Louis E. Hunsinger, Jr., Arcadia, 2003) This book relates the history of Williamsport, as well as many towns and boroughs of Lycoming County. Williamsport, a struggling frontier village that grew into a town with a taste for success, eventually molded itself into a magnetic and vibrant

2021-03-11T11:27:58-05:00By |History, Robin Van Auken|
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Little League Baseball World Series

The Little League Baseball World Series (Robin Van Auken, Arcadia, 2002) This book is a photographic companion book to Play Ball! The Story of Little League Baseball (Penn State University Press 2001). It profiles more than five decades of the World Series. In 1947, when the first Little League Baseball World Series was played,

2024-11-19T07:58:53-05:00By |History, Play Ball Book, Robin Van Auken|
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Lycoming County’s Industrial Heritage

Lycoming County's Industrial Heritage (Robin Van Auken and Louis E. Hunsinger, Jr., Arcadia, 2005)  This book reviews Northcentral Pennsylvania’s rich industrial history, first in lumber and then in manufacturing. After the Lumber Boom, many company towns collapsed. Boards of trade were created to entice manufacturers to the region. During the first half of the twentieth

2021-03-11T11:28:32-05:00By |History, Robin Van Auken|
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Muncy Postcard History Series

Muncy (PA) (Postcard History Series) (Robin Van Auken, Arcadia, 2006) Muncy Postcard History Series by Robin Van Auken examines the small river town of Muncy, Pennsylvania. Founded shortly after the French and Indian War, Muncy was the earliest European settlement in the West Branch Valley of the Susquehanna River. By 1769, land speculator Samuel Wallis

2021-03-11T11:28:46-05:00By |History, Robin Van Auken|
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Williamsport: The Grit Photograph Collection

Williamsport: The Grit Photograph Collection (Van Auken, Robin and Louis E. Hunsinger, Jr., Arcadia, 2004) This book is a look through 100 years of Grit newspaper history. Dietrick Lamade, a German immigrant and self-made man who settled in Williamsport, Pennsylvania, published Grit a Sunday-morning staple and America’s favorite family newspaper. The first year of Grit

2021-03-11T11:29:01-05:00By |History, Robin Van Auken|
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Man of Grit: Dietrick Lamade and the Williamsport Grit

Americans recall the Grit Sunday newspaper with nostalgia. For more than 100 years, this popular weekly delivered news, features, fiction, coupons, and comics to families across the nation. One million children have sold it, some for a few weeks, and some for several years. A newsboy delivers Grit newspapers in rural Pennsylvania. Many

2019-10-09T16:29:49-04:00By |History|
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The Heritage Trail

A stroll along the James P. Bressler Heritage Trail on Canfield Island is invigorating and educational. It's also tranquil, this quiet spot along the Susquehanna River's West Branch. The trail is part of Loyalsock Township's Riverfront Park and is dedicated to James P. Bressler. A scholar and educator beloved in his community, Bressler carved a

2019-10-09T16:47:56-04:00By |History|
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School Days

School Days: 75th Anniversary Oral History Project Working with Muncy Historical Society and the students (past and present) of Muncy Jr/Sr High School, historian Robin Van Auken created a 30-minute DVD oral history project that features 35 alumni and current student interviews. Historical Society volunteers and Muncy students collaborated on this important

2023-04-07T17:49:16-04:00By |History|
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Pennsylvania’s Forests

Pennsylvania Route 554 Pennsylvania’s forests reflect a history of choices — from peaceful coexistence between humans and the forests to the massive harvesting of the forests in the late 1800s. Pennsylvania’s borders encompass 17 million acres of forestland, almost 4 million acres of which are publicly owned. However, more than 12 million acres

2019-10-09T16:48:09-04:00By |History|
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Lumber Heritage

The Lumber Heritage Region holds a key to the rich heritage of Pennsylvania’s forests–from the struggles of the pioneers to the cut-and-run practices of the early lumber industry to the conservation efforts that led to the managed forests of today. Woodhicks Pennsylvania’s forests reflect a history of choices — from peaceful coexistence between

2019-10-09T16:48:17-04:00By |History|
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Shawn Gardner

Shawn Gardner Artisan Shawn Gardner, of Fair Chase Designs, presents on prehistoric technology and Native American art. This is presentation is suitable for people of all ages, including families and school-aged children. Gardner lives in Montoursville, often presents programs to people who visit his teepee on school field trips. He also offers seminars

2019-10-09T16:48:33-04:00By |Archaeology, History|
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Barbara Barnes

Barbara Barnes' art vessels reflect a keen appreciation for nature in shapes and colors. She uses interactive glazes, often firing multiple times until she gets the results that mimic the hues of earth, flora, fire and water combined. She is an avid gardener and often wanders her gardens and woods for inspiration. Barbara Barnes

2019-10-09T16:48:49-04:00By |History|
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Joy McCracken

Joy McCracken Joy McCracken is a spinning and weaving expert. McCracken demonstrates the craft of creating fabric from animal hair to students. One of her specialties is drop spindle spinning, an early technique for making yarn without a spinning wheel. When she heard how the women of Bolivia used drop spindles as they

2019-10-09T16:34:12-04:00By |History|
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