This illustrated lecture will be presented at the Mennonite Heritage Center. Attendees will be seated in the Fraktur Gallery surrounded by original fraktur made over 200 years ago, and will learn about early settlers in the Lower Salford and Franconia townships. We will explore information about the creators and the purpose of these treasured pieces, and how they were used to simulate learning in a teacher-created, engaging environment. Participants will be able to view exhibits at the Center following the lecture.

Please note: Participants will need to drive to the Mennonite Heritage Center on their own. It is located at: 565 Yoder Road in Harleysville. This lecture and tour is limited to 20 persons.

About the instructor: Mary Jane Lederach Hershey

Mary Jane Lederach Hershey is a graduate of Souderton High School, Goshen College, and Drexel Institute of Technology. She helped establish the Mennonite Heritage Center in 1974. Throughout the 1990s, she served as chair of the board of the Mennonite Historians of Eastern Pennsylvania. Currently Mary is a trustee emeritus and volunteers in the archives at the Center. She authored the book, This Teaching I Present: Fraktur from Skippack and Salford Meetingouse Schools, 1747-1836.

About the center: 

The Mennonite Heritage Center is a museum, library, and archive collection dedicated to sharing the stories of the Anabaptist-Mennonite faith and life in eastern Pennsylvania. The Delaware Valley is host to a diverse range of Mennonite experiences from Pennsylvania Germans to Hispanics, Indonesian, and Vietnamese communities. The Center is open to the public and offers rotating exhibits, events, programs, and workshops.