The Mercer Museum

On Monday, December 14th 2009, The Mercer Museum in Doylestown held a ceremonial “concrete mixer” to mark the start of construction on its new education and exhibition wing. Instead of the typical shovel-in-the-dirt groundbreaking, museum staff and county and state officials left their handprints in wet concrete (which will be displayed on the museum grounds) as a nod to the Mercer’s concrete structure. Speakers at the event included former Pennsylvania Congressman, Jim Greenwood, Pennsylvania State Senator, Charles T. McIllhinney, Jr., Doylestown Mayor, Libby White and Bucks County Commissioner, Charles H. Martin. Guests to the event were gifted with souvenir chocolate concrete mixers to remember the special day.

To date, the castle-like museum and National Historic Landmark has raised $9.5 million toward its $12 million goal for its 13,000 square-foot expansion. The expansion will include a 3,000 square-foot climate-controlled, state-of-the-art Exhibition Gallery; a new 1,500 square-foot Changing Experiences Gallery to accommodate interactive programs and exhibits, making the museum one of the few venues in the area able to host traveling exhibitions and collections from a wide variety of sources like the Smithsonian.  The additional space will also feature a 1,000 square foot Multi-Flex Learning Center to accommodate school programs, family workshops and adult classes.

“Green” elements will be incorporated into the construction including energy saving components, from water-conserving bathroom fixtures, radiant heat concrete flooring slabs, to recycled content wall panels in the new exhibit gallery. Permeable paving will be used for the improved parking facilities, and adjacent to that, the grounds will be improved with a rain garden using native plants of the region.

The new wing is to be completed by May of 2011. The inaugural exhibit, “A World of Things: The Mercer Museum A to Z” will highlight seldom seen objects from the vast collections of the museum.

The Mercer’s transformation will also enhance Doylestown’s reputation as a prominent cultural destination in the Philadelphia region. According to the Mercer’s Executive Director, Douglas Dolan, “We honor the past and look to the future as we reinvent ourselves to appeal to 21st century visitors.”

Currently, more than 70,000 people from all 50 states visit the Mercer Museum annually to see the towering castle’s collection of 40,000 objects of pre-industrial America. Collection highlights include a Conestoga Wagon, whaling boat, horse-drawn carriages and hangman’s gallows.

During the construction of the museum’s new wing, the museum plans to stay open and to continue to offer its signature brand of unique events and programs. On Saturday, January 16, the museum provides a rare glimpse of its extraordinary painting collection housed it its elegant Elkins Gallery. The exhibit, “Three Centuries of Bucks County Art and Artists,” features more than one hundred works of fine and folk art by noted artists like Daniel Garber, (“October”, “Barn Yard,” “The Marshall House,”) and Edward Hicks, (“The Peaceable Kingdom”) and (“Washington at the Delaware.”) Other noted artists featured in the exhibit are Charles Willson Peale, Thomas Hicks, Martin Johnson Heade, William Trego, Thomas Otter and R. Sloan Bredin.

For more information on the Mercer Museum’s upcoming programs and events, call (215) 345-0210, or visit www.mercermuseum.org. The Mercer Museum is located on 84. South Pine Street in Doylestown and is open daily for self-guided tours. Enjoy the Mercer Experience, and see both the Mercer Museum and Fonthill, the home of Henry Mercer for a discounted price. The Mercer Museum is accredited by the American Association of Museums. To make a contribution to the Mercer Museum’s Capital Campaign, call 215-345-0210, ext. 129.