14th Annual
Summer Speakers Series
First Fridays in Hulmeville
PLEASE NOTE THIS CHANGE IN LOCATION!
After 13 years of presenting the Summer Speakers Series at the Anna Mary Williamson Library and Museum, we are taking the show just up the road a bit.
The 2025 Summer Speakers Series will be held at the Richardson House, on the corner of W. Maple and S. Bellevue Avenues.
All presentations will be held on Tuesday evenings and will begin at 7:30 PM.
A $5 per person donation at the door is requested to support the LCA Student Scholarship Fund. Light refreshments will be served.
Look at this great line-up of presenters and topics!
Mark your calendar now and share with your friends!
June 17: You see it every time you cross the Burlington-Bristol Bridge, but did you ever wonder about the island that is just up river from the bridge? Patrick Mulhern will share the long and fascinating history of Burlington Island and give you a glimpse of its future.
July 1: Christine McKee has loved writing since early childhood. Preoccupied during her years as an educator in Neshaminy School District, McKee began to write poetry in the early 2000s, later adding very short stories. She has been published in print and online journals. Her book, On Shady Lane, was published in 2015. McKee is the author of the podcast Nina’s World available on Apple, Spotify, and other platforms. As viewed through the eyes of an elementary school-aged child, join the presenter in a romp through the 1950s and ‘60s. Said to be reminiscent of Mayberry and Fred Rogers, the fast-paced presentation may prompt the audience to conjure their own childhood memories.
July 15: Years ago, we sponsored a very popular presentation on the proposed Oscar Hammerstein Museum. We are delighted that Julie Flack will give us an update on the development of the Oscar Hammerstein Museum and Theater Education Center on Highland Farm in Doylestown. What iconic musicals did Hammerstein write there? What luminary was married at the farm? And what young George School student stayed in the upstairs bedroom and went on to be an award-winning Broadway composer? We will learn all that and more.
July 29: Linda Mead, a member of the National Land Trust Leadership Council, will talk about how land trusts work hand in hand with local communities to preserve and care for community values related to conservation, open space and recreation. Drawing on experience from leading land preservation at the former Bucks County Conservancy (now Heritage), and from her leadership at the D&R Greenway Land Trust in NJ, Linda will share local stories that illustrate local action and discuss the role of land trusts in finding common ground.
August 12:A Domestic Cook Book (1866) by Malinda Russell is the oldest known published cookbook written by an African American woman. This new edition includes a foreword by scholar Rafia Zafar as well as an introduction by food historian Janice Bluestein Longone that contextualizes Russell’s cookbook. Born in Tennessee and descended from Virginia freemen, Russell decided to move to Liberia at the age of 19. When her money for the trip was stolen, she ended up stranded in Lynchburg, Virginia, and began working as a cook and companion, traveling with ladies as a nurse. After living there for only four years, her husband died and she moved with her son to Tennessee where she kept a boarding house and then went on to run a pastry shop. After a second dramatic robbery in 1864, Malinda moved to Paw Paw, Michigan, because she had heard it was the “garden of the west” and published a cookbook “with the intention of benefiting the public” as well as supporting herself. Local food historian Mercy Ingraham was involved in analyzing these 19th-century recipes and making them work for 21st-century kitchens and ingredients. She will share her experience with this project.
NOTE OF THANKS: LCA extends appreciation to our friends at Historic Langhorne Association for accommodating the Summer Speakers Series for 13 years. Your kind hospitality has been very much appreciated!
We are delighted to bring First Fridays musical performances to Johnson Hall Coffee House in Hulmeville for the third year in a row! Thank you, Tim James, for your support of LCA. We are looking forward to another awesome summer!
While we are still working on the lineup of performers, you can mark your calendar right now for the First Friday of June, August, and September. The Fourth of July is the first Friday that month, so our First Friday event will actually be on the SECOND Friday in July: July 11.
A listing of the performers will be announced soon!
Arts in the Garden Tour is BACK!!!
2025 Partial Calendar of Events:
After a long hiatus, the LCA Arts in the Garden Tour is back by popular demand! This is a self-guided garden tour with a twist. As you enjoy the beautiful gardens in Langhorne Borough and Langhorne Manor, you'll also enjoy the work of local artists and the music of local musicians. Gardens and other details will be announced soon.
For now, just MARK THE DATE and TELL YOUR FRIENDS!
Saturday, May 31, from noon - 4 PM
Porch Fest!
Porch Fest will be held on Saturday, Oct 4, 2025. Stay tuned...
You thought 2024 was a busy year for LCA? We have LOTS of plans for 2025. Here's just a bit of what will be coming up soon. Check back often for updates! Activities are also posted on the Langhorne Council for the Arts Facebook page.