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Special Events - Tours
Come live 200 years of our country’s history. It’s Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and you will have the opportunity to visit the visions of our past, re-live history, and visit the history you’ve only read about.
Philadelphia has a diversity of fun and adventure waiting to be discovered by the 2010 Convention attendees and their guests, and Philadelphia is perfectly situated—it is right in the middle of where the majority of the Society’s membership is located. There’s easy access from virtually anywhere in North America, and once here you will be in the doorway to America’s history.
There are numerous adventurous and exciting tours and events planned from Saturday all the way through Wednesday that will allow you to enjoy and share the widest possible charm and magic of the city and its vistas. Please note, all tours have maximum limits. A special post-Convention tour to New York City has also been arranged.
Click one of the links below to jump to the tour description.
The Philadelphia Story - October 30
Colonial Philadelphia Experience - October 31
Pennsylvania Amish - November 1
Mural Arts Tour - November 2
Tour of Brandywine Valley, Longwood Gardens, Winterthur - November 3
Big Apple Tour - November 4
The Philadelphia Story - Saturday, October 30, 10:00 am to 1:00 pm
 The most comprehensive full-city tour available, The Philadelphia Story is a fully guided tour via deluxe transportation through four centuries of art, architecture, and Philadelphia’s growth to the second largest city on the East Coast. Beginning before 1776, you will hear stories of the people, places, and things that made Colonial Philadelphia the seat of government for the young nation and one of the largest English-speaking cities in the world. In 1681, King Charles II granted 45,000 square miles of land on the Delaware and Schuylkill Rivers to William Penn as payment for a debt owed to Penn’s father. Here, the Quaker gentleman founded Philadelphia, a Greek term translated as “City of Brotherly Love,” as part of his “Holy Experiment” of religious freedom in the New World. His fellow Quakers settled here, as well as people of many other religious backgrounds, giving Philadelphia the diverse ethnic flavor residents still savor today. Penn’s chief surveyor, Captain Thomas Holmes, used a grid pattern for the city that included five public squares, all of which remain today, to realize Penn’s vision of a “greene countrie towne.” Primarily due to its excellent location on the Atlantic Coast and accessible port facilities, Philadelphia grew rapidly in the 18th century. It was appropriately named the “Athens of the Americas” and was the cultural center of the New World. See such sites as the Liberty Bell, Independence Hall, Congress Hall, First and Second Bank of the U.S., Betsy Ross House, Franklin’s grave, Christ Church, Elfreth’s Alley, and the neighborhood of Society Hill. Embracing the modern day, you will visit neighborhoods where the Founding Fathers lived and see how contemporary Philadelphians have made them their own. Going beyond the colonial period, you will visit the bustling business district, Museum Mile of the Benjamin Franklin Parkway, the famous Rocky steps, Philadelphia’s vibrant theater district, Antique Row, the captivating French-inspired Rittenhouse Square, and much more.
During the 19th century, the city grew, annexing parts of the countryside and consolidating with the county in 1854. The annexation included Fairmount Park, now the world’s largest municipal park, spanning nearly 9,000 acres.
In 1987, One Liberty Place was the first building to break the early 20th-century gentlemen’s agreement that no building be taller than William Penn’s statue atop City Hall (about 41 stories). Now, the Liberty Place complex is one of many buildings that rise above the city’s founder, including the Mellon Bank Building and Bell Atlantic Tower and the new Comcast Center, the tallest building between New York City and Chicago. A progressive spirit continues as new skyscrapers light up the skyline of the second largest city on the East Coast. Off-coach photo opportunities will occur throughout the tour.
Tour Benefits:
- This tour is recommended for one of the first days as it gives guests a full city overview and allows them to get a “lay of the land” and determine what they’d like to go back and explore in more depth.
- This comprehensive tour will take guests to both the historic area and the modern city to get to know Philadelphia first-hand.
- Minimal walking is required for those guests who prefer to enjoy a fulllength tour without a lot of walking.
Tour Price: $42.00
- Includes experienced guides and tour personnel and refreshments. Approximately a three-hour tour.
Maximum tour number is 28.
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Colonial Philadelphia Experience - Sunday, October 31, 10:00 am to 1:00 pm
 The Colonial Philadelphia Experience is a fully guided tour both on coach and on foot through America’s Birthplace, the heart of Philadelphia’s historic district.
Step out to Philadelphia’s modern-day Market Street and learn how it got its name from the colonial market stalls that bustled with life in the 1700s as you stroll around Independence National Historical Park. Hear the stories of the people, places, and things that made Colonial Philadelphia the seat of government for the young nation.
Philadelphia served as the nation’s temporary capital from 1790 to 1800. The City’s history from 1774 to 1800 is closely linked to that of the American Revolution and the newborn nation. Thus, it is often referred to as “America’s birthplace.” Learn more about that fight for freedom in “America’s Most Historic Square Mile,” Independence National Historical Park, home to two of the nation’s most precious monuments to freedom: the Liberty Bell, an international symbol of freedom, and Independence Hall.
The First Continental Congress met at Carpenters’ Hall in 1774, and in 1776, Independence Hall served as the site where the colonists adopted the Declaration of Independence. Later, in 1787, 55 delegates to a federal convention envisioned a strong government for our new nation with the creation of the Constitution of the United States.
A few blocks away is Old City, the first commercial area of Philadelphia and one of America’s oldest business districts. Although most of the buildings now date from the latter part of the 19th century, the area still features the following attractions:
• Elfreth’s Alley: The oldest continually occupied residential street in the country.
• The Betsy Ross House: Legend has it the seamstress sewed the first American Flag there.
• Christ Church: Services are still held today as they were when George Washington, Benjamin Franklin, and other colonial leaders worshiped there.
This tour will visit neighborhoods where the Founding Fathers lived and see how contemporary Philadelphians have made them their own. See the same tiny courtyards and by-ways of colonial Philadelphians, only seen while on foot!
Sites visited include: Liberty Bell Center, Independence Hall (ticketed interior tour), Congress Hall, First and Second Bank of the U.S., Benjamin Franklin’s print shop, Betsy Ross House, Franklin’s grave, Elfreth’s Alley, Christ Church, a seldom-visited Quaker Meetinghouse, and others.
Tour Benefits:
• This tour is recommended for one of the first days as it gives guests the opportunity to see Philadelphia’s top tourism sites.
• This tour includes a pre-paid advance reservation to tour inside Independence Hall (tickets are often not available if not pre-reserved).
• This tour provides an in-depth experience through the historic area with a trained historian. The sites and buildings are tied together in a cohesive and chronological story of the early days of our struggle toward independency.
Tour Price: $45.00
• Includes experienced guides and tour personnel and refreshments.
• Wear comfortable shoes and sun screen. All-weather tour. Approximately a three-hour tour.
Maximum tour number is 28.
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The Simple Life: Pennsylvania’s Amish Monday, November 1, 9:00 am to 5:00 pm
 The Simple Life: Pennsylvania’s Amish is a full-day tour to the beautiful countryside of nearby Lancaster County, home to America’s oldest Amish settlement, where thousands still live a centuries-old “Plain” lifestyle. It’s a place where visitors can step back in time to enjoy a slower, more peaceful pace, where the horse and buggy remains a primary form of transportation, and where windmills dot the landscape, providing a nature-harnessed power source. A vital part of Lancaster County, the Amish are involved in agriculture and an array of cottage industries.
The story of the Amish community dates back to the 16th century Reformation in Europe, when the Anabaptist movement spurred the creation of three “plain” communities. Although these spiritual groups have similarities, the Old Order Amish are the most conservative, emphasizing humility, family, community, and separation from the modern world. There are three families, or Anabaptist-related groups, found in Lancaster County: the Amish, Mennonites, and Brethren. All three groups share the Anabaptist belief that calls for making a conscious choice to accept God (accordingly, only adults are baptized).
The three groups also share the same basic values concerning the all-encompassing authority of the Bible, a philosophy of brotherhood and non-resistance, and the importance of family and community. The groups differ primarily in matters of dress, language, forms of worship, and the extent to which they allow modern technology and the forces of the “outside world” to impact their lives. Most Brethren and Mennonites dress much like their “English” neighbors. Other Mennonites, Brethren, and Amish Mennonites wear distinctive Amish clothing but may make use of “worldly” conveniences, such as cars, electricity, and telephones. On the other hand, Old Order Mennonite and Old Order Amish groups are more restrictive in their views of modern technology, with the Old Order Amish being the most conservative of Lancaster County’s “plain” groups.
Upon arrival guests will embark on a three-hour guided country tour, featuring the unspoiled back road beauty of Amish farmlands, one-room schools, and cottage industries such as a general store, bakery, farm, and quilt shop (stops vary based on shopkeepers’ operating schedules).
Amish foods are part of the experience! Lunch will be a sumptuous Pennsylvania Dutch meal featuring “pass-the-platter” style dining. Dig into delicious golden fried chicken, sausage, old-fashioned chicken pot pie with handmade noodles, real mashed potatoes with gravy, bakery fresh shoo-fly pie, apple dumplings a la mode, and vanilla ice cream.
Escape to a simpler way of life with this “turn back the hands of the clock” tour. It’s a day of delights for your eyes, your taste buds, and your mind!
Tour Benefits:
• An organized tour is the only way individual guests can get to Amish country from Philadelphia.
• This tour allows for three hours of shopping in Amish businesses: quilts, country stores, food products, candles, and crafts.
• No one goes hungry with our pass-the-platter dining, with plentiful food and multiple choices.
• Experience a culture and way of life different from most Americans.
Tour Price: $105.00
• Includes experienced guides and tour personnel and refreshments.
• Wear comfortable shoes and sun screen. All-weather tour. Approximately an eight-hour tour.
• Lunch included at Plain & Fancy Farm.
Maximum tour number is 28.
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Philadelphia Unique Mural Arts Tour - Tuesday, November 2, 10:00 am to 3:30 pm
 Tour Philadelphia’s super-sized works of art with this behind-the-scenes look at how murals are made. Filled with anecdotes and rich with history, the tour will leave guests with an understanding of the complexities of mural-making and an appreciation of Philadelphia as the world’s largest outdoor art gallery. Glimpse into the world of local Philadelphia artists, many of whom are amateur and not formally trained and some of whom were former graffiti artists who have turned their once destructive work into meaningful and celebrated art.
The City of Philadelphia Mural Arts Program unites artists and communities through a collaborative process, rooted in the traditions of mural-making, to create art that transforms public spaces and individual lives. The Philadelphia Inquirer described the Mural Arts Program as, “by far, the most important, prolific, and successful public art project in the nation.” The Mural Arts Program has created more than 3,000 murals that are an integral part of the civic landscape and a source of inspiration to the thousands of residents and visitors who encounter them each year, earning Philadelphia international recognition as the “City of Murals.”
When you see a finished mural on a wall, you are looking at the result of a very long process. There are many steps between the moment a mural is conceived and the day it is dedicated. These steps can vary somewhat, depending on how a mural is funded and where it is located. Most murals are created through the same general sequence, which usually takes from three to six months.
Included in this unique tour is a stop at Philadelphia artist Isaiah Zagar’s Philadelphia’s Magic Gardens where you’ll see how he uses ceramic tile, mirrors, and found objects to create colorful and unusual mosaic murals. Philadelphia’s Magic Gardens is a folk art environment and gallery space that showcases the work of mosaicist Isaiah Zagar. Located at the site of Zagar’s largest public mosaic installation, the Magic Gardens includes a fully mosaiced indoor gallery and a massive outdoor labyrinthine mosaic sculpture. The installation, primarily consisting of found objects and contributions from the community, covers half a city block with myriad tiles, textures, and colors. A walk through the labyrinth will reveal sculptures from Latin America and Asia, bicycle wheels from local South Street shop Via Bicycles, Zagar’s handmade tiles, and mirrors of every shape and size. Zagar started working on the Magic Gardens in 1994 in the vacant lot nearby his studio. He began by constructing a massive fence to protect the area from harm and then spent the next 14 years excavating tunnels and grottoes, sculpting multi-layered walls, and tiling and grouting the 3,000-square-foot space. The installation pays tribute to Zagar’s many artistic influences, as well as the events and experiences of his life. Enveloped in visual anecdotes, the mosaiced walls refer to his wife Julia and sons Ezekiel and Jeremiah through playful images and words, but also reference important elements of the wider world—Las Pozas and Day of the Dead, the dance community of Philadelphia, and even the airplanes of the nationwide 9/11 tragedy.
It’s a once-in-a-Philadelphia-visit opportunity to get up close and personal with the city’s public art!
Tour Benefits:
• This tour offers guests a hands-on project to help make a part of a Philadelphia mural or mosaic mural (subject to availability).
• This tour will visit neighborhoods beyond the traditional “central city” boundaries.
• Great photo opportunities. Most murals are several stories tall.
• A memorable day with the immersive hands-on project. Guests get a chance to leave behind a permanent legacy to Philadelphia’s art community.
Tour Price: $105.00
• Includes experienced guides and tour personnel and refreshments.
• Wear comfortable shoes and sun screen. All-weather tour. Approximately a six-hour tour with lunch included.
Maximum tour number is 28.
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Tour of Brandywine Valley, Longwood Gardens, Winterthur - Wednesday, November 3, 10:00 am to 5:00 pm
 Picture Perfect Countryside is a full-day tour through the rolling hills of Philadelphia’s spectacular countryside. Less than an hour’s drive from Philadelphia lays the beautiful Brandywine Valley, immortalized on canvas by many artists, including the Wyeth family.
The deluxe transportation first takes you to the world-renowned Longwood Gardens. America’s premier horticultural center captivates with 1,050 acres of majestic gardens, natural woodlands, colorful meadows, 11,000 types of plants, and more fountains than any other garden in the U.S. In 1906, Pierre S. du Pont purchased the Pierce Arboretum to save its trees from being cut for lumber. Over the next nearly half century, Mr. du Pont developed Longwood Gardens into what it is today, a magnificent horticultural showplace. When visiting Longwood Gardens, guests are immersed not only in the breathtaking surroundings, but in the rich history as well. The traditions and elegance of the gardens have evolved over time and resulted in the magnificence that is seen today. Guests will have more than 2½ hours to wander at their own pace the 20 spectacular outdoor gardens and four acres of indoor heated greenhouses, eat lunch (on own) and visit the gift shop.
On the return trip, you visit Winterthur, an American country estate, the former home of Henry Francis du Pont (1880-1969), an avid antiques collector and horticulturist. In the early 20th century, H. F. du Pont and his father, Henry Algernon du Pont, designed Winterthur in the spirit of 18th- and19th-century European country houses. Your visit to Winterthur will immerse you in another time and place where you will have several hours to rediscover America’s heritage through an unparalleled collection of antiques and Americana and/or venture out over the fields and farmland to learn about the workings of a great American country estate and the breathtaking beauty of its 60- acre naturalistic Winterthur Garden.
The permanent exhibitions in the Galleries at Winterthur invite exploration and discovery. From a collection of more than 85,000 objects made or used in America between 1640 and 1860, Winterthur curators have crafted displays that focus on specific media. Themes in each gallery are built around such questions as: How were these objects made? How were they used? How do we know what they are? Objects selected range from historic clothing and craftsmen’s tools to exquisite metalworks, ceramics, and paintings.
Tour Benefits:
• An organized tour is the only way individual guests can get to the Brandywine Valley from Philadelphia.
• Great photo opportunities at Longwood Gardens.
Tour Price: $87.00
• Includes experienced guides and tour personnel and refreshments.
• Wear comfortable shoes and sun screen. All-weather tour. Approximately a seven-hour tour. (Will be on own for lunch.)
Maximum tour number is 28.
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Big Apple Tour - Thursday, November 4, 8:00 am to 6:00 pm
 Only 90 miles away awaits New York City! Unmatched for world-famous shopping, dining, and sightseeing, you’ll travel via deluxe transportation for a full-day visit to The Big Apple with plenty of free time to take it all in—what you want to see—at your own pace.
A leading global city, New York exerts a powerful influence over global commerce, finance, media, culture, art, fashion, research, education, and entertainment. As host of the United Nations Headquarters, it is also an important center for international affairs. Traveling via deluxe transportation, guests will arrive in New York City—the world’s capital. First stop: the Top of the Rock at Rockefeller Center. Discover New York in all its forms from 70 stories up at Top of the Rock Observation Deck. Enjoy dazzling multimedia history exhibits and the city’s only crystal-clear, 360° experience of New York. After seeing it all from above, next it will be free time to “conquer.”
From here, guests will have approximately five hours to enjoy New York on their own before the return trip to Philadelphia. Our transportation will pick us up at in Rockefeller Center (the same as our drop-off locations) in the afternoon to return to Philadelphia in time for dinner on your own.
Tour Benefits:
• An organized tour is the most cost effective way for guests to get to New York City from Philadelphia.
• Personal tour host for shopping and sightseeing tips.
• On-site contact available for emergencies.
• Unstructured day to allow for flexibility for everyone’s unique interests
Tour Price: $125.00
• Includes experienced guides and tour personnel and refreshments.
• Wear comfortable shoes. All-weather tour. Approximately a 10- hour tour. (Lunch on own.)
Maximum tour number is 21.
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