Welcome to the New Holland Area Historical Society
The New Holland Area Historical Society (NHAHS) is an organization committed to the preservation of the rich history of the greater New Holland area and to finding creative ways to share that story with our community. To continue the legacy upon which this organization was founded, it takes a network of enthusiastic volunteers with a wide variety of skills and experience, as well as the willingness to commit time and energy to the effort. As we continue to grow and expand our efforts, we have varied opportunities for people interested in supporting the organization and its mission. If you have experience or interest in any of the following areas, we welcome the opportunity to discuss how we can partner with you.
· computer data entry of artifacts into our database program (PastPerfect)
· warehousing donations
· social media skills – website, Facebook, Instagram
· grant writing
· museum cleaning
· museum exhibit design and setup
· newsletter preparation
· basic property maintenance; electrical, plumbing, general repairs, painting, etc.
· sale of excess inventory on eBay or local auctions
· print media liaison
· public and NHAHS event planning
· serving as a docent for our museum
· writing articles, essays, or even a book
If you are interested, please send us an email at NHAHS@nhhistorical.com
or call 717-419-1511.
Thanks for your consideration and support!
On Saturday November 30 the New Holland Area Historical Society once again participated in New Holland’s Christmas on Main event. This marks the 44th year that Santa visited the Museum (former Kauffman’s Hardware) to greet kids and hear their wishes for Christmas.
This year we had 217 visitors to the museum, the largest group of participants ever. Santa greeted the children in our new Community Room, and the kids and parents were encouraged to participate in a museum scavenger hunt after visiting Santa. Our scavenger hunt was a hit and helped families explore every room of our museum. Little ones and big ones all felt successful as they located the ‘treasures.’ Cider, pretzels, and gingersnaps were a fitting prize for finishing the hunt. Many parents told us how much their kids enjoyed scavenger hunts. Sets the table for similar types of participatory events in the future.
This event is a good example of museum trends for building community outreach. It’s success also lay in the fact that we had so many willing volunteers helping to pull it off. We want to offer our thanks to all the families that continued to support this New Holland tradition and wish you the happiest holiday season!
An exhibit entitled "Our Neighbors" honors the townships of Brecknock, Caernarvon, Earl and East Earl. The exhibit features maps, brief histories, and photos of historic structures and memorable individuals from each area.
No public meetings held November through January.
We are changing the day of our public meetings beginning in February 2025
to the 4th Thursday of the month. Same times and location.
February 27, 2025 Program
"Our Town"
A video presentation of New Holland in days gone by.
Presented by New Holland Area Historical Society
March 27, 2025 Program
"The Nations Guest"
Marquis de Lafayette's time in Lancaster County, the bicentennial of Lafayette's farewell tour.
Presented by Benton Webber
April 24, 2025 Program
"History of the Mascot Roller Mill and the Ressler Family"
Presented by James Landis, Executive Director
New Holland Area Historical Society Public Meetings are held at
Garden Spot Village, 433 S Kinzer Ave, New Holland, PA 17557.
Presentations begin at 7 pm.
Your support and contributions will enable us both preserve and publicize the rich history of the New Holland area.
See an article entitled "Pieces from the Past" describing artifacts at the NHAHS Museum that appears in the Shopping News of Lancaster County Facebook page. Click the button below to see the article!
An article describing the museum's 125th Anniversary of New Holland Borough exhibit appears on the Shopping News of Lancaster County Facebook page. Click the button below to view the article!
The Power Library site shown to the left houses digital copies of the town newspaper published from 1873 through 1950.
The papers are stored in 3 different collections based on their publication date.
The collections are shown to the left.
This link takes you to the Clarion Collection list shown to the left Individual collections are listed alphabetically, so scroll down through the list till you come to the section entitled "LancasterHistory - New Holland Clarion Newspaper"
The Power Library website is not owned by or affiliated with the New Holland Area Historical Society. We do not provide any support or assistance to those wanting to utilize this resource.
Support assistance is available through the "? Help" menu found in the extreme right-hand side of the menu bar.
This resource is a real treasure trove of historical information for the New Holland area, and we hope that you enjoy your time doing some research into our history!
Visit our Current Exhibits page for a preview of the exhibits on display in the museum. The most recent addition is an exhibit dedicated to the 65th Anniversary of the Garden Spot Grassland FFA Chapter.
This book chronicles the life of Victor Weaver from the humble beginning of a Market Stand to processed poultry brands known through the Northeast. More than just a success story, the author writes about the profound impact Mr. Weaver had on employees, the town and many other organizations.
Copies of the book, hard back @ $40 and soft cover @ $20, can be purchased at the museum during regular hours, or by calling Don Horning @ 717.538.3079
Read the story of a humble Mennonite man who invented the automatic tying baler, putting New Holland on the map.
Soft cover copies of the book can be purchased for $20 at the museum during regular hours, or by calling Don Horning @ 717.538.3079
The museum is blessed with thousands of New Holland area photos that were donated by countless supporters of our efforts to preserve our history . Many of them include some type of identification information, and others were identified my NHAHS members based on local knowledge or other photographic evidence.
But there are hundreds of interesting - and potentially historically significant - photos that we are not able to identify. The purpose of this initiative is to solicit your help in identifying these photos.
The plan is to place small batches of these pictures on the website in the Photos section, including whatever info we have for each, and providing you with a contact form where you can tell us how you can help identify these treasures. Each photo is assigned a number, and all you need to do is tell us that "photo #7 is a picture of my great grandmother Elvira's birthplace, located just east of N Railroad avenue." That's it. If you'd like to include your name that would be great.
As information is received we will update the captions for these photos, and after a reasonable amount of time (no idea what this means exactly) we'll publish the information gathered along with the contributors. Then we'll publish the next set of photos and repeat the exercise.
It's a chance for you to participate in the work of the NHAHS, and we greatly appreciate your assistance.
Thanks!
We love to share our museum with you, so feel free to visit during normal business hours!
207 E Main St, New Holland, PA 17557
Thursday & Saturday
10:00 am till 2:00 pm
other hours by appointment only
Sign up to hear from us about upcoming events and exhibits
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