The first Sunday of May each year is Free Museum Day in Ligonier. This year, as part of their home school program, Kelly and Matt brought the boys up and we made a day of it. The cloudy drizzle did not ward us off; we forged ahead relentlessly! Matt was unsure of all this ‘history’ stuff, and of course the boys were following his lead. But he surprised himself by having a good time. We all did!
We started at the Train Museum, located in Darlington at the back tip of Idlewild Park. There was a lot of information about the train wreck of 1912, including the newspaper article and a dress that one of the young ladies wore that day.
The boys enjoyed the caboose
and learned about the importance about the flagman stationed at the back of the train – and how the engineer relied on him.
From there we made a quick stop at the Southern Allegheny Museum of Art, 
looking at the displays and drawing symbols in the sand. 
Chase liked watching but was still ‘protesting’ history and didn’t join in. Next stop was Compass Inn –
my favorite, and I think the kids liked it as well. There were lots of colonial games to play, and Matt kept the boys engaged while Kelly and I looked in the gift shop and checked out the blacksmith shop.
The last stop was Ft. Ligonier, and that was definitely the highlight! The renovations (as mentioned in a previous post)
were extremely well done, and there was something to entice everyone’s attention. Here, again, we played some colonial games, walked through the fort, learned about battles and Washington and Indians.
It was totally fun to spend the day with my family, surrounded by history and fun and food: At every stop we grabbed chips or a piece of leftover pizza from last night’s supper! Everyone learned something – from Chase (who decided he didn’t really like history!) to me – who knew all along that a day spent with those you love doubles the pleasure!
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