Lancaster Quilt & Textile Museum - Lancaster, Pennsylvania - Quilt & Textile Museum

The Lancaster Quilt & Textile Museum is located in the Lancaster Trust Building at 37 Market Street in downtown Lancaster, Pennsylvania. A Fifteen-minute bus drop-off or pick-up is available on the south side of West King Street, directly across from the Heritage Center Museum, and the Quilt and Textile Museum is a five minute walk from here. Paid public parking is available at the Hager Parking Lot on King Street, the Central Market Parking Lot on Prince Street, or the Prince Street Garage on Prince Street.

The heart of the museum's permanent exhibition is the late 19th-20th century Amish quilts, which was the brainchild of Doug Tompkins. He started collecting the quilts in the 1970s and sold them to the Heritage Center in 2002, which paved the way for the Quilt and Textile Museum to be opened two years later. It is housed in a building built in 1912 and once owned by the Lancaster Trust Company, but has been unoccupied for much of its life.

The quilts were produced by Amish women between the 1870s and 1940s in Lancaster County. Visitors can learn about the history of this religious sect, what makes their quilts unique and how they were made. As well as this permanent collection of quilts there are collections of hooked rugs, and the museum displays other exhibits on a temporary basis throughout the year.

There are several Amish communities in the United States with the largest populations in Ohio, Pennsylvania and Indiana, but due to large population growth, new settlements are continually being formed. Lancaster County is home to the world's second largest Amish settlement, where the community maintains the traditional methods and values of their ancestors. Their way of life is less materialistic so visitors can see how they maintained the skills for making quilts and rugs since they immigrated to the United States in the early 18th century.

Education programs are supplied by the museum with free lectures provided on site for school groups, as well as programs giving history lessons relevant to Lancaster and printing techniques from the early 20th century. Adults and families can observe demonstrations on quilt making. Historical walking tour booklets can also be found at the museum advising visitors where they can see how families lived in four different time periods.

General hours of opening are Monday to Saturday from 9am to 5pm with variations during holiday seasons. The museum is closed on Memorial Day, Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Day and New Year's Day. It is open until 9pm on the first Friday of each month when admission is free.

The admission fee for adults is $6, Students $4, groups of 15 or more $4 each and anyone under 17 can enter for free. The museum is fully accessible and can be hired out for receptions and social occasions too. Only five minutes walk away is The Heritage Center Museum, which is free to everyone and has many events, exhibitions and educational programs on offer to the public.