Bushy Run to host open house, celebration for Pennsylvania’s birthday

Bushy Run Battlefield in Penn Township is hosting an open house with free tours of the park and admission to its museum in honor of Pennsylvania’s 343rd birthday.

Charter Day is celebrated annually at the historical site, which played host to the 1763 clash between the British and Native Americans during Pontiac’s War. The event will take place from noon to 4 p.m. March 10 at the park, located along Route 993.

Attendees can walk through the museum and talk to a variety of reenactors, who will portray figures such as Native Americans, European settlers, British Colonial troops and William Penn, the state’s founder, museum manager Matt Adams said.

“One of the cool things about these reenactors is that they’re really experienced, and so you can come in and be a total newcomer to this history and not know a thing about it, and they’re great with that,” Adams said.

“But also, if you’re an expert in this subject and you think you know pretty much everything there is to know about Pennsylvania history, you can still come. You might learn some things. You can just talk to these people and get really into the weeds with them about some of the finer details.”

The event will be family-friendly, Adams said. All children will be given an imitation charter certificate meant to represent the document England’s King Charles II gave to William Penn in March 1681.

Tables and displays will be set up by the Westmoreland Archaeological Society, the Westmoreland County Historical Society and the Westmoreland Conservancy.

More than 15 other historical sites across the state will participate in Charter Day and offer free admission, including Fort Pitt Museum near Point State Park in Pittsburgh, Somerset Historical Center in Somerset County, Landis Valley Village and Farm Museum in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania Military Museum in Centre County and the State Museum of Pennsylvania in Harrisburg.

The charter, which is preserved at the Pennsylvania State Archives facility on North Sixth Street in Harrisburg, will be on display from noon to 4 p.m., said Howard Pollman, spokesperson for the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission.

“It’s just a way of commemorating, and all of our sites kind of do their own thing,” Pollman said of Charter Day.

The commission began framing Charter Day as the state’s birthday in recent years, Adams said. Giant Eagle donated a birthday cake to Bushy Run for the celebration.

As spring approaches, Charter Day is also meant to open Bushy Run back up for the season, Adams said.

“Just kind of where it sits in the year, it’s a good opportunity for us to just have an open house and get people back in and talk to them about what we’re planning for this year,” he said.

Bushy Run’s annual reenactment will return this year on Aug. 3 and 4. The historical site also plans to bring back its regular spring and fall tea events, Paws in the Park and the Halloween-themed event it launched last year.

Events for Veterans Day and Christmas also may be in the works, Adams said. A full schedule of Bushy Run’s events for the year will be announced on its website, www.bushyrunbattlefield.com.