Welcome to Megan’s Museum Minute, your guide to the best museums, exhibitions, and cultural happenings across the Lehigh Valley and the region in 2026! I’m Megan van Ravenswaay, and each week I’ll bring you behind-the-scenes stories, insider tips, family-friendly ideas, and easy date night plans. From historic sites to special exhibitions and festivals, consider this your go-to guide for the Lehigh Valley’s 250th anniversary year. Let’s start your cultural adventure now on Megan’s Museum Minute!
Museum Spotlight
Here's something beautiful to look for if you're interested in the everyday people behind the American Revolution.
Revolutionary Fraktur is on display at the Schwenkfelder Library & Heritage Center through April 25, 2027. The exhibition features a selection of 40 fraktur created during the American Revolutionary period, from 1763 through 1787.
Now, you may be asking—what exactly is fraktur?
Fraktur are decorated documents and pieces of artwork created primarily by Pennsylvania German communities. They could celebrate births, baptisms, marriages and other important moments in a family's life. They're often filled with beautiful lettering, colorful designs and intricate illustrations.
And that's what makes this exhibition such a great Revolutionary War connection. When we talk about the Revolution, we tend to focus on Washington, battles and the Declaration of Independence. But these pieces show us what was happening in people's homes and communities during that same period. These are objects created by ordinary people who were living through an extraordinary time. Pennsylvania's German-speaking communities were navigating the Revolution alongside their neighbors, and their artwork provides a glimpse into how they maintained their traditions during years of enormous political and social change.
The dates are important, too. The exhibition begins in 1763, just as tensions between Britain and its American colonies were beginning to build, and continues through 1787, when the new United States was working to establish its Constitution.
They also remind us just how culturally diverse Pennsylvania was during the Revolution. Pennsylvania Germans had their own language, traditions and artistic styles, and fraktur gives us a window into that world.
So as you're looking at these beautiful pieces, imagine the people who created them nearly 250 years ago—and think about what was happening around them as a new nation was being formed.
Revolutionary Fraktur runs through April 25, 2027, so you've got plenty of time to make a visit.
It's a beautiful exhibition, but more importantly, it's a reminder that history isn't just about famous names. Sometimes history is written in ink, painted on paper and tucked away in someone's family story.
Date Night
If you're looking for a date that feels a little more like theater than a traditional history program, I've got one for you.
On October 10, Historic Bethlehem Museums & Sites presents Historically Speaking: Colonial Speaker Series – Abigail Adams at the Luckenbach Mill.
And you're not just going to hear someone talk about Abigail Adams. Kim Hanley, a celebrated actor, historian and interpreter, brings Abigail's story to life through an interactive performance. You'll get a look at the world Abigail Adams lived in—including the stress of British taxation, the challenges facing colonial families and the fascinating relationship between Abigail and her husband, John Adams.
And this is where history gets really interesting. Abigail wasn't simply sitting at home while the Revolution happened around her. She was an intelligent, politically engaged woman who wrote extensively about the events unfolding around her and exchanged ideas with her husband while he was away.
Her story also gives us a glimpse into the enormous uncertainty of the Revolutionary period. While John Adams was helping shape the political future of the colonies, Abigail was managing their household and family while living through a war that could affect everything from food and money to personal safety.
So this program gives you a chance to experience the Revolution through the eyes of someone who wasn't standing on a battlefield—but was absolutely part of the conversation about what the new nation should become.
Your ticket also includes light refreshments and admission to the Moravian Museum that day, so you can turn the experience into a full history date.
Grab your favorite history-loving person, head to the Luckenbach Mill on October 10, and spend an evening with one of the most fascinating women of the Revolutionary era.
Family-Friendly Activity
Okay, families—here's an idea that turns local history into a little adventure.
If you're looking for something to do with the kids in the Quakertown area, check out the Quakertown Historical Society and its local history resources.
And here's the approach I love for families: don't make it feel like you're taking the kids to study history. Make it a history hunt. Give everyone a mission. Find the oldest building. Spot an interesting architectural detail. Look for evidence of how people lived before cars, smartphones and modern conveniences.
And while you're exploring, remember that communities throughout the Quakertown area were developing during the same decades when the American Revolution was unfolding. Local families would have experienced the war through changing prices, shortages, political debates and the movement of soldiers and supplies through the region.
You can even connect your adventure to the Lehigh Valley 250 celebration by challenging the kids to find something that could have been here—or could have been seen—during the Revolutionary era.
You can even make the kids the historians for the day. Let them take pictures, write down questions and decide which story they want to investigate when you get home. It's a great way to turn a simple afternoon into a family history scavenger hunt—and maybe create a few new family stories of your own.
Save the Date
And finally, here's one to put on your Revolutionary War calendar.
Crossing the Delaware: A Walking Tour takes you to Washington Crossing Historic Park in Washington Crossing, Pennsylvania, where you can stand along the riverbank and learn about one of the most famous moments of the American Revolution.
Tours are offered daily through December, and Friday through Sunday from January through March, with tours at 10:30, 11:30, 1:30 and 3:30. Plan to arrive 10 to 15 minutes early, because the tour lasts about an hour.
The experience begins inside the Visitor Center with a short introductory film, and then you head outdoors to the riverbank where George Washington and his army crossed the Delaware on Christmas night in 1776.
But the story is bigger than that famous painting. You'll learn about the Ten Crucial Days, how Washington's troops and equipment made it across the icy river, and what the crossing meant for the exhausted soldiers and camp followers who endured that brutal winter.
That crossing was a gamble. Washington needed a victory after a series of defeats, and the surprise attack on Trenton the following morning helped revive the American cause at a critical moment in the Revolution.
And that's what makes this such a powerful experience—you aren't just hearing about the crossing. You're standing beside the river where it happened.
So put Washington Crossing on your Revolutionary War road-trip list.
2026 is a milestone year for the nation. From commemorative exhibitions to festive events, there’s so much to see and celebrate. To find out more about all these events and more, visit lehighvalley250.org.
That’s a wrap for your Museum Minute! I’ll be back next week with another quick look at our local culture.
