Welcome to Historic Muncy, a borough in Northcentral Pennsylvania. One of the earliest settlements in the West Branch Valley, Muncy and its residents were participants in some of the most significant historic events in the making of the American Frontier, including the French and Indian War and the Revolutionary War.
Explorers recognized its importance because of its proximity to the Susquehanna River, and the numerous Indian trails that crisscrossed the landscape. Pioneers cleared land, planted crops, and built cabins as early as 1752, hoping to farm and trade with the Munsee Indians who lived nearby.
In 1797, brothers Benjamin and William McCarty and Isaac Walton laid out the town of Pennsborough. Derisively nicknamed “Hardscrable,” the small village grew slowly. Pennsborough was incorporated as a borough on March 15, 1826, then, on January 19, 1827, the name of Pennsborough was changed to Muncy.
John P. Schuyler and Joshua Alder purchased 50 acres that became known as Port Penn. The neighborhood would, first, be dissected by the West Branch Canal and, later, the Philadelphia and Reading Railroad – both important to Muncy’s growth. Manufacturing flourished and the small community supported a variety of trades, products and businesses.
Historically, Muncy was an ideal community for commerce and industry. Located on the West Branch of the Susquehanna River, Muncy developed a thriving lumber industry complete with saw and planing mills. Timber raftsmen moving logs down the Susquehanna to the Chesapeake often stopped at Muncy. They frequented the taverns and hotels, and certainly kept area distilleries in business. More than 1,300 gallons were produced each day during this time period.
The West Branch Canal became a great business thoroughfare and its chief exports locally were hogs, wheat, flour, lumber, leather and whiskey. At the time period, there were thirteen distilleries in the area with an output of up to 1,500 gallons per day.
The canal ended in town at the Muncy Woolen Mills. Nearby, Muncy’s Main Street began to fill with shops and industry. There were carriage makers, an iron foundry, broom makers, dry goods stores, drug stores, a newspaper office, hotels, restaurants and even an opera house that also held the town’s billiard room. A hospital was established.
When the railroad eventually replaced the West Branch Canal, the Reading Railroad installed a depot in Muncy. If Muncy had a “Golden Era,” this pre-Civil War period was it.
Today, Muncy PA has nearly 2,700 residents. The friendly citizens are proud of its rich heritage and look forward to its dynamic future. Muncy’s high school American football team and that of its rival, the Montgomery’s high school team, play annually for The Shoe. The trophy was created in 1961 from an old athletic shoe found in the Muncy High School locker room; the shoe has been bronzed and mounted on a wooden box.
Muncy Historical Society & Museum of History
Muncy Historical Society and Museum of History, a not-for-profit, all volunteer organization founded in 1936, focuses on preservation and conservation of the rich history and heritage of Muncy and surrounding communities – its people, businesses, education, arts, traditions and folklore – by sponsoring educational programs and activities, through research and publication of our history, and interpretation of the museum’s collection for the community, including schools, colleges, community groups and professional historians.
In recent years the Society has strengthened its commitment to these objectives:
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By revitalizing the Historical Society: Injecting a new sense of volunteerism within the community and the historical society, establishing scheduled museum hours and sponsoring special exhibits each year, displaying items borrowed from private collections and family heirlooms along with museum accessions;
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By acquiring an 11-acre parcel within the original 50-acre tract of this small town, and developing it into a historic trail with exhibits and signage describing the life and labor along the Muncy Canal;
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By hosting a Public Archaeology Dig at the site of the Muncy Canal and involving the community in a project designed to enhance cultural preservation.
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By developing a book of vintage “Muncy” postcards with historian Robin Van Auken that explores Muncy’s heritage. Follow this link to buy this book;
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By reclaiming the Old Walton Graveyard and the Old Hill Burying Ground – rehabilitating the burial sites of the town’s founders and early pioneers;
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By re instituting of the Historic Homes Tour of the Muncy area and the Antiques Show and Sale, both major fundraiser events for the Society which allow us to preserve and conserve “pieces of our area’s past”;
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By restoring the “Eight Square School,” built on the site of the oldest public school in Lycoming County (Project a recipient of the prestigious Pennsylvania Preservation 2001 Initiative Award);
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By its living history programs for home-schooled young people, scout troops, adult education classes, East Lycoming and Muncy School District Elementary, Junior High and Senior High students;
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By being a major sponsor to the production of “The Last Raft,” a one-hour “living history” documentary film that explores the raft’s tragic journey and crash in March 1938, using rare photos, new and archival footage, artifacts and news coverage. Karen L. Frock of Creekside Creative Media is the researcher, writer and producer of “The Last Raft” documentary;
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Through its Civil War Soldiers’ Monument Project which included publication of David L. Richards’ “Priceless Treasures,” the biographies of the 71 Civil War casualties whose names are inscribed on the monument; the redesign of the monument site to accommodate the names of an additional 64 casualties overlooked when the monument was dedicated in 1869 (Project received 2004 Honorable Mention Award from PA Federation of Museums & Historical Organizations and 2004 Certificate of Commendation from the American Association of State and Local History);
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By publishing the Society’s nationally-recognized Now and Then, a magazine of history, biography and genealogy, published three times per year, 28 – 36 pages per issue;
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Through its PA Canal Packet Boat Project, from salvaging the cabin to reconstructing an authentic 1860s packet/passenger cabin as the Society’s traveling educational exhibit (Project received 2004 Honorable Mention Award from PA Federation of Museums & Historical Organizations and 2004 Certificate of Commendation from the American Association of State and Local History);
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By establishing a “local history” presence at the Lycoming County Fair, encouraging the participation of other non-for-profit historically-oriented societies from Lycoming, Northumberland and Sullivan counties.
Best Vacation
The MHSMH has a solid record of community activism, establishing working partnership and meeting its preservation objectives. Our reputation and commitment to preserve pieces of our historically-rich community has created confidence in our ability to deliver quality results with integrity and quality. Our current major project is Muncy Heritage Park and Nature Trail, an 11-acre property adjacent to the Susquehanna River. Read more about this project and the visitors who have helped at the Public Archaeology Dig. This popular program was highlighted by Conde Nast’s publication Cookie Magazine as one of the top destinations for family vacations.
The museum and research library are located at 40 N. Main Street, Muncy, Pennsylvania. In 1936 Mrs. Forrest Clapp donated her husband’s family homestead, the Thomas Clapp House, to the town of Muncy for the purpose of housing the Muncy Historical Society & Museum of History. The oldest 2 ½ story section was built in 1812 and features the original fireplace and squirrel-tail beehive oven. The back staircase leads to the second floor bedroom which features pieces of locally-made furniture and the Society’s fraktur collection.
The museum collection includes a WPA-commissioned replica of Fort Muncy and military gallery, Native American artifacts, diverse and impressive artwork, a working barn loom and William Lowmiller’s jacquard attachment and a sampling of his woven coverlets.
8 Square One-Room Schoolhouse
The Society operates the “Eight Square,” a fully restored one room schoolhouse, built in 1872, on the site of Lycoming County’s first public school. This frame structure replaced the original 8-sided log structure built in 1796. Volunteers conduct one-room living history programs by appointment. The annual Strawberry Festival and Old Fashioned School Social is held at this site in Moreland Township, approximately 3 miles east of Clarkstown, left onto Church Road from Route 442.
John Waldron
Muncy Historical Society’s Pennsylvania Canal Packet Boat is the reconstruction of an authentic 1860s packet/passenger cabin that has become the Society’s traveling educational exhibit. The project received 2004 Honorable Mention Award from PA Federation of Museums & Historical Organizations and 2004 Certificate of Commendation from the American Association of State and Local History.