Armstrong County Historical Society

10/28/2026

LAST DAY FOR REGULAR MUSEUM TOURS!

Tomorrow, Thursday, October 29, marks the final day of our regular seasonal public tours at the Armstrong County Historical Museum in Kittanning before we close for the winter.

If you haven’t had an opportunity to visit this year, we invite you to stop by and explore the history of Armstrong County!

📅 Thursday, October 29, 2026
🕐 1:00 PM – 3:00 PM
📍 300 N. McKean Street | Kittanning, PA

🎄 But we’re not quite finished for the year!

We’ll be opening our doors again in late November for our annual Holiday Open House! Visitors will have another opportunity to tour the museum, enjoy the holiday atmosphere, and celebrate the season with us.

Stay tuned for more details about this special event!

We sincerely appreciate everyone who has visited, volunteered, and supported the Armstrong County Historical Society throughout the year. Your continued support helps us preserve and share our county’s rich history.

Our regular public tour schedule will resume in the spring. We look forward to seeing you at our Holiday Open House before then!

10/25/2026

We so enjoy following this restoration! Great job, Jonathon Denson!

10/23/2026

Lots of hard work behind the scenes at the Armstrong County Historical Society!

Leveling and clearing the lot, painting and cleaning the McCain House walls and back door awnings and cleaning out and leveling the floor inside the Kittanning Freight Station kept our members busy! Special thanks to all who helped on this work day!

If you would like to volunteer at the ACHS to help in any way, large or small, we would greatly appreciate it! The ACHS can always use more volunteers for programs, cleaning, and clerical work, even during the winter months! Reach out by phone or email and get in touch if you love history and want to make a difference in your community!

10/18/2026

Come visit our Museum
on Sunday
October 18th
from 1-3PM

10/07/2026

Stop by and visit our Museum!
Thursday, October 8th
1-3PM

10/06/2026

Interested in discovering more about your family history?

The Armstrong County Historical Society invites you to our Genealogy Open House on Thursday, October 8, from 6:00–9:00 PM at 300 North McKean Street in Kittanning.

Whether you’re just beginning to build your family tree or have been researching your ancestors for years, this is an opportunity to explore the many resources available in our Genealogy Library.

Our Genealogy Library is also a FamilySearch Affiliate Library, giving researchers on-site access to certain FamilySearch records and digital images that may have viewing restrictions when accessed from home.

Our volunteers can help beginning genealogists get started and assist experienced researchers in locating records, local information and other resources that may help uncover another piece of their family story.

Visitors are encouraged to bring family names, dates, photographs, documents and other information they already have. You are also welcome to bring a laptop, iPad/tablet or other device to use during your research.

There is no cost to participate. Come spend an evening exploring your roots and discover what the Armstrong County Historical Society Genealogy Library has to offer.

Thursday, October 8 | 6:00–9:00 PM
300 North McKean Street | Kittanning, PA

We look forward to helping you discover your family history.
Donations are accepted.

10/01/2026

Thanks, ladies, for visiting our campus and taking the time to view and enjoy “Echoes of Armstrong”, our county’s bell. Our society is honored to host the Armstrong County bell. And we are so very proud of everyone involved who made this fantastic art project happen for our community.

Angela Homan and Kathy Shope have enjoyed exploring our beautiful Commonwealth by visiting America250PA’s Bells Across PA installations!🔔✨🎨

Hear from Angela as she shares their experience and hopes to inspire others to do the same! ⬇️

Our PA bell journey started when a teacher told Kathy about the bells around the state. Kathy's first bell was Blair County. She took me to see the bell at Talleyrand Park in Bellefonte, and I was hooked. Each of us went to see some bells on our own. We took family members with us.

Then, Kathy started mapping out day trips for us to take together. We classify our trips by how many bells we can see in one day. Is it a four-bell day? Is it a five-bell day? To keep track of how many bells we have seen and where, we printed a map of the PA counties and colored them in as we see the bells in each county. My bell total is 28, and Kathy has seen 32.

My current favorite bells are Armstrong and Jefferson County. Kathy's favorites are Cameron and Armstrong County.

On one outing, we went to see the bell at Punxsutawney together. We enjoyed finding all the groundhogs hidden on the bell. Kathy and I explored the town and also went to Gobbler's K**b. We enjoyed finding a candy shop after seeing the bell in Indiana County.

We prefer bells that are outside because they are easier to access on weekends and later in the day.

We have met wonderful people. We have learned about the counties. We have made plans for future travel.

🛣️ If you have also traveled to visit our Bells Across PA installations, send us a message for a chance to be featured!

10/01/2026

🍂 October is National Family History Month*!

Every family has a story, and those stories are an important part of the history of Armstrong County.

At the Armstrong County Historical Society, our Genealogical Library works to preserve the names, photographs, documents, newspaper stories, family records, and personal histories that connect today’s families with the generations who came before them.

As a FamilySearch Affiliate Library, we are also able to provide our community with expanded access to genealogical resources that can help researchers trace their family trees both here in Armstrong County and far beyond.

We are especially grateful to have John Clowes leading our genealogical research efforts. Through countless hours of work, John has helped digitize hundreds of thousands of pages of local newspapers, historical records, and other materials, thus preserving information that might otherwise be lost and making it available for generations of researchers to come.

And we thank YOU.

Every family history, photograph, obituary, newspaper clipping, family Bible record, business story, military record, and piece of local history entrusted to our archives helps us preserve a more complete picture of Armstrong County’s past.

Our history isn’t only the story of famous names or major events. It is the story of the families who lived here, raised children here, built businesses, worked our farms and industries, served their country, strengthened their communities, and called Armstrong County home.

If your family has deep roots in Armstrong County, consider sharing copies of your family history and records with the Historical Society. What may seem like an ordinary family document today could become an invaluable resource to a researcher decades from now.

This October, celebrate National Family History Month by asking questions, writing down the stories, labeling those old photographs, researching your family tree, and helping us make sure Armstrong County’s family stories are never forgotten.

Because when we preserve a family’s history, we preserve a piece of our community’s history, too.

* Family History Month, designated in 2001, encourages families to celebrate their heritage and learn about their ancestral roots.

10/01/2026

A shout out to our very own genealogist who will be presenting at Ford City Public Library on October 7th.

Register now for our Speaker Series on October 7th at 6:00 pm with Armstrong County Historical Society Genealogist Mr. John Clowes! He will be sharing tips, tricks, local resources and more in honor of Family Heritage Month!
**Pre-registration appreciated for planning purposes at www.armstronglibraries.org/fcplprograms

09/30/2026

The Museum is open Thursday,
October 1
1-3PM.