A SPECIAL CO-HOSTED COMMUNITY EVENT

Presented by the Penn Club of Westchester and Rockland Counties & the White Plains Library Foundation

💡 About This Partnership

The Penn Club of Westchester & Rockland Counties brings world-class academic expertise through the University of Pennsylvania’s faculty speaker program.

The White Plains Library Foundation provides access to the state-of-the-art Library Auditorium, opening this high-caliber presentation to all Westchester residents free of charge.

"The Country That Lay Between Us" — Rediscover Westchester’s Revolutionary War

As our nation celebrates its 250th Anniversary, the Penn Club of Westchester and Rockland Counties and the White Plains Library Foundation invite you to return to the heart of the American Revolution.

In October 1776, General Washington’s army held the line right here in Westchester. The very ground you drive past every day was once a high-stakes arena of troop movements, strategic command posts, and skirmishes that shaped a new republic.

Join us for an immersive day of self-guided explorations of local Revolutionary battlegrounds followed by a very special presentation from UPenn Professor Emma Hart.

Scouting the Homefront (11:00 AM – 2:00 PM)

Discovery begins with self-guided tours of three historic sites, each located within a convenient 10-minute drive of one another (Wayside Cottage, Miller House, and Miller Hill Battle Site). Explore in any order and at your own pace with volunteer guides on-site.

Auditorium Program & Keynote (2:00 PM Start)

All scouts will want to be en route to the White Plains Public Library by 2:00 PM to secure seats for a special musical opening! To launch our celebration and welcome our esteemed guest from Penn's School of Arts & Sciences, the Westchester Choral Society—an award-winning iconic institution with 84 years of serious vocal swagger—will take the stage at 2:00 PM. Their soaring Americana and songs of freedom will strike the perfect note to set the stage for our keynote speaker.

2:30 PM: Featured guest Professor Emma Hart, Richard S. Dunn Director of the McNeil Center for Early American Studies & Roy F. and Jeannette P. Nichols Chair of American History at the University of Pennsylvania takes the stage for a Colonial Conversation. Professor Hart's research interests include urban history, social and economic history and the intersections of history, material culture, urban studies, geography and sociology. She has written two books: Building Charleston: Town and Society in the Eighteenth-Century British Atlantic World and Trading Spaces: The Colonial Marketplace and the Foundation of American Capitalism. This afternoon with Professor Hart is a rare opportunity to hear how one of the country's leading historians connects the dots between 1776 and 2026 and how revolutionary events on our local landscape still shape the way we live, trade, and govern today.

Following Professor Hart's presentation and audience Q&A, we’ll turn up the hometown hospitality and adjourn to the Library Gallery for light refreshments and heavy socialization!

Limited billets for this free quincentennial event are available with admission capped at 150 seats. Reserve your ticket today and secure your place in our 250th Anniversary Celebration! Westchester Choral Society

Celebrate 250! A Colonial Conversation & Historic Tour

Self-Guided Tour of Historic Sites and Presentation by University of Pennsylvania Professor Emma Hart