Steady Progress For Local African American Museum

The permanent location for the African American Museum of Bucks County at Boone Farm next to Core Creek Park will open in spring 2025.

The museum’s launch, which was originally slated for 2024, has been pushed back due to renovations needed at the property.

Linda Salley, the museum’s leader, her team of volunteers, and contractors have encountered more challenges than anticipated in preparing the Boone Farm building for its new role.

“We’re looking to open spring of 25. We were hoping to open this year, but there’s too much to be done. There’s so much work to this building,” said Salley. “It is coming along.”

Significant progress has been made with the installation of windows, electrical wiring, and plumbing. However, the installation of an elevator and the refinishing of three fireplaces are still underway.

“Anytime you go into an old building, there’s a lot to be done,” Salley added, highlighting the complexities of renovating the aged structure.

The museum has been mobile in the community since 2014, visiting local schools and libraries.

Its permanent home at Boone Farm, leased to the museum for $1 a year by Bucks County commissioners in 2020, was a step towards a stable future for the nonprofit.

The site has historical significance as a place of stable employment for Black Americans during the Great Migration.

Restoration costs for the two-story farmhouse and property, which has been vacant for years, are estimated to be in the millions.

To date, the nonprofit has successfully raised $1 million but needs an additional $2 million to complete the project. Various fundraisers have been organized to support this goal, and grants from government have been obtained. However, Salley has said, funding is also needed to operate the museum.

Bernard Griggs, the county government’s project manager and diversity officer, outlined earlier this year that the core and shell of the construction should be completed by this summer, with interior and exterior work continuing into next year.

“This is probably one of the coolest projects I’ve worked on in my 35 years of construction,” Griggs remarked.

To further support the African American Museum of Bucks County, a free Juneteenth Festival will take place this Saturday at Mayor’s Park in Langhorne Borough. The event will run from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. and will feature three dozen vendors, including crafters and artists. Admission is free.

What Is Juneteenth?

Juneteenth is celebrated annually on June 19 and commemorates the day in 1865 when the U.S. Army arrived in Galveston, Texas, to announce the end of slavery. The order was part of President Abraham Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation, which had legally freed the slaves more than two years earlier. It followed the defeat of the traitorous Confederate States of America.

Juneteenth started as a state holiday in Texas but has grown to be recognized and celebrated across the country. It is also known as Emancipation Day or Freedom Day.

Since 1865, Juneteenth has gained more mainstream recognition and grown in popularity. In recent years, Juneteenth has been increasingly recognized as a holiday as part of a national acknowledgment of its importance.

In 2021, President Joe Biden signed a bill into law making Juneteenth a federal holiday.

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