'History Of Newtown' Exhibit Opens This Weekend At Half-Moon Inn

NEWTOWN BOROUGH, PA — A once-in-a-lifetime exhibit documenting the “History of Newtown” will open to the public on Saturday, Oct. 18.

Curated especially for the nation’s 250th birthday, the unique walk-through experience highlighting Newtown’s 300 years of history will be unveiled at 1 p.m. inside the historic Half-Moon Inn (Court Inn) at 105 Court Street.

The exhibit will be open from 1 to 4 p.m. on Saturday. After that, it will be open anytime the Half-Moon Inn is open.

Over the past few years, a special committee of the Newtown Historic Association, led by co-curators Dave Callahan and Brian Rounsavill, has been working to transform two rooms on the second floor of the Half-Moon into a journey through time featuring artifacts and items from the town’s past.

Three years in the making, a timeline wraps its way across the walls of the two rooms taking visitors on a trip through the evolution of the town from an agricultural village to a thriving suburban community.

Among the more than 250 items on display is a circa 1760 door from the house that once housed Washington’s Headquarters (now the site of LukOil), the original post office door from 1805, a 1900 bell from when they conducted auctions at the Brick Hotel, an 1880 drum from the Newtown Cornet Band, and a shovel used to break ground for the Newtown Bypass in 1992.

The exhibit is separated into five unique periods in Newtown’s development - Early Newtown, Business, Transportation, and Manufacturing - each chock full of artifacts documenting the period, including deeds, wills, diaries, photographs, inventories, maps and other items.

An original stone mile marker on loan from the Mercer Museum greets visitors as they begin their journey through time. The marker once stood at the corner of South State and Centre Avenue.

A display of Native American arrowheads discovered on farms in the Newtown area is on display as part of Newtown’s Early History, a remnant of the town’s earliest days.

During the business period, when Newtown served as the county seat, the rural community grew into a prosperous government center. Because a substantial amount of town business had revolved around the courthouse trade, taverns and inns became staples.

A model depicts what the courthouse complex looked like when Newtown was the county seat from 1725 to 1813.

A prized possession from that time period is a $5 Newtown Bank Note issued in 1900 by the First National Bank & Trust.

The timeline and artifacts on display at the History of Newtown. (Jeff Werner/Patch)

An 1880 drum from the Newtown Cornet Band. (Jeff Werner/Patch)

The transportation period brought an extensive network of roads and turnpikes to the area. The Philadelphia, Newtown, and New York Stage Coach was operating in 1799. In 1872, the Philadelphia, Newtown, and New York Railroad Company was established. And in 1897, the Newtown electric trolley service commenced.

One of the more interesting items is a minute book from the Newtown-Yardley Plank Road. In its 13 short years of existence, a wooden road - similar to a boardwalk - connected the two communities before it rotted away. "The book tells you all about the road and how much they charged for a horse or a wagon," said Callahan. "There was a toll booth at each end of the road."

During the town's manufacturing period in the 19th and 20th centuries, demand for Newtown’s products and services steadily increased as Newtown became widely known throughout the region for its products, ranging from wooden spools and porcelain to aircraft, weather satellites, and space equipment.

Among the items on display is an air purification cartridge filter used during the Apollo 13 mission in 1970 and a Tiros Weather Satellite manufactured here in 1964.

The exhibit also pays tribute to the many Newtown residents who served the nation through military service, including some who sacrificed their lives for freedom on the battlefields of history.

Some of the items on display include an ammunition cartridge belt from World War I, a canteen and ration kits from World War II, a helmet from the Vietnam War, and a display of uniforms.

The idea for the exhibit came from longtime town historian Dave Callahan who wanted to do something special to celebrate the nation’s Semiquincentennial, the nation's 250th birthday in 2026. The exhibit is funded through a grant and through private donations.

Saturday's grand opening is free and open to the public from 1 to 4 p.m.. Donations are appreciated at the door by cash or QR code (Click here to donate).