Scranton Bonfire
2019-10-19 18:00 - 22:00 UTC | Scranton Iron Furnaces, 159 Cedar Ave., Scranton, PA, 1850, United States
The Ninth Annual Bonfire at The Iron Furnaces will take place Saturday, October 19, 2019, from 6:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m. at the historic Scranton Iron Furnaces, a truly unique site with the remains of a standing blast furnace.
The Bonfire Festival, a fundraiser for the Anthracite Heritage Museum, explores the cultural roots of Halloween and celebrates other cultural autumn festivals while highlighting Northeastern PA’s industrial past.
Tickets include admission to the festival and $5 in Bonfire Bucks, to use towards food, beverage, and activities. Tickets are $25 and can be purchased online or at the museum.
Our second annual VIP Tent will also be running this year. $50 gets you a covered area atop the furnaces to view the bonfire, catered food and drink, as well as many great silent auction items.
Everyone is encouraged to wear their favorite Halloween attire!

Annual Membership Meeting
2019-11-23 14:00 - 16:00 UTC | Anthracite Heritage Museum, McDade Park, Scranton, PA, 18504, United States
Attention All Members!
The Annual Meeting of the Anthracite Heritage Museum and Scranton Iron Furnaces Associates will be held on Saturday, November 23, 2019 at 2:00 p.m. at the Museum.
Meeting Agenda

MINUTES FROM NOVEMBER 2018 MEETING
ELECTION OF BOARD MEMBERS, slate below
BYLAWS REVISION
REPORT FROM THE PRESIDENT, Jacquelyn Schulte
REPORT FROM THE SITE ADMINISTRATOR, Dr. Bode Morin

The Board Development Committee recommends the following new board member:

Clifton Prokop, Scranton, PA 1st 3-Year Term

These members are recommended for a second term.

Mark Barbernitz, 2nd 3-Year Term
Joe McCormack, 2nd 3-Year Term
Jeffrey Kiefer, 2nd 3-Year Term

If you are unable to attend, you may e-mail your vote to ahmuseum@verizon.net
BYLAWS REVISION
The Governance Committee and the Board of Directors under the guidance of the PHMC and PANO have been working on revisions to our Bylaws. The bulk of the changes are organizational in nature, i.e. moving all matters regarding membership under one article, all matters regarding board of directors under one article, etc.
Content changes include:

Replacing volunteer memberships with memberships granted by the Board.
Adding e-mail as a possible method of contact for announcement of meetings.
Amending Board Officer Election procedure
Establishing framework for an e-mail board vote for emergency matters / decisions.
Establishing an Executive Committee framework for emergency matters / decisions.

To view the revised document, please visit this link. If you would like a hard copy of the revisions, please contact the museum at 570-963-4804. Hard copies will also be available for review before the meeting on November 23.
PROGRAM 2:30 PM
Bill Lewis is one of our PHMC Commissioners. The PHMC is the official history agency of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Created in 1945, they are responsible for the collection, conservation, and interpretation of Pennsylvania’s historic heritage. Bill will share information about the PHMC and will present on some projects on which he has been working.
Ken Lee, a new docent and volunteer tour guide at the Anthracite Heritage Museum, will speak about his experience in those roles.

Pennsylvania Charter Day
2020-03-08 12:00 - 17:00 UTC | Anthracite Heritage Museum, McDade Park, Scranton, PA, 18504, United States
We will be celebrating Charter Day at the museum on March 8 from noon to 5. This is the day all Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission sites are open free to the public to celebrate William Penn and the founding of Pennsylvania.
Our program, which will begin at 2pm, will be a special presentation by PHMC Commissioner Bill Lewis on the impacts of the Titanic disaster on Northeast Pennsylvania.
The event and museum admission are FREE all day! Join us!

Parade Day Eve - CANCELLED
2020-03-13 18:00 - 21:00 UTC | Anthracite Heritage Museum, McDade Park, Scranton, PA, 18504, United States
**THIS EVENT HAS BEEN CANCELLED**
Out of an abundance of caution and in response to the Scranton Parade Day Committee’s decision to postpone the St. Patrick’s Day Parade, the Anthracite Heritage Museum Associates have unfortunately decided to cancel this event. Refunds for tickets already purchased can be obtained by contacting the museum at 570-963-4804 or at ahmuseum[at]verizon.net. Or you may preserve your purchase and dedicate it to a future ticketed event like Fire up the Furnaces (June 12) or the Bonfire (date TBD in October). We are sorry for any inconvenience. Please be smart and keep healthy!

Ready to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day in Scranton? Looking for a way to kick off your Parade Day? Interested in a unique night out? We have an event for you! Join us at the Museum on Friday, March 13 from 6-9 pm for our first annual Parade Day Eve Celebration! For $25 per ticket, you receive food, beverages, and great entertainment. Food catered by Posh will include new twists on Irish favorites, including Corned Beef Sliders, Guinness Tacos, and Irish Mac & Cheese. If you’re looking to imbibe, beer will be on tap as will a selection of wine.
Our entertainment for the evening will include The Emerald Isle Step Dancers, The Quietmen, as well as a bagpiper. The night is sure to be a great time. Join us! Contact the museum or see a board member to purchase tickets.

Spring Tea: Celebration of Historic Arts of Silk, Buttons and Lace
2020-04-25 13:00 - 16:00 UTC | Anthracite Heritage Museum, McDade Park, Scranton, PA, 18504, United States
Join us for our annual Spring Tea at the Anthracite Museum. As in previous years, guests will enjoy delicious finger sandwiches, homemade desserts, and a wide variety of tea. This year’s theme will include the history of Scranton Lace, as well as information about other industries that employed many women in the region.
More details on the presenters to come! Plan to join us!
Cost is $22 for non-members and $20 for members of the Anthracite Heritage Museum and Iron Furnaces Associates.
Inquire at the museum about membership!

Arts on Fire 2020 - See the Video HERE!
2020-07-16 - 2021-07-31 | Online
Click HERE for our virtual event including artists’ demonstrations, footage and images from previous years’ events, messages from partners, and musical guests Dashboard Mary and the Quietmen!

The Anthracite Heritage Museum is pleased to work with our community partners to produce a virtual program for this year featuring music, art, and history. #artsonfire #anthraciteheritagemuseum
The Arts on Fire Festival, launched in 2010, is a celebration of arts, heritage, industry and community held the first weekend of June at the Iron Furnaces in Scranton, a four acre site along Roaring Brook and managed by The Anthracite Heritage Museum and Iron Furnaces. The Iron Furnaces is a former working iron foundry, built in the 1840s, where many of the early immigrants to Scranton worked. Set against this historic backdrop, visitors to the Arts on Fire Festival can enjoy hands-on history and the best of contemporary art.
Thank you to our many sponsors!!

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Cerddoriaeth & Ceol: Welsh and Irish Anthracite Music Traditions
2021-03-27 14:00 - 16:00 UTC | Zoom Webinar, https://www.eventbrite.com/e/cerddoriaeth-ceol-welsh-and-irish-anthracite-music-traditions-tickets-142741845703
March 27, 2021. Zoom webinar, 2 pm. EDT. Cost: $5/computer screen. Tickets: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/cerddoriaeth-ceol-welsh-and-irish-anthracite-music-traditions-tickets-142741845703
Each March, we celebrate our Celtic roots in Pennsylvania with the Welsh St. David’s Day on March 1st and the Irish St. Patrick’s Day on March 17th. The Anthracite Region is home to some of the largest populations of Welsh and Irish in the United States who have had a profound impact our local culture. Immigrating here to work in the growing coal industry in the 19th century, the new residents brought many customs including their music. Join us for a special program on these unique treasures with special guest scholars from Ireland and Wales.
Dr. Bill Jones, Emeritus Professor of Welsh History will present, Môr o Gân [A Sea of Song]: Welsh choral and communal singing in the Anthracite Region in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. In the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, the Anthracite Region contained the largest concentration of Welsh people in America. The immigrants brought with them from Wales their native language and many social, cultural, industrial, musical and religious traditions that flourished in, and influenced the communities in which they settled. This presentation explores one of the most widely known and enduring of those traditions. Singing, a key element of Welsh ethnic identity, made an inestimable impact on the region’s musical scene. It pervaded the social and cultural activities of the Welsh and their ethnic institutions, the churches, the eisteddfod (literary and musical competitive festival) and, later, the Cymanfa Ganu (hymn singing festival). ‘Môr o Gân’ is how contemporaries frequently described Welsh ethnic life, because of the scale, vibrancy and quality of its choral and communal singing. It is a tradition that is still evident today.
Dr. Deirdre Ní Chonghaile will present The Rev. Daniel J. Murphy Archive: Irish Sean-Nós Singers in 19th century Pennsylvania. This presentation shares the story of Rev. Daniel J. Murphy from Sligo and J.J. Lyons from Galway, who transcribed over 1,200 sean-nós songs from Irish-speakers in Philadelphia and the anthracite region of Northeastern Pennsylvania from 1884 to the 1920s. With each song transcription event capturing a unique moment of encounter and art, the Rev. Murphy Archive demonstrates forcibly but eloquently the conviction with which the Irish diaspora treasured, performed, and celebrated their home-country heritage in their new homes in America. Preserving the pre-Famine memory of Ireland in a diasporic setting, this extraordinary collection of manuscripts represents a monument to Irish heritage, to American heritage, and to the diasporic experience. It also reveals a unique opportunity to map song through time and space and so highlight its currency, mobility, and enduring power.
Bill Jones is Emeritus Professor of Welsh History at Cardiff University, Wales, where he taught modern Welsh history in Welsh and English. His main research interest is the history of the Welsh overseas in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. He has published extensively on the Welsh in the United States, including Wales in America: Scranton and the Welsh 1860-1920 and Welsh Reflections: Y Drych and America, 1851-2001. He has delivered presentations in the United States many times during the past forty years, the most recent being in 2019, at the North American Festival of Wales in Milwaukee and the 150th Anniversary Commemoration of the Avondale Mine Disaster.
Deirdre Ní Chonghaile A musician, broadcaster, writer and curator from the Aran Islands, Deirdre Ní Chonghaile (MA Oxon, PhD) is the co-ordinator of the on-going community-based project Amhráin Árann – Aran Songs. She was previously NUI Postdoctoral Fellow in Irish/Celtic Studies and Irish Research Council Postdoctoral Fellow at NUI Galway, Alan Lomax Fellow at the Library of Congress and NEH Keough Fellow at the University of Notre Dame. Her research interests include the untold story of the cultural lives of Irish-speaking immigrants in nineteenth- and twentieth-century North America; and the potential of digital humanities to enable creative access to the rich archive of Irish music and folkloric material that survives on both sides of the Atlantic. As a consultant, she has served Harvard University, the Library of Congress, English National Opera, Druid Theatre Company, and the Irish-American Climate Project among others.
The Anthracite Heritage Museum is a Pennsylvania Historical and Museum site dedicated to the study, promotion, and collection of material culture, traditions, and stories of the people who created built, lived in, and sustained an industry and community in Northeast Pennsylvania. The Anthracite Heritage Museum is currently closed due to COVID. Please check our website and Facebook pages for details about our reopening. www.anthracitemuseum.org, www.facebook.com/anthraciteheritagemuseum.
This project was supported by a Lackawanna County Arts and Culture Community grant a program of Lackawanna County Commissioners Jerry Notarianni, Debi Domenick, Esq. and Chris Chermak.

Conversations in the Gallery
2024-11-23 14:00 - 15:30 UTC | Anthracite Heritage Museum, McDade Park, Scranton, PA, 18504, United States
Gallery Talk – Scott Herring on Anthracite Family Album

Join us in our new exhibition, Anthracite Family Album, with none other than the “Last Anthracite Photographer” himself, Scott Herring. Herring will give opening remarks, then spend time answering questions and chatting with visitors in the exhibition. Conversations in the Gallery will start at 2pm and end at 3:30pm.
Program included with regular admission: $7 for adults, $5 for youth (ages 3-11), and $6 for Seniors.  Free for museum members.
The Anthracite Heritage Museum is administered by the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission. McDade Park, Scranton, PA.

Anthracite Holiday Klatsch
2024-12-14 12:00 - 16:00 UTC | Anthracite Heritage Museum, McDade Park, Scranton, PA, 18504, United States
Join us on Saturday, December 14 from 12pm to 4pm for the launch of our Anthracite Holiday Klatsch – an old-fashioned kaffeeklatsch with a holiday twist. This event is a community affair rich with holiday crafts, live musical performances, warm drinks and good conversation. As a bonus, we’ll have a presentation on German christkindlmarkte, and will have coal stockings for sale.
From hot chocolate and savory lattes to ornament making and coal stockings, there’s something for everyone. Special performances by Valley View High School Choir and Wally Gordon Community Singers.
$7 adults | $6 seniors | $5 children | Free for 0-2
**Includes event, FREE admission to museum, and 10% discount on membership and day-of store purchases.

Anthracite Mining Heritage Month 2025
2025-01-08 08:00 - 2025-01-29 20:00 UTC
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Anthracite Mining Heritage Month—January 2025
Schedule of Events
Contact: Prof. Bob Wolensky, Anthracite Heritage Foundation & King’s College
Contact Phone: 715-252-6742; email: rwolensk@gmail.com
A regional observance of Anthracite Mining Heritage Month will take place during January 2025. A variety of programs will be featured in Wilkes-Barre, Scranton, Plymouth, Pittston, Ashley, Hazleton, Hazle Township, Lansford, Bethlehem, and Pottsville. The annual event focuses on the history and culture of the anthracite region of Northeastern Pennsylvania.
The programs are sponsored by the Anthracite Heritage Foundation, Anthracite Heritage Museum, King’s College, Lackawanna Historical Society, Luzerne County Historical Society, WVIA-Public Broadcasting, Eckley Miners Village, Plymouth Historical Society, Greater Pittston Historical Society, Earth Conservancy Inc., Wilkes-Barre Preservation Society, No. 9 Mine Tour and Museum, The Underground Miners, Everhart Museum, National Museum of Industrial History, Anthracite Chapter-Society of Mining Engineers, Eastern Pennsylvania Coalition for Abandoned Mine Reclamation (EPCAMR), Lehigh Engineering, Alvernia University, Baloga Funeral Home, Susquehanna Brewing Company, The Avondale Mine Disaster Memorial Committee, and The Knox Mine Disaster Memorial Committee.
The public is cordially invited to attend the events free of charge, except where indicated.
Throughout January 2025, WVIA-FM—Public Radio in Northeastern and Central Pennsylvania—will offer anthracite region-related programming at the WVIA website, wvia.org/mining, which will include episodes from Erika Funke’s ARTScene.
Jan. 8 Eckley Miners Village (PHMC), Public Program Zoom: Artist Bob McCormick Reclamation: From Coal Dust to Hope,’; Moderator: Bode Morin, PHMC; Speaker: Robert McCormick, artist. Time: 7:00 pm. Sign up and links available at https://eckleyminersvillage.com/event/art-of-bob-mccormick/
Jan. 10 EPCAMR and Earth Conservancy, Public Program: Digging into Our Anthracite Mining History: Famous People, Historic Preservation, and Abandoned Mines; Moderator: Bobby Hughes, EPCAMR, Update on EPCAMR and Earth Conservancy Projects; Speakers: Chris Murley, Underground Miners, The Process of Opening the Brooks Mine in Scranton; Ed Philbin, Industrial Archives & Library, Dan Flood’s Direction on the Use of Anthracite Coal for U.S Military Bases during the War; Don Kane and Leo Czereck, Huber Breaker Preservation Society, Plans for the Wanamie Lokie No. 9, the Multi-Media Center/Museum, and the No. 5 Slope Opening and Huber Breaker History; Mike Korb, Anthracite Chapter-Society of Mining Engineers, The Carnegie Hero Medal Awardees from the Anthracite Region; Venue: Earth Conservancy (101 S. Main Street, Ashley, PA); Time: 6 – 8:30 pm; Refreshments.
Jan. 12 Greater Pittston Historical Society, Public Program: Historical Places, Historical Markers; Moderator: Julio Caprari, GPHS; Speakers: Linda Scott, Avondale Preservation Committee, The Avondale Mine Disaster (1869) Markers at the Washburn Street Cemetery (Scranton); Bill Best, Anthracite Preservationist—The Huber Breaker Memorial Park (Ashley); Vinnie Rotondaro, Historical Researcher, The Need for an Historical Marker for the Murdered (in 1920) Pittston Police Detective Samuel Lucchino; Thomas Mackaman, King’s College and Anthracite Heritage Foundation, The Baltimore Tunnel Mine Disaster (1919), Wilkes-Barre Township; Venue: St. Joseph Morello Hall (237 William St., Pittston); Time: 6:00 – 7:30 pm; Refreshments.
Jan. 15 Wilkes-Barre Preservation Society, Public Program: A Guided Tour of the Luzerne County Court House; Guide: Tony Brooks, President, WBPS; Meet: Court House Lobby; Time: 12 noon – 1 pm.
Jan. 15 Eckley Miners Village (PHMC), Public Program: Discovery Discourse Virtual Lectures—Foodways of the Past (focusing on the ways in which food has been the catalyst for everything from community building in anthracite to wartime propaganda); Moderator: Nicole Negron, PHMC; Speaker: Justin Nordstrom, Penn State–Hazleton; Venue: VIRTUAL; Time: 1 – 2 pm. http://eckleyminersvillage.com/event/discovery-discourse-virtual-lectures-foodways-of-the-past/
Jan. 16 Penn-Anthracite Society of Mining Engineers, Public Program: Moderator: John Ackerman, Penn-Anthracite SME; Speaker David Williams, Mining Engineer and Professional Land Surveyor; The Battle of the Crater and the 48th Pennsylvania, July 30, 1864; Venue: Hazle Township Building (101 W. 27th St., Hazle Township, PA); Time: 6 – 7:30 pm; Refreshments.
Jan. 17 A Reception and Discussion for the “The Knox Mine Disaster” Documentary Exhibit; With Filmmaker Dave Brocca; Mineworker Chris Murley, The Underground Miners; and Researcher Robert Wolensky, King’s College; Venue: Everhart Museum (1901 Mulberry St, Scranton, PA); Music: Lex Romaine; Time: 6 – 7:30 pm; Entry Fee to the Museum required; Cash Bar and Refreshments available.
Jan. 18 Anthracite Heritage Museum, Informational Program: An Industrial History Tour to the United Kingdom, May 12 – May 20, 2025; Sponsored by the Anthracite Heritage Museum; A discussion of the itinerary, lodgings, guided tours, and costs will be presented including the Itinerary in Scotland, the Itinerary in England; and the Itinerary in Wales; Tour Leaders: Bode Morin, Beth Landmesser, and Bob Wolensky, who will be accompanied on the trip by UK Blue Badge Guides; Venue: AHM; Time: 12:30 – 1:45 pm; Refreshments. (View the tour at https://www.anthracitemuseum.org/united-kingdom-industrial-heritage-tour-2024/)
Jan. 18 Anthracite Heritage Museum, Public Program: The Annual Knox Mine Disaster Commemoration—The Importance and Bright Future of Mining: An Overview and Exhibit; Moderator: Bode Morin, Administrator, AHM; Speaker: John Voigt, Section Delegate, Penn-Anthracite Section SME; Bryan Glahn, Teacher, Northwest Area High School, Comment on the Knox Mine Disaster; Music: Don Shappelle and Don Sennett; Mining Artifacts Exhibit: Mike and Linda Mostardi, Wayne, PA; Venue: AHM (22 Bald Mountain Road, Scranton, Scranton, PA); Time: 2 – 3:30 pm; Refreshments; Zoom link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/86319215430?pwd=[REDACTED]
Jan. 19 Knox Mine Disaster Memorial Mass: Venue: St. John the Baptist Catholic Church (36 William St., Pittston, PA); Time: 9 am.
Jan. 19 Knox Mine Disaster Historical Markers Commemoration: Venue: Baloga Funeral Home (1201 Main St., Pittston), Pittston; Time: 10:15 am.
Jan. 19 Annual Walk to the Knox Mine Disaster break-in Site at the Susquehanna River (weather permitting); Venue: Meet at Baloga Funeral Home at 10:45 am; Walk Leaders: Bill Best and Bill Landmesser.
Jan. 19 An Afternoon of Anthracite Region Music; Performers: Don Shappelle and the Pickups, Coal Mining Songs; Doug Smith, Jimmy Waitlich, Tom Hamilton, and R. J. Kennedy Band, Contemporary and Jazz; John Stanky & The Coal Miners, Polkas, Waltzes, and Traditional; Venue: Susquehanna Brewing Company (635 S. Main St., Pittston, PA); Time: 4 — 6 pm; Refreshments available.
Jan. 20 Plymouth Historical Society, Public Program; Speakers: Joe Slusser, PHS, The Tools that Kept the Miners Working: The Howell Mine Drilling Company; and David Youells, Mining Lamps in Anthracite; Venue: First Welsh Baptist Church (163 Girard Ave and Shawnee Ave., Plymouth PA); Time: 6:30 pm; Refreshments.
Jan. 22 Anthracite Heritage Museum, Public Program: Six Anthracite Region Personalities. Moderator: John Fielding, AHM; Speakers: Lucia Dailey, William W. Scranton: A Man of His Times; Anne Flaherty, John Kehoe: The Last Alleged Molly Maguire to be Hung (1878); Sarah Piccini, Msgr. John Curran, The Labor Priest; Maureen McGuigen—Min Matheson, Ladies Garment Union Leader; William Conlogue, Thomas Meredith: Early Mining in the Lackawanna Valley; Bob Wolensky, Mary Harris ‘Mother Jones,’ Labor Organizer; Venue: Anthracite Heritage Museum (22 Bald Mountain Road, Scranton, Scranton, PA); Time: 6:30 – 8 pm; Refreshments. In person with a zoom option. Zoom: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/89110850134?pwd=[REDACTED]
Jan. 23 King’s College and the Anthracite Heritage Foundation, Public Program: The Annual Msgr. John J. Curran Lecture; Featured Speaker: Anne Flaherty, The Kehoe Foundation, St. Leonard, MD; Ten Things I Discovered About Pennsylvania’s ‘Molly Maguires’ That Historians Have Failed to Document; Moderator: Thomas Mackaman, King’s College; Venue: Burke Auditorium, King’s College, (133 N. River Street, Wilkes-Barre, PA); Time: 7 – 8:30 pm; Refreshments.
Jan. 23 Anthracite Heritage Foundation, Book Award for 2025; Presenter: Bob Wolensky, King’s College; Recipient: Anne Flaherty, Kehoe Foundation (for The Passion of John Kehoe and the Myth of the “Molly Maguires,” Hibernian Press, 2023); Venue: Burke Auditorium, King’s College; Time: immediately preceding the Annual Curran Lecture (see above).
Jan. 24 Two Screenings of “The Knox Mine Disaster” documentary with an introduction by the filmmaker, David Brocca; Venue: The Scranton Arts Haus Theatre (301 Lackawanna Ave, Scranton, PA); Screening Times: 6:20 pm and 8 pm; Purchase tickets at Knox Mine Disaster Facebook Page ($10); Refreshments (including dinner) will be available for purchase.
Jan. 25 Underground Miners and the Everhart Museum, Public Program: Closing One of the Last Anthracite Deep Mines in Northeastern Pennsylvania, 2021; Presenters: Chris Murley, Underground Miners and Tim Holmes, Everhart Museum; Venue: Everhart Museum (1901 Mulberry St, Scranton, PA); Time: 2 – 3:30 pm.
Jan. 25 Underground Miners, Public Program: Free Guided Tours of the Brooks Mine; Tour Guides: Mark Izak, Scott Kerkowski, and Chris Murley; Venue: Brooks Mine (Nay Aug Park, Scranton, PA); Time: 3:45 pm – 5 pm.
Jan. 25 Eckley Miners Village (PHMC), In-person Public Program; Moderator: Bode Morin, Administrator; Speaker: Justin Emershaw, Atlantic Carbon Inc., The Hazleton Shaft Colliery: Dethroning Hazleton’s Industrial Era; Venue: Eckley Miners Village (2 Eckley Main St., Weatherly, PA; Time: 2 — 3:30 pm; Refreshments.
Jan. 26 Lackawanna Historical Society, Public Program: Artistic Expressions in Anthracite; Host: Mary Ann Moran-Savakinus, LHS; Moderator: Philip Mosley, Emeritus, Penn State University-Scranton; Speakers: Charles Petrillo, Wilkes-Barre (Film); Chester Kulesa, Scranton (Photography); Richard Stanislaus, Scranton (Art); Venue: Catlin House, LHS (232 Monroe Ave, Scranton, PA); Time: 2 – 3:30 pm; Refreshments.
Jan. 26 National Museum of Industrial History, Public Program: Moderator: Mike Piersa, Historian, NMIH; Speaker: Dane Rhys, Visual Journalist, A Visit to the Last Operating Anthracite Mine in Wales; Venue: NMIH (602 E. 2nd St., Bethlehem, PA); Time: 1 – 2:30 pm.
Jan. 29 Reading Anthracite Company; Moderator: Eric Bella, Mining Engineer; Speaker: Mike Szilagyi, AICP; The Schuylkill Navigation Canal System; Venue: Alvernia University–Pottsville Towne Campus (500 Progress Ave., Pottsville, PA); Time: 6 – 7:30 pm; Refreshments.
Jan. 30 Luzerne County Historical Society, Public Program: Speaker: Mark Riccetti, Director of Operations and Programs, LCHS; Jacob Cist (1782-1825), Pennsylvania Anthracite Pioneer; Venue: LCHS Museum (69 South Franklin Street, Wilkes-Barre, PA); Time: 6 – 7:30 pm; Refreshments.
Jan. 30 A Lehigh Engineering Public Program: Moderator: Eric Bella, Mining Engineer; Speaker: Nick Zmijewski, Industrial Archives & Library; In Search of the Wanamie Colliery: A Journey Through the Lens of Michael A. Eagleson; Venue: Alvernia University–Pottsville Towne Campus (500 Progress Ave., Pottsville, PA); Time: 6 – 7:30 pm; Refreshments.

Careers in Context, A Virtual Career Chat
2025-02-12 19:00 - 20:15 UTC
Ever wondered what it takes to become a park ranger, a museum curator, a librarian, even a mine engineer? Well, join us for Careers in Context, Virtual Career Chat Series, to learn about these careers and more. During this program, you’ll have a chance to chat with a museum curator, park ranger, environmental educator, librarian, and mine engineer.
This program features John Voigt, Penn-Anthracite SME, John Fielding, Anthracite Heritage Museum, Alexis Weber, Nescopeck State Park, and a surprise guests from Steamtown National Historic Site and Lackawanna County Library System.
If you want an overview of the day in the life of these professionals, register for Session I: Day in the Life. If you want to have a more in-depth look at these careers – education, career path, internships, etc – join us for Session II: Deep Dive (or both sessions). Details below –
Session I – Day in the Life – Feb 12, 7pm – 8:15pm
Overview of position, day in the life of each profession, Career Spotlight video, Q&A.
Zoom link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/83670744029?pwd=[REDACTED]
***Pre-registration is not required, but highly appreciated.
Session II – Deep Dive – Feb 19, 7pm – 8:15pm
A deeper dive into the education, career scope and path, internships, associations, and more of each profession, Career Spotlight video, Q&A.
Zoom link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/85045881760?pwd=[REDACTED]
First Name *Last Name (adults only)Email Address *Phone NumberEvent Details0 / 180Select *Career Chat SessionsSession I - Day in the Life - Feb 12, 7pmSession II - Deep Dive - Feb 19, 7pmBoth Sessions (Feb 12 & Feb 19, 7pm)Please choose one or both sessions.Register

Careers in Context, A Virtual Career Chat
2025-02-19 19:00 - 20:15 UTC
Ever wondered what it takes to become a park ranger, a museum curator, a librarian, even a mine engineer? Well, join us for Careers in Context, Virtual Career Chat Series, to learn about these careers and more. During this program, you’ll have a chance to chat with a museum curator, park ranger, environmental educator, librarian, and mine engineer.
This program features John Voigt, Penn-Anthracite SME, John Fielding, Anthracite Heritage Museum, Alexis Weber, Nescopeck State Park, and a surprise guests from Steamtown National Historic Site and Lackawanna County Library System.
If you want an overview of the day in the life of these professionals, register for Session I: Day in the Life. If you want to have a more in-depth look at these careers – education, career path, internships, etc – join us for Session II: Deep Dive (or both sessions). Details below –
Session I – Day in the Life – Feb 12, 7pm – 8:15pm
Overview of position, day in the life of each profession, Career Spotlight video, Q&A.
Session II – Deep Dive – Feb 19, 7pm – 8:15pm
A deeper dive into the education, career scope and path, internships, associations, and more of each profession, Career Spotlight video, Q&A.
See main page here to register.

2025 Arts on Fire Festival
2025-06-07 11:00 - 17:00 (America/New_York)
The Pennsylvania Anthracite Heritage Museum and Iron Furnaces presents the 2025 Arts on Fire Festival! The Arts on Fire Festival, launched in 2009, is a FREE two-day celebration of arts, heritage, industry, and community held the first weekend of June at the Iron Furnaces in Scranton.
Join us at the Furnaces on Saturday, June 7 for hands-on activities, live musical performances, the ever-popular iron pour, and new this year – the Youth Arts Showcase. On Sunday, June 8, register for one or more of several workshops. See below to learn more about the weekend-long festival.
Saturday, June 7 | 11a-5p
Hands-on activities with our partners –

Lackawanna State Park

National Museum of Industrial History

Lackawanna Historical Society

Lackawanna County Library System

Everhart Museum

Valley in Motion

Steamtown National Historic Site

United Neighborhood Centers, NEPA

And more!

The Iron Pour!
Visitors can purchase scratch blocks to design custom souvenirs from the festival. Metal Artist, Brian Glaze, will be joined by blacksmiths Cliff Prokop and David Schulte as well as students from Keystone College for the ultimate, fiery iron-pouring experience. Visitor scratch blocks will be turned into their very own iron, souvenir. Please allow time for iron pour and cool down. Participants may need to return on later date to retrieve finished product.

NEW THIS YEAR – Youth Arts Showcase
Local youth will showcase their original art based on the theme – Energy. The deadline for submissions has been extended to May 31. For more information on submitting your work to the AoF Youth Arts Showcase, click here.
On Saturday, stop by the YAS tent to check out their work and chat with the young artists about their process and inspiration.

Sunday, June 8 | 11a – 2p
Come back to the Furnaces for a workshop or two! From tin types, and photography/genealogy projects to blacksmithing, there is something for everyone. Pre-registration is required for all workshops. Register below.

11am – 2pm | Science & Silver: Understanding the Tintype Process | $100/per person
Experience the history and artistry of tintypes in this immersive outdoor workshop. Led by local photographer Rebecca Daniels, this session offers an in-depth look into the science, chemistry, and craftsmanship behind the wet plate collodion process.

11am – 3pm – Knightsmith Blacksmith Workshops – $30 – $50
Join expert blacksmith Chris Knight for one of two (or, both) workshops where you’ll learn blacksmithing basics and get hands on in the forge and fire. All participants will leave the workshop with their handmade project. (The herb cutter workshops run past the event’s 2pm end time.)

12pm – 2pm – Uncovering Hidden Stories: The Art of Photo Archeology – $35/per person
Discover the stories hidden in your photos in this hands-on, two-part workshop led by Photo Archeologist and Photographer, Cheryl Kaiser. In this workshop, you will learn techniques to “excavate” details in your photos, to preserve and curate them, and build a cohesive story that empowers you and honors your family’s history.

About the Scranton Iron Furnaces
The Scranton Iron Furnaces are a four-acre site along Roaring Brook and managed by The Anthracite Heritage Museum and Iron Furnaces. They are a former working iron foundry, built in the 1840s, where many of the early immigrants to Scranton worked. Set against this historic backdrop, visitors to the Arts on Fire Festival can enjoy hands-on history and the best of contemporary art.

Homeschool Hangout
2025-08-13 13:00 - 16:00 UTC
Wednesday, 13 August 1pm – 4pm
Home school and cyber school families are invited to join us for hands-on fun. From 1pm – 4pm, families can enjoy hands-on activities, scavenger hunts, and time in the museum. This year will be a history-palooza, but each year we’ll change the theme based on your recommendations. Groups that pre-register will receive a free gift and 10% off museum store purchase.
$7/person, Pre-registration is required.
The registration window has closed.

Anthracite Stories Book Club
2025-11-01 11:00 - 12:30 UTC
Join the museum educator for the launch of the Anthracite Stories Book Club. This quarterly book club will read stories of and related to Anthracite Heritage, coal mining, and the Scranton area. Registered club members will receive 10% off the quarter’s book when purchased in the Museum Store and a free bookmark. Discover great reads, make some bookish friends, and enjoy refreshments. (When available, we will meet the authors.)
Pre-registration is highly encouraged!
First book club meeting: Saturday, 1 November | 11am -12:30pm
Our first book will be Currents in the Electric City, A Scranton Anthology. We are reading the following selections:

“Escape Plan” by Amye Archer

Two Poems by John (Jack) E. McGuigan

“Not from Here” by Maria Johnson

“The House on Frink Street” by Dawn Leas

If you have any questions, please reach out to the Museum Educator, Chris Stokum, via email at chstokum@pa.gov or at the museum, (570) 963-4804.

First Name *Last Name *Email Address *Please select all that apply. *Non-fiction: memoirGeneral Creative Non-FictionFiction: novelFiction: short storyFiction: poemOtherWhat are your favorite genres?Register

Boilo Bash
2025-12-13 17:00 - 21:00 UTC | Anthracite Heritage Museum, McDade Park, Scranton, PA, 18504, United States
Raise your glass and warm your spirits at our first-ever Boilo Bash, a cocktail party celebrating the Coal Region’s signature holiday drink! Sample boilo (a unique blend of citrus, honey, spices, whiskey, and other ingredients) while you enjoy live music, hors d’oeuvres, and basket raffles. Through the generosity of Nimble Hill Winery and LT Verrastro, beer and wine are now included with your tickets!
Tickets are available for purchase at the door!

This fundraiser supports the Anthracite Heritage Museum and Iron Furnaces Associates, a non-profit, community-based organization. The Associates are also offering unique holiday gifts for pre-order and pick-up at the event. Order your anthracite-filled stocking or boilo kit today!

Submit Your Boilo

Think your family’s recipe is the best boilo in the Valley? Put it to the test at our boilo competition! Whether you brew a traditional mix or a creative new twist, we welcome all varieties. Sign up by December 10!

Anthracite Stories Book Club - Feb 2026 Meeting
2026-02-07 11:00 - 12:30 UTC
Join the museum educators for the second meeting of the Anthracite Stories Book Club. This quarterly book club will read stories of and related to Anthracite Heritage, coal mining, and the Scranton area. Registered club members will receive 10% off the quarter’s book when purchased in the Museum Store and a free bookmark. Discover great reads, make some bookish friends, and enjoy refreshments. (When available, we will meet the authors.)
Pre-registration is highly encouraged!
Saturday, 7 February | 11am -12:30pm
We will continue with Currents in the Electric City, A Scranton Anthology. For the next meeting, we’re reading the following selections:
Two Poems by Bonita Lini Markowski
“Dear Scranton” by Daryl Fanelli (Poem)
“Enjoying a Smoke in Scranton” by Stephanie Longo
“The Indian American Dream” by Janvi Patel

If you have any questions, please reach out to the Museum Educator, Chris Stokum, via email at chstokum@pa.gov or at the museum, (570) 963-4804.
First Name *Last Name *Email Address *Please select all that apply. *Non-fiction: memoirGeneral Creative Non-FictionFiction: novelFiction: short storyFiction: poemOtherWhat are your favorite genres?Register

Mine Rescue Day
2026-04-11 11:00 - 15:00 UTC | Anthracite Heritage Museum, McDade Park, Scranton, PA, 18504, United States
Step into the boots of a mine rescuer and experience how anthracite miners responded to danger and disaster underground. Splint bones, patch skulls, mix folk remedies, and get up close to rescue equipment at a special “touch-a-truck” with Scranton and Taylor Fire Departments.

Real doctors, first responders, and health professionals will explore mine rescue history at stations throughout the museum. We’ll have rarely seen artifacts and historic films from our medical collections on display for one day only.

Mine Rescue Day is suitable for all ages and is included with regular museum admission.

1PM – Join Dr. Bill Conlogue (Marywood) for a presentation on worker’s compensation and emergency relief in the wake of the 1911 Pancoast Colliery fire. Drawing on compensation ledgers in our collections, Dr. Conlogue shows how widows and orphans found means of support after this destructive mine disaster.

Pre-Registration Encouraged!
Enter your name and number of guests to let us know you’re coming! Input your email address to sign up for our newsletter (optional). Regular museum admission is payable the day of the event.
First Name *Last Name *Email AddressNumber of Guests *Register

Seeing Double: Pennsylvania's Industrial Revolution in 3D
2026-04-18 14:00 - 16:00 UTC
Dr. Richard Healey introduces Seeing Double: Pennsylvania’s Industrial Revolution in 3D, an exhibit of 19th- and 20th-century stereoviews showing at four PHMC museums on the Industrial Trail of History from April 17 through Summer 2026.
Dr. Healey, a distinguished British geographer at the University of Portsmouth, will offer a virtual introduction to his exhibit on the Pennsylvania industries of rail, iron, oil, and anthracite coal, previously on display at the Royal Geographical Society in London. As part of his research, Dr. Healey has rendered numerous 19th and 20th century stereoviews as red and blue anaglyphs, allowing museum visitors to experience Pennsylvania’s historic industries in 3D.
Seeing Double will show at Anthracite Heritage Museum, Drake Well Museum and Park, Cornwall Iron Furnace, and the Railroad Museum of Pennsylvania, with each museum displaying a component of the exhibit focused on their individual historical themes.
This program will be available virtually via Zoom (link). The Anthracite Heritage Museum will also host a live viewing party.

2026 Arts on Fire Festival
2026-06-06 11:00 - 17:00 UTC | Scranton Iron Furnaces, 159 Cedar Ave., Scranton, PA, 1850, United States
The Pennsylvania Anthracite Heritage Museum and Iron Furnaces presents the 2026 Arts on Fire Festival! The Arts on Fire Festival, launched in 2009, is a FREE two-day celebration of arts, heritage, industry, and community held the first weekend of June at the Iron Furnaces in Scranton.

This event is made possible with the generous support of the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission, Lackawanna County Arts and Culture Grant commissioners Bill Gaughan, Thom Welby, and Chris Chermak, Lackawanna Heritage Valley National and State Heritage Area in partnership with the National Park Service, and Lamar Advertising.

Join us at the Furnaces on Saturday, June 6 for hands-on activities, craft/artist market, live musical performances, the ever-popular iron pour, and returning this year– the Youth Arts Showcase. Join us on Sunday, June 7, for the craft/artist market and workshops! See below to learn more about the weekend-long festival.
Saturday, June 6 | 11a-5p
Hands-on activities with our partners, live music, craft and artist market, and more! Check us out on Facebook for vendor and artist highlights.
The Iron Pour!
Saturday only – Visitors can purchase scratch blocks to design custom souvenirs from the festival. Metal Artist, Brian Glaze, will be joined by emeritus sculpture professor Cliff Prokop and arts alumni from Keystone College for the ultimate, fiery iron-pouring experience. Visitor scratch blocks will be turned into their very own iron, souvenir. Please allow time for iron pour and cool down. Participants may need to return on later date to retrieve finished product.
Youth Arts Showcase
Local youth will showcase their original art based on the theme – Change.
On Saturday, stop by the YAS tent to check out their work and chat with the young artists about their process and inspiration.
Learn more and submit your artwork here.

Sunday, June 7 | 11a – 4p
Come back to the Furnaces to shop our unique craft and artist market, check out partner activities, and for a workshop or two! See Sunday’s event page for workshops.

IMPORTANT
We’ve been made aware of fraudulent emails going out soliciting vendors (and payments) for Arts on Fire. We do not send out requests for payments unsolicited. Also, if the email is not from the Museum Educator, Nicole Negron, at nicnegron@pa.gov email, please disregard as spam.

About the Scranton Iron Furnaces
The Scranton Iron Furnaces are a four-acre site along Roaring Brook and managed by The Anthracite Heritage Museum and Iron Furnaces. They are a former working iron foundry, built in the 1840s, where many of the early immigrants to Scranton worked. Set against this historic backdrop, visitors to the Arts on Fire Festival can enjoy hands-on history and the best of contemporary art.

2026 Arts on Fire Festival
2026-06-07 11:00 - 16:00 UTC | Scranton Iron Furnaces, 159 Cedar Ave., Scranton, PA, 1850, United States
The Pennsylvania Anthracite Heritage Museum and Iron Furnaces presents the 2026 Arts on Fire Festival! The Arts on Fire Festival, launched in 2009, is a FREE two-day celebration of arts, heritage, industry, and community held the first weekend of June at the Iron Furnaces in Scranton.

This event is made possible with the generous support of the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission, Lackawanna County Arts and Culture Grant commissioners Bill Gaughan, Thom Welby, and Chris Chermak, Lackawanna Heritage Valley National and State Heritage Area in partnership with the National Park Service, and Lamar Advertising.

Join us at the Furnaces on Saturday, June 6 for hands-on activities, live musical performances, the ever-popular iron pour, and returning this year– the Youth Arts Showcase. On Sunday, June 7, shop our unique craft and artist market, check out partner activities, and join us for a workshop or two. See below to learn more about the weekend-long festival.
Saturday, June 6 | 11a-5p
Hands-on activities with our partners, live music, craft and artist market, and more!
The Iron Pour!
Saturday only – Visitors can purchase scratch blocks to design custom souvenirs from the festival. Metal Artist, Brian Glaze, will be joined by emeritus professor of sculpture Cliff Prokop and arts alumni from Keystone College for the ultimate, fiery iron-pouring experience. Visitor scratch blocks will be turned into their very own iron, souvenir. Please allow time for iron pour and cool down. Participants may need to return on later date to retrieve finished product.
Youth Arts Showcase
Local youth will showcase their original art based on the theme – Change. See the Youth Arts Showcase page for more information and to apply.
On Saturday, stop by the YAS tent to check out their work and chat with the young artists about their process and inspiration.

Sunday, June 7 | 11a – 4p
Come back to the Furnaces to shop our unique craft and artist market, check out partner activities, and join us for a workshop or two!
Pre-registration is required for all workshops. Register below.

11am – 4pm – Knightsmith Blacksmith Workshops – $20 – $35
Join expert blacksmith, Chris Knight, for one of two (or, both) workshops where you’ll learn blacksmithing basics and get hands on in the forge and fire. All participants will leave the workshop with their handmade project. (The herb cutter workshops may run past the event’s 4pm end time.)

11am – 4pm – NMIH Metal Melting Workshops – $30
Science, art, and manufacturing come together in this hands-on, family friendly workshop. Join National Museum of Industrial Museum’s historian, Mike Piersa, at the Scranton Iron Furnaces where participants learn how to prepare sand molds to receive molten tin and create a product to take home! Not recommended for children under 8 years old. Anyone under 18 will need to be accompanied by a parent/guardian. (Parent/guardian does not have to pay unless taking part in the experience.)

IMPORTANT
We’ve been made aware of fraudulent emails going out soliciting vendors (and payments) for Arts on Fire. We do not send out requests for payments unsolicited. Also, if the email is not from the Museum Educator, Nicole Negron, at nicnegron@pa.gov email, please disregard as spam.

About the Scranton Iron Furnaces
The Scranton Iron Furnaces are a four-acre site along Roaring Brook and managed by The Anthracite Heritage Museum and Iron Furnaces. They are a former working iron foundry, built in the 1840s, where many of the early immigrants to Scranton worked. Set against this historic backdrop, visitors to the Arts on Fire Festival can enjoy hands-on history and the best of contemporary art.
