Current Exhibition |
The Germantown Historical Society
Our headquarters building on historic Market Square is a stunning Colonial Revival brick building with a charming enclosed courtyard with a garden. We provide accessibility to the museum for the disabled and free on-site parking for all visitors. The facilities are available for rental by outside groups. Contact Us Germantown Historical Society Germantown Historical Society Staff Laura E. Beardsley, Executive Director info@germantownhistory.org Historic Germantown Staff Anne Burnett, Program Director hgp@germantown.org GHS Board of Directors Mark R. Sellers – President Editor, Germantown Crier Andrea Niepold info@germantownhistory.org Webmaster Colleen Haley chaley.com Directions: We are located at 5501-03 Germantown Avenue, in a Colonial Revival brick building. The building is actually on Market Square, on the street so named. By car From I-76, take Exit 340A (Lincoln Drive, formerly Exit 32) and follow the signs to Lincoln Drive. At first light, turn right onto Rittenhouse Street. At next light, turn right onto Wissahickon Avenue. At the second light on Wissahickon, turn left onto School House Lane and continue to Germantown Avenue. Turn right, then make an immediate left onto Church Lane. Free parking in the rear of the building. From US 1 North (City Line, or City, Avenue), follow the signs for Lincoln Drive, and continue as above. By bus Take SEPTA Route 23 (Germantown Avenue) to School House Lane. We are the brick building across the green on Market Square. See the SEPTA website for all Route 23 schedules and connections. By train Take SEPTA's R8 Chestnut Hill West line to Chelten Avenue station. Out of the station, walk east 1/2 block and turn right onto Pulaski Avenue. Go one block up Pulaski, then turn left on School House Lane. Walk three blocks to Germantown Avenue, crossing the latter, and turn right. We are the brick building across the green on the right. See the SEPTA website for complete R8 Chestnut Hill West timetables. |
Pat Henning Library & Archives
Founded in 1900 as the Site and Relic Society of Germantown, the Germantown Historical Society is dedicated to collecting, preserving, and interpreting the rich and diverse history of the historic German Township (now Germantown, Mt. Airy, and Chestnut Hill) in northwest Philadelphia. The Society currently serves as the home of Historic Germantown, a partnership between fourteen Germantown organizations joined by a common mission to provide knowledge and resources to help preserve Germantown's historic sites, interpret them to the public, and incorporate them into the life of the local community. Germantown's story is the story of founding and settlement, religious freedom and tolerance, patriotism, abolitionism, architectural excellence, industry, and community service. Come to Germantown Historical Society and learn about the first German settlement in the New World, the nation's earliest "urban village," the site of the first written protest against slavery, the setting for the Battle of Germantown, the nation's first commuter suburb served by one of the nation's first railroads, and then the "town within a city" served by the longest streetcar line in the nation. Every major theme in American history is played out along the Belgian blocks of Germantown's "Great Road." Come to Germantown and the Germantown Historical Society to experience this history!