Pa. State Museum shows off ‘Revolutionary Things’ exhibit for America’s 250th

• Katie Knol
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  Katie Knol is WITF's General Assignment Reporter & Host.
  
  She graduated from Penn State University in 2024, earning bachelor's degrees in journalism and political science. She has also worked at WPSU, the News Lab at Penn State, The Daily Collegian and CommRadio.

The State Museum of Pennsylvania is giving visitors one last chance to see some of its most treasured Revolutionary War artifacts before the building closes for a three-year renovation. 

Running through Aug. 2, the “Revolutionary Things” exhibit features more than 140 artifacts divided into three sections — relics and witness objects, commemorative art, and centennial and bicentennial anniversaries. The museum is promoting the exhibit as the United States marks its 250th anniversary.

With the museum set to close toward the start of August for major renovations, this is the last chance for visitors to see the collections for a while. The $55 million project will renovate the main museum complex and the archives tower. The museum website states it’s expected to reopen in 2029.

Curt Miner, the main curator of the exhibit, said the goal was to broaden visitors’ understanding of Pennsylvania’s role in the American Revolution. Many know the Founding Fathers signed the Declaration of Independence in Philadelphia, but tens of thousands of Pennsylvanian men fought in the Revolutionary War, and the state was a major hub of industry, earning its “Keystone State” nickname that is still used today.

“It became a kind of metaphor for Pennsylvania’s centrality to the nation’s story, even after the nation began to grow beyond those original 13 colonies,” Miner said. “When we looked at our collection, we really saw a lot of evidence for that and why Pennsylvania really has a story to tell that’s unique, can’t be told anywhere else but here in Pennsylvania.”

The collection includes art of Betsy Ross presenting George Washington with the first version of the stars and stripes, and a large painting of Washington that was rescued from the original Harrisburg Capitol building’s 1897 fire.

Other highlights include a timeline of Washington’s major visits throughout the state, and two locks of his hair.

The flag carried by the 1st Pennsylvania Regiment of the Continental Army is also on display. That regiment was with Washington when he crossed the Delaware River and spent a hard winter at Valley Forge.

Witness objects that would have been present during historical events — like the regiment’s flag — are especially exciting, according to Miner.

“To think that you can walk into this museum and see a flag that was with George Washington at some point and saw so much of this history unfolding is just, I think, remarkable,” he said. “And there’s nothing else that kind of replaces that experience.”

The fragile silk shows a hunter trying to trap a tiger — possibly a metaphor for the United States’ resistance against the British. It also has the Latin phrase “Domari Nolo,” which translates to “I Refuse to be Subjugated.”

The flag is now kept sealed and away from hard light for its protection.