The Northampton County Historical & Genealogical Society will open a new exhibition, Read This! The History of Media in Northampton County, on September 25, 2025, at the Sigal Museum in Easton. The exhibition will remain on view through July 11, 2026.
Timed with the upcoming 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, Read This! examines the ways media has shaped public opinion and civic life for more than two centuries. Visitors will see how information traveled in the colonial era, how newspapers and pamphlets fueled revolutionary thought, and how modern technology continues to transform the way communities share ideas.
Highlights of the exhibition include a replica 18th-century printing press, rare newspapers and broadsides, and a special look at Easton’s July 8, 1776 public reading of the Declaration of Independence, one of the first in the nation. Later chapters feature original materials from World War II, including Nuremberg Trial broadcasts, as well as an exploration of digital media and misinformation, with a striking deepfake video of President Nixon about the moon landing.
The exhibition is part of the Lehigh Valley 250 initiative, a regional effort marking the nation’s semiquincentennial through museum exhibitions, programs, and cultural events.
An opening reception for NCHGS members will be held on September 25 from 4 to 7 p.m. Membership details are available on the museum’s website.
Exhibition Details
📍 Sigal Museum, 342 Northampton St., Easton, PA
📅 September 25, 2025 – July 11, 2026
🔗 Learn more at sigalmuseum.org
