Slate Belt Heritage Center

What's New?


Note: starting in December, we are holding our monthly lectures on the 2nd Sunday of the month at 2:00 pm.

New Bus Tours!

On April 4th, 2009, we launched the third of our ethnic heritage books: At the Blue Hills Above the Forks: Pennsylvania Dutch Culture in Northampton County’s Slate Belt by author Melissa E. Hough.

It is available for sale at the Heritage Center, Merchants Bank, and Chocolates on Broadway.




Monthly Lecture Series


Summer lectures are the 2nd Thursday of the month from April to November at 7:00 pm.

Winter lectures are the 2nd Sunday of the month at 2:00 pm.

Check the schedule often as lectures may change.

Upcoming lectures feature:

NOTE: The Feb. (2/14) and Mar. (3/14) lectures have been cancelled due to circumstances beyond our control. Please check back to see when they may be rescheduled.

Apr. 15th, John Reinhart
The Welsh of the Slate Belt

May 10th, Cheryl Statham
Preserving Food our Great Grandparents Way

Jun. 10th, Mike Piersa
Topic on Slate




Current Collections


Our collections are constantly changing. The next collections include:

Dec. 7th - Mar. 28th
Toys of Christmas Past

Mar. 28th - Jul. 31th
Welsh Display

See Photo Gallery of Past Exhibits

The Cornish Room


Cornish Dress The Cornish Room honors the immigrants who came from the country of Cornwall and it's neighboring county of Devon, Great Britain. Most of these men were skilled in the quarrying of slate, having worked in the slate region of Cornwall. Many immigrants had worked in the Delabole Slate Quarry in Delabole, Cornwall, UK. The Delabole Quarry has been quarrying slate since the 13th Century and remains in operation today. The men, upon thier arrival in the mid to late 1800's, settled in Bangor, East Bangor, and Pen Argyl, having been offered jobs in our local quarries by agents in Cornwall. Once they were able to save enough money, they sent for families still in England which, at times, took several years. Eventually, East Bangor and Pen Argyl became towns with populations predominately Cornish.

Cornish PastiesThe Cornish room, set in the early 1920’s, ventures back in time when the quarrymen returned home after a hard day of work. A slater’s blicky (lunch bucket) usually contained a pasty, a saffron nubbie, and tea. In the kitchen we find the makings of the pasties to go in the blicky and the nubbies have already come out of the oven. Many women spent their day maintaining the home though some women worked in textile mills or family businesses. Her hobbies included crocheting and tatting, making doilies, tablecloths, and other items used around the house. Many Cornish were devout Methodists due to John Wesley’s strong influence in Cornwall, making the family bible one of the most used items in their household. Music, as part of the Cornish soul, was also important in their lives and religion.

Pennsylvania Cornish Web Site