Annual Fund

You Make the Difference!

It’s truly been an amazing year for the History Center thanks to the generous support of our donors.  We have served local and international audiences. And we have completely renovated one of our historic farmhouses at 436 Walnut St., Girard.

But none of this would be possible without you.

And we need you once again.

Help us continue to reach new heights by contributing to the Annual Fund.

The History Center has always been a donor-supported organization. In fact, less than 5% of our budget comes from the government.

Your annual support allows us to continue to serve the public and fulfill our mission. It helps to preserve our seven historic structures, offer free field trips to area schools, conduct a variety of regional tours and keep our archives open for public research. As supporters, you can expect to see some big projects over the next year.

Whether you choose to donate via credit card on our website at eriehistory.org, or through the attached form, we are truly grateful for your ongoing partnership and generosity.

As supporters, you can expect to see some big projects over the next year. Educationally, we will be offering more programs and outreach activities than we have ever done in the past. Further, we will be engaging in a full exterior renovation at the historic Charlotte Elizabeth Battles House, 306 Walnut St., Girard, as well as debuting new exhibits at our campus on West 6th Street in Erie.

Support the Hagen History Center’s Annual fund and help us continue telling the history of Erie County.

We are truly grateful for your ongoing partnership and generosity. You will be providing opportunities to support student field trips, to maintain the campus, and to help promote Erie’s heritage for current and future generations. You can make your donation by using the form below or by going online to www.eriehistory.org/donate.

Since 1903, Erie County Historical Society has been dedicated to collecting, preserving, and promoting the study of our region’s rich history for future generations. We invite you to join us in this mission.

Thank you for your consideration.

Annual Fund Form

Why donate to the Hagen History Center?        

We preserve history and we share it with you!

Since 1903, we’ve been active in restoring and sharing history with more than 46,000 square feet of exhibit space on 132 acres of property in Girard and Erie. In addition to tours, we offer a wide variety of activities for people of all ages to enjoy. Here are just a few:

• Thousands of students from Pennsylvania and Ohio have toured our Erie campus exhibits during student field trips and learned about Victorian homes, the Erie Extension Canal, Frank Lloyd Wright’s office, Griswold cookware, Erie’s history with the U.S. Navy and much more. We also offer a camp for middle school students.
• Need a speaker? Our staff members visit schools and civic organizations with programming, online lessons, videos, traveling trunks of artifacts – all at no charge. We also participate in the Jefferson Education Society speaker series on a quarterly basis.  
• Our Girard campus, home to the Battles estate and two historic homes, has new life with an apartment for rent on Airbnb and multiple seasonal festivities, including farm-to-table dinners.
• More than 1,000 visitors toured our Erie campus on free-admission Community Days, which are supported by donors.
• Dozens of brides and others held one-of-a-kind events on our historic campuses in Erie and Girard.
• Research! We have more than 200 years’ worth of research. If you need something, we know how to find it.

 What is coming next?

Watch for additional outreach programs in Erie County. We’ll bring our history to you.  An updated list of events will be included on the website under the events section.

While we have received major donations supporting capital projects, we count on fundraising events and the Annual Fund to support our operating budget.

Please help us continue our mission to collect, preserve and share our region’s history.

Thank you for your consideration.