Mercer Museum facts for kids
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Mercer Museum
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U.S. National Historic Landmark District
Contributing Property |
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Mercer Museum in Doylestown, Pennsylvania
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 Location in Pennsylvania
Location in the United States
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| Location | 84 S. Pine St., Doylestown, Pennsylvania, U.S. |
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| Built | 1904 |
| Architect | Dr. Henry Mercer |
| Architectural style | Colonial Revival |
| Part of | Fonthill, Mercer Museum, and Moravian Pottery and Tile Works (ID85002366) |
| NRHP reference No. | 72001097 |
Quick facts for kids Significant dates |
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| Added to NRHP | March 16, 1972 |
| Designated NHLDCP | February 4, 1985 |
The Mercer Museum is a cool place to visit in Doylestown, Pennsylvania. It's run by the Bucks County Historical Society. This group also takes care of the Research Library and Fonthill Castle. Fonthill was the home of the museum's founder, Henry Chapman Mercer.
The museum was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1972. Later, it became part of a special historic area. This area includes the Moravian Pottery and Tile Works and Fonthill. These three buildings are unique because Henry Mercer built them all using poured concrete.
Discovering the Past
Henry Mercer was a very curious person who studied people and cultures. When he was young, he traveled and saw how factories were replacing old ways of making things. He decided to save items from a time before big machines.
During the late 1800s and early 1900s, Mercer collected old hand tools. He also gathered other items from the past. He believed these tools told the story of human progress. He saw these old crafts slowly disappearing.
Mercer designed the museum himself. It is six stories tall and made of poured concrete. The museum was finished in 1916.
Besides tools, the museum shows furniture from early America. You can also see carriages, old stove plates, and antique fire engines. There's even a whaleboat and the Lenape Stone. The Spruance Library is on the third floor. It holds many historical research materials.
In June 2011, a new visitor center was completed. It is located at the front of the museum.
How It Was Built
The Mercer Museum is one of three buildings Mercer made from poured concrete. His home, Fonthill, and the Moravian Pottery and Tile Works are the others. Both are about a mile from the museum.
Mercer chose concrete after a big fire in Boston in 1872. That fire destroyed his aunt's valuable collection of medieval armor. It had been stored in wooden buildings. He wanted to make sure his own collections would be safe from fire.
Local people made fun of his choice of building materials. But when the museum was done, he lit a bonfire on its roof. This proved that the building was fireproof. Mercer's museum was an early example of using concrete with rebar inside. Rebar makes concrete much stronger.
Gallery
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Inside the Mercer Museum. Pieces hang from the ceiling and walls.
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19th century cigar store figures
