Summary
Organization name
The Rose Valley Museum
Tax id (EIN)
23-2992995
Address
41 Rose Valley RoadRose Valley, PA 19063
History Lives at The Rose Valley Museum!
The Rose Valley museum at Thunderbird Lodge in winter
The Rose Valley Museum collects, preserves, publishes and interprets the history of Rose Valley for the benefit of the public. We offer lectures, tours, workshops and the occasional party! We are located at the historic Thunderbird Lodge at 41, Rose Valley Road, Rose Valley, PA. Our collection focuses on the artists, artisans, architects and residents of Rose Valley, founded by William Lightfoot Price in 1901 in order to create a utopian Arts and Crafts community.
Great News! We are publishing a book! And you can help!
Book Plate from the Rose Valley Library. Charlotte Harding, 1905
We are hard at work on Rose Valley: The Arts and Crafts Experiment, 1901–1916, which we hope to publish in July of this year, to coincide with the 250th Anniversary of The United States, and of the major exhibition at the Philadelphia Museum of Art (PMA) on the Arts and Crafts movement in Philadelphia this summer. The museum has several pieces in the exhibit, and the PMA will be selling our book.
Because of the renown of Rose Valley as a utopian community endeavor and our connections with experts in the field, we are able to include chapters by scholars in the areas of architectural history, Mercer Tiles, publishing, theater history along with all of the chapters by our own expert board members who not only run the museum but took on the huge task of publishing this book.
Photograph of Bloodroot Plants by Henry Troth
The book will include nine chapters on the artists, architects, artisans, publishers and performers and members of the community, all of whom created the unique utopian experiment of Rose Valley. It will contain approximately 300 pages, 250 images, and index and a bibliography.
The cost to publish the book is estimated to be $100,000. We have received a major grant of $25,000 from the Wyeth Foundation for American Art, and we have received a pledge from the Decorative Arts trust of $28,000. We need about $47,000 in donations from individuals.
Thank you to those who have already given, and thank you to those who are donating through Delco Gives.!
What We Are About
In today's digital world, do you yearn for a personal community connection and outlet for artistic expression? The Rose Valley Museum takes you back to just such a time. William Lightfoot Price was an architect who loathed the industrial revolution's focus on material gain to the detriment of quality goods and humane working conditions. In response, inspired by the Arts & Crafts Movement, he founded the utopian Rose Valley Community in 1901 as a small local enclave in Delaware County that still exists today. He longed for society to return to simpler times where communities thrived on personal connections, for example doing musicals together, playing together...
Tubing in the Rose Valley pond
William L Price and Muriel Jaisohn in The Mikado
... and artisans and artists were motivated by the timeless beauty of their crafts.
Rose Valley furniture shop. Sculpture by John Meane
Double bench, Rose Valley furniture shop. Book Illustration by Elenore Abbott
Join us. Become part of The Rose Valley Museum community and support the preservation of our shared local history through your donations. Become a member or volunteer – experience the continuing history of Rose Valley by participating in our celebrations of the past and present through educational lectures, workshops, tours and community events.
Experience William Price's pursuit of a utopian community and help us preserve the history of Rose Valley.
RoseValleyMuseum.org
Family Day Picnic! Annual Carol Sing and Tree Lighting
To hear how members and volunteers got involved click on their names below
A message from our curator, Ryan Berley
The Rose Valley Museum
41 Rose Valley Road
Rose Valley, PA 19063
rosevalleymuseum.org
info @rosevalleymuseum.org
Organization Data
Rose Valley, PA 19063